Christmas has arrived early this year to our abode.
We are not among the early adopters of the festive season on a normal year but for some reason it seems that our offspring are especially keen to enter the world of trees and silver bells.
Perhaps it is because it has been a particularly tough year for us all they want to embrace the frivolous and wallow in it for a time. I cannot deny them this escape, as the source of much of the gloom over the preceding eleven months how can I say no to fun and frivolity.
I well remember my single days where I was sombre and joyless at this season, my doctrinal sterness revelled in the correctness of my moral high ground. How could any right thinking Christian have any involvement with this most pagan of festivals?
I was utterly justified in my position as pagan policeman within the church…at least in my own mind. How could these mature people adopt and embrace such hypocrisy as they erected fake pine trees in their homes in respect to a tradition with no foundation other than historicity?
And yet here I was today, willingly spending cash and hours of my time retrieving our own collection of festive decorative paraphernalia from the attic and supermarket. I willingly and of my own accord inserted a new power point to facilitate our latest tree. At the turn of the staircase was to be the designated spot for this new addition, so I set to work to make this possible.
Had I but read the packaging prior to beginning I could have saved myself a trip to the attic, ninety minutes of exertion and numerous trips to the shed. But in my naivety I assumed that a four foot pre lit tree would require more power than three batteries could supply…..apparently not!!
So there it sits, the first of five.
I have progressed from zero inclusion to total immersion in this season of goodwill.
I love Christmas now as much as I once eschewed it. As soon as Michael Buble starts to croon ‘silver bells’ I will be all in. Why? What has changed?
Me.
I still don’t associate Christmas with God becoming flesh, for me there is only the scarcest link created by an over zealous potentate. No, Christmas is joy for no other reason than I get to immerse myself in a pointless food and present giving celebration. Our home looks welcoming with all of the extra lights, we bless our loved ones and children with gifts that they could live without. We spend time together eating and talking, building each other up and enjoying the whole time together.
Yes, as Christians we are especially blessed in the knowledge of what it all resulted in and it is integral to our lives. However, as Frank Sinatra and Mariah Carey occupy the air in our home, as the Christmas channel begins to broadcast from the digital radio the songs totally distract from the biblical to the earthly. Thoughts of snow and mulled wine, presents and trees come to the fore.
Is this terrible?
Well, firstly I am a Christian so that governs all, but I am also a father, a husband, a citizen, and a man. My kids put up with a lot having me as a dad, they live with all that I am and don’t ever complain, if I can bring this period of joyfulness into our home and perhaps extend it this year, why would I not?
Note to 21 year old self………you have no idea what life is really like!
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