The Meaning Of Christmas

So what is the practical meaning of Christmas? Anyone can say it is a celebration of the birth of Christ, but who actually gives gifts to him and not to family members on that day?

When I was a child, Christmas meant getting up very early to open gifts from the folks and then be rushed off reluctantly to an early church serivce. There was always a big dinner with lots of aunts and uncles in attendance. Food consisted of turkey with all the trimmings, jello salads, and pies.

As we grew older, we wanted to share in giving gifts as well as receiving them. This probably didn't happen until we were into high school or even out of school, because until we had jobs there wasn't much money to spend on others.

When we became adults, we made concerted efforts to take some of the load off our parents, and to find suitable gifts for them. We seldom had success on either front. The aunties were never willing to concede their jello-making monopoly. And my parents were often notoriously difficult to shop for (or even create things for).

When I was in high school I met Jesus and honoring his birth made more sense to me. But the hectic ready-making for Christmas morning turned all other priorities upside down, and it was always with bleary eyes that we went to church to do that honor, irrespective of any desire to do so. And often with irritation grown of frustrations or disappointments with shopping or crafting.

For many years Christmas was a difficult time for all of us. They became most difficult of all in 1998 when my mother went into the hospital on Christmas day, and passed away the next day. As much as we tried to pull together as a family, Christmas was always a strain after that. Now we are lucky to get all of my brothers and sisters together in the same room on any occasion, even Christmas. Perhaps we discovered that the glue that held our family together was not Jesus, but my mother.

Fortunately I was introduced to Mary's family in 1997, and that gave me a glimpse of a different kind of Christmas. Mary's nephews and nieces ranged in age from 6 to 11 (at that time), and it was a joy to buy, or preferably make, gifts for them.

Every year since 1999, Mary and I have had a "tradition" of making special craft projects for everyone in close family, about 18 people in all. One year it was cardboard boxes in the shape of stockings, covered with cloth, with goodies inside. Another time it was small wooden boxes, painted with different designs, filled with little treasures. Mary has taken to making sets of rubber-stamped all-occasion greeting cards, which everyone loves. Last year I made binders with covers laden with family photographs, tailored to each family member. (I'm not yet divulging this year's project because not all have been distributed yet!)

But where is Christ in all of this? Jesus loved the little children, but eventually they all grow up and become difficult adults, much harder to love. Jesus loved to give to others, but would he stay up late nights doing art projects while neglecting his relationship with his Father, as we do in order to meet our self-imposed deadlines? And of course the artists always wants to draw attention to himself and his effort; this is part of the artist personality. Did Jesus have this neurosis? God forbid!

I like to think that in my mother I saw something of what Jesus was like. She baked the turkey, she baked the pies, but she desired to see us eat them; she did not desire to brag about them. She reluctantly let us wash the dishes, her fine china and silver that she never quite felt comfortable trusting us with.

So this year, Mary and I missed going to church with the rest of the family because we were still working on craft projects at the last minute. We did not get home until 4:00 am, which meant that we were not up early enough to go to any church today (and which also means that after sleeping in, now at 2:00 am I'm not too tired to be typing up all this). So Jesus escaped us completely. I don't even recall saying grace when we ate last night.

We can say with certainty that we did not become caught up in the consumerism of the season, although without a doubt we did spend money. But honoring Jesus must mean more than rejecting the consumer mentality. It must mean more than just spending time with family. Anyone of any religion, or even no religion, can do those things as well or better than we did.

Reading some of the articles I've posted recently, one might be tempted to think that honoring Jesus means saying "Merry CHRISTmas" to everyone in earshot, and suing those who don't respond in kind. Or perhaps it means refusing to put up a "pagan" decorated tree. Perhaps it means eating turkey instead of chinese food. Perhaps it means shopping at Wal-Mart instead of at Target. Would complaining about how the country is going to hell in a bucket suffice? No, everyone does that, whether they are attempting to honor Jesus or not.

My stepson (and Mary's son) is serving with the U.S. Marines in Iraq. We chat with him on the computer almost every day. He has been telling us about near-misses and fallen friends. We have been praying for him every day. Perhaps the way we can most honor Jesus is to acknowledge the role he plays in our lives. He sustains us while our son is in a dangerous situation. He sustains our son as well. We can do nothing but pray. God has put us in this situation against our will. We can do nothing but look to him for comfort, safety, and encouragement. So now God has us right where he wants us. We have no choice but to honor him with lips and lives. We can do nothing for our son. But we can expect our God to do miracles.

"And we have such confidence through Christ toward God; not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as being out of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God." - 2 Corinthians 3:4-5

When we have failed in every other way, we can look to God, the source of our lives, our sustainer, and our only comfort. No matter what else we might do on this Christmas day, if we do that, we honor Jesus in the way that he wants to be honored.

Jesus, thank you for continuing to take care of us, our son, and our families. Thank you for remembering our friends who are ill, relatives who have been in the hospital recently, and nieces whose mothers have died and left no one to take care of them. Help us to be your hands, mouth and eyes to those who need you as acutely as we do. Amen.