The following is a guest blog from my dear wife (Jamie King) on one of her favorite subjects; Christmas.
There is a Christmas song I love (okay there are a
hundred Christmas songs I love if I am being honest) called “Not That Far From
Bethlehem” The tune is somewhat catchy and the words very predictable so you
won’t find it on any Top 100 charts, but it really revolutionized how I
approached the holiday season.
Now I love Christmas. Christmas music, Christmas trees, Lights,
Presents, Family Dinners, Traveling To and Fro, Hectic Shopping, Loud Homes, I
love it all. Most people don’t really
love Christmas. They love Christmas
things. They like trees. Or music.
Or presents. While these things
of Christmas are grand, I am now a firm believer that the crazy holiday
traveling, loud family gatherings, and hectic lifestyles are a far better
reflection of the true Christmas spirit than the things.
So what was the original Christmas like? Well we hopefully all read the story of Jesus’
birth during this Christmas season. It
is after all the “Christmas Story.” But
let’s reflect on it here. A very round
Mary and her fiancé/husband Joseph travel from Nazareth (in Galilee) to
Bethlehem to take part in the census.
Luke (the historian/doctor i.e. Mr. Accurate) makes sure to note that
everyone went to his own town to register.
So everybody is going home for Christmas. Crazy holiday traveling?
Check
Luke goes on to note that Joseph went to Bethlehem
(the city of David) because he belongs to the house and line of David. Now if you are the kind of person who tends
to skim read the genealogical portions of scriptures let me explain something
to you: David had lots of descendents!
So everyone is in Bethlehem for the census. We know there was no room for Jesus to be
born in the inn (really? No room in any inn in the whole city? Sounds a lot
like Christmas at Mom’s where you start to wonder who is going to have to sleep
on the dining table or in the doghouse because even a 4 bedroom house starts to
feel small when you get enough people there.
Crowded and busy Bethlehem sets the scene for our Savior’s birth. Hectic? Check.
Now if this doesn’t seem fun enough just yet, the
angels appear to the shepherds announcing the birth of the child and the
shepherds run off to Bethlehem to find him.
(And you thought your relatives were loud and stinky). Combining the newborn baby, a city so crowded
with descendents of David there is no room in the inn, a group of shepherds, and
a company of angels makes me doubt the hymn Silent Night is very
applicable. Loud family gathering?
Check.
So? So maybe
this Christmas in the hustle and the bustle we should be thankful for the opportunity
to celebrate the real Christmas. Just as
loud and hectic as it was originally.
Follow my endearing darling on Twitter. Also, you can follow all of our ministry happenings at www.nathanandjamie.com.
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