Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

            I know what you may be thinking, “James is having a little trouble with the timing of his blog.  He must have thought we would get it before December 25^th.”

            Actually, I have done this on purpose; there is no mistake.  I realize that Christmas music disappears from the radio on December 26. Christmas trees are mostly bare, and only a few gatherings to celebrate the season remain.  By New Year’s Day, people will have turned off their lights and packed away the Christmas decorations with only the pounds we have gained to serve as a reminder of our celebration of Emmanuel, God with us. However…if you are reading this post on or before January 5^th, let me once again say, “Merry Christmas.”

            We spend four weeks in faithful preparation for the coming of baby Jesus through the season of Advent – a fact that our commercially driven society has been quick to embrace.  The other part of this celebration that we tend to neglect is the season of Christmas.  Yes, much like the seasons of Epiphany, Easter, and Pentecost, Christmas day marks the beginning of the season of Christmas. Christmas is traditionally a season of 12 days between Christmas Day and Epiphany set by the 567 Council of Tours held in France. In Germany, Belgium and Holland the twelve days began on December 25 and running through January 5^th. In England, December 26^th marked the first day of (after) Christmas. (Haidle)

            We even have a Christmas song that celebrates each of these days and the gifts that we have received from “our True Love.” Throughout this season we celebrate the many gifts of grace that God has given us. Helen Haidle’s book The Real 12 Days of Christmas (Gold ‘n’ Honey Books, ©1997) gives us an example of some of the meaning behind the song.

            When you see Christmas songs in the bulletins for New Year’s Eve or see the church decorated through Epiphany Sunday, realize that we are not just clinging to a season long past.  We have joined with 1500 years of tradition as we rejoice in the fullness of God’s gift in Jesus Christ. So, Merry Christmas!

Grace and Peace,

Getting Ready for Christmas

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’”

Mark 1:1-3, NRSV

Are you ready for Christmas? This early in December, most people would say, “No!” Have you spent some time getting ready for Christmas? Well now, that’s a different story.  We have decorated our church at Main Street UMC and have already had our Holiday Market on Main.  After December 3, we will have decorated our sanctuary with our beautiful and moving Hanging of the Greens service.  Many of us have decorated our homes (or at least begun the process) with Christmas trees, stockings, and lights galore. Maybe we have started to turn on Christmas music in our cars and homes or purchased Christmas presents in anticipation of the numerous gatherings. And yet, if we have done all of these things, it is possible that we have still not done anything to get ready for Christmas.  
Fortunately, the church year offers us an opportunity to get ready – a season called Advent. The church calendar begins with a four week time of preparation as we get ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmas.  Advent derives from the Latin “ad-venire" which means "to come to."  This season gives us opportunity to hear the voice of John the Baptist as he cries to “prepare the way of the Lord.”
John does not ask for people to begin baking fruit cake or to make a wish list for Santa. He “[proclaims] a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” (Mark 1:4, NRSV) In order to prepare the way for Jesus, we do not need to focus on anything that has to do with decorations or appearances.  Instead, we are reminded that to get ready for the coming of our Savior is to turn away from those parts of our lives that are not Christ-centered and to receive the forgiveness that only the grace of God in Jesus Christ provides.
During this Advent season, may we not only prepare our homes, but may we also prepare our hearts for the coming of our Prince of Peace. Only then will we be truly ready for Christmas.
Grace and Peace,