It’s the most wonderful time of the year… For me, Christmas is one of the best times of the year. I love getting together with family and eating, and swapping gifts and eating, and driving around at night looking at lights and eating… well, you get the idea.
We all have things that we do this time of year but if you’re like me, they are divided into segments. Family stuff, personal stuff, church stuff – all about Christmas but somehow not connected. I believe that we often approach Jesus the same way. At Christmas we see Jesus as a baby, cute cuddly and wrapped in swaddling cloths. At Easter we see Jesus as beaten and crucified but then rising again to conquer death and hell. Again, snapshots but we don’t really connect the whole story.
Speaking of stories, I love the stories that we all hear this time of year. From all of the old classic movies to the weird animation Rankin-Bass videos (Frosty and Rudolph) and especially the Charlie Brown Christmas, where Linus reads out the Christmas story – it still makes me feel emotional and nostalgic. I think of the Biblical stories as well. How the angel spoke to Mary and Joseph and Simeone then to the shepherds, how the birth of Christ was prophesized over 700 years before He was born. I really love this time of year.
This week we will look at how Matthew tells us about the Magi, the religious leaders and teachers of the law, and Herod and their very different responses to the birth of Jesus.
Our Christmas Eve service will be Tuesday, December 24, at 6:00 pm and is a special service of carols, communion and candles. I invite you to take time out from the busy-ness of this season and join us for these services. As we celebrate His coming into history, we can reflect on His coming into our lives.