Come let us adore...us?

The Christmas season is fully upon us and everywhere you look there is magic - and gaudy decorations - in the air. Black Friday shopping still exists, but the internet has now cornered the market for savings and Amazon has this whole one-click shopping thing mastered.

If you consider yourself a Christian or even just a slightly religious person, then you understand that Christmas is more than just being in the spirit of giving or a holiday that gets the kids out of school for a couple of weeks. Christmas is about Jesus, because it is that time of year when we recognize His birth, His coming into the world as the Messiah to save us from our sins and to bring the hope of eternal life.

Now more than ever we realize that a large portion of our culture does not celebrate Christmas for those reasons. Honestly, I have no problem with that at all because no matter how the rest of the world chooses to acknowledge what Christmas is about, I know that it is about Jesus and I get the chance to share that truth with others. I know the history of Christmas - December 25 is a day selected by the early church to celebrate and recognize the birth of the coming King and that we really don't know when Jesus was actually born. Not that this takes away from our celebration of Him, it just helps to understand the background. I mean, we celebrate Jesus everyday, right?

And let's be honest for a minute. There are many Christians out there who get a little too territorial when it comes to Christmas. What do I mean? Think about it - they wage a version of holy war if department store workers say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas"; town councils are angrily assaulted if a nativity scene is not allowed on public property; and don't even think about denying them the right to wear their Christmas sweaters and vests to work (That last one I kind of make up, but to be honest, have you seen some of those sweaters? I wish they were banned!).

Then there is the whole Christmas time celebrations, especially the ones sponsored at church. I grew up going to Christmas cantatas and have wonderful memories of the music and the festivities that I witnessed over the years. Who knew that Mary could sing so well after having a baby with no epidural? The way that the stage at church can be rearranged to look like a barn complete with live animals is amazing and some of those set designs look like they came from Hollywood. Lighting candles with the house lights out completes the "Silent Night" effect. Don't forget all of the decorations! The Christmas lights and the big Frazier fir tree (because those are the best), complete with miles of garland, add a beautiful finishing touch.

We wouldn't dare dream of celebrating Christmas any other way. Besides, this is how we've been doing it for years and years. Yet in the midst of all of this celebrating and decorating and singing and giving, it seems as if we have lost some of our focus on what Christmas is really about. And it is more than just a manger scene that we recreate on stage - this is about the Messiah, the Son of God, whose soul purpose for coming into this world was to die a grizzly death because that was the only way to pay for our filthy sinfulness. 

Looking on social media sites, I see so many pictures and videos of Christmas plays and musicals complete with virtual back-slaps for what an amazing job we all did on them this year. I shudder to think how much money our churches are pouring into these productions! And yes, let us celebrate together with music and festivities, but let us also make sure that we are so very careful that we aren't too excited about how amazing we are in the midst of trying to point people to who Jesus is.

The big danger when we celebrate Christmas in extravagant ways is that we invite others to come and adore US instead of Jesus. We fight to "Keep Christ in Christmas" (as if anyone could actually steal His name away) and we strive to have the biggest and best Christmas show ever without realizing that all of this may actually do very little in pointing people to the object of our celebration.

I don't want you to read this and think that I am going all Scrooge on you or that I am trying to dictate how you celebrate. But I do want you to sincerely evaluate what your focus is on this time of year. Perhaps you and your family can discover an Advent reading plan from the Bible that you can read together each day. Or maybe you can choose to give some gifts this year as a family to worthy causes instead of wrapping another present for under the tree. Whatever you choose to do, strive for your focus to be on Jesus.

And if you know others who don't care about all of that, love them just the same. They aren't doing Christmas "wrong," they just aren't seeing it for what it truly is. Maybe they are observing Christmas as a reaction to how so many of us have tried to make it an agenda and not as a time to worship. Remember, it is Christmas, not Christm-US.

 

Pass that red cup over here, please

Much has been said and rehashed in the past week about the whole Starbucks red cup fiasco, and it's my turn to express an opinion or two on the whole debacle. Yes, I think that the guy who makes his name "famous" by ranting and offending people with his "Jesus Christ t-shirt" is a bit off his rocker. Telling the barista that your name is "Merry Christmas" so that she will write it on the cup? Juvenile genius, I guess. And I chuckle at the irony of just how much business he is generating for Starbucks with his crusade against the company all because they won't put reindeer or Christmas trees on their cups this year.

But if I ran into this guy today and had the chance to tell him how I really feel about his stance against the "Starbucks Antichrist" company, here is what I would tell him to his face: Thank you!

Yes, this self-proclaimed advocate for all things Christian has actually done Christianity a favor. He has single-handedly tipped the cup (pardon the pun) so that the rest of the Christian world can see just how ridiculous things have gotten. Over the years there have been many (self) righteous causes that Christian organizations have adopted in an effort to boycott or protest businesses that they deem as unChristian. For their effort, all they have received is scorn and skeptical looks from the masses who might actually need to hear about Jesus' love and sacrifice for them instead of how evil a Disney roller coaster is.

Here is the point: If you need a secular institution or business to promote the name of Jesus for you, then you are failing at the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). I could care less if Starbucks puts a Christmas picture on their cups or if sales clerks tell me "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Why? Because it is MY call to spread the gospel of Jesus to the world, not theirs.

So the next time you plan to go out for coffee with your offensive Christian t-shirt on and your six-shooter strapped to your hip, pause for moment before walking out the door and ask yourself one very important question: Why am I doing this? Is it because you want to prove a point and stick it to the man in Jesus' name? If that's the case, then have at it. But please know, the rest of the Christian world is getting fed up with these antics. They aren't effective because they don't point people to the truth of Jesus. And if this your true motive, then I have one more suggestion for you: Repent.

A few Christmas nuggets for your enjoyment

It's Christmas time again and do you know what that means? Chaos! At least that's what it's come to for many of us this time of year. There are so many gifts to buy, all those cheesy decorations and lights to hang, and the family gatherings can be downright maddening. I'm pretty sure if you listen closely enough you'll hear a collective sigh of relief from most people once the holidays are actually over.

So, this is what we've come to, huh? Maybe my assessment doesn't match how you actually observe Christmas and the holiday season, but I'm afraid it's pretty accurate for most others. Whether you're here or there or even somewhere in the middle, I want to give to you a few nuggets to chew on and ponder this Christmas season.

1. Christmas is about Jesus. There, I've said the obvious. I know some of you will whip out your history books and recount how December 25 was actually a pagan holiday and Christians just kinda took it over or that we don't know exactly the date on which Jesus was born, but save your breath. Christmas represents our honoring the coming of God in the flesh - Jesus Christ - into the world for the express purpose of dying for the sins of mankind so that we might know salvation and life. Keep that in the front of your brain.
2. It's not your birthday. True, we can't technically prove that it's Jesus' birthday either but here's the point - it's not really about you. From a very early age we promise our kids loads of presents and for many Christmas mornings become gripe sessions about what they didn't get as opposed to what they did. And don't even get me started on the insanity of Black Friday. Yet each year the majority are licking their chops in anticipation of what they are going to get, hoping above hopes they will get what they truly want. True, there are touching stories of those who give sacrificially to help others and I hope that you do the same, yet I have a feeling that most us still believe getting feels a whole lot better than giving. What a bunch of spoiled brats we've become.
3. There is no need to carry on the crusade to "keep Christ in Christmas." Before you add me to your own personal naughty list, hear me out. There are a lot of Christians who get all bent out of shape when people say "Happy Holidays" as opposed to "Merry Christmas." I get that Christmas is about Jesus (refer to #1 above) yet while that is how Christians know this time, those who don't believe in or follow Jesus don't get it that way. And that's okay. If you are a Christian then you celebrate Jesus every single day of your life, not just once or twice a year (shout to Easter). Besides, can we really take Jesus out of anything (He is God, you know)? So when someone who does not follow Jesus wants to celebrate at a time of year when Christians like myself want to celebrate His incarnation, then let's use that as a time to lovingly instruct them about Jesus. Have them over for Christmas treats, invite them to your parties, give them a present. I'm pretty sure that will be more effecting in pointing them to Jesus than getting all angry because they don't greet you the right way.
4. Finally, let's focus on this "Christmas spirit" thing for more than just a few weeks. I truly do tear up when I see families in need get help at this time of year, especially from random strangers or groups who come together and do amazing things. But I would also tear up if I saw these same kinds of beautiful acts of generosity if they happened in April or August. It works for Extreme Makeover Home Edition so why can't that be our focus year round? The generosity of Jesus is not seasonal and it shouldn't be for us either.

 My hope for each of you is that you stand in awe of Jesus, not just at Christmas but on every day of the year. But since it is Christmas and the whole world is watching, let's agree to make it only about Jesus and not some agenda that we wish to carry out. Merry Christmas!