The song "It Is Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" was written in 1857, but it has been the song that has continued to go through my mind all day today. Actually, in some communities and in many retail stores and shopping malls, it was beginning to look like Christmas well before Thanksgiving. The decorations, both for sale and for viewing, were already in place. In the neighborhood where I live, several people have lights hung and strung, inflatable yard ornaments, and Christmas trees visible through the front window. Some radio stations are playing Christmas music throughout the day. A number of people are already reporting that their Christmas shopping is already completed.
While I am still digesting turkey, dressing, and pecan pie, I don't have any real problem with the early Christmas sightings. While I would prefer to complete one holiday before going to the next, I know that Christmas is a "biggie." I just wonder if our rush to Christmas causes us to not have enough time to consider why Christmas is a "biggie."
My desire for all of us is that during our mad dash to December 25th we keep in mind that it is the birth of Jesus, the Son of God, that we celebrate. While it is fun to shop for gifts for the grandchildren, there is no greater gift to have than the gift that God gave us on that first Christmas when His Son was born to a humble family traveling to a distant city to be counted in a census so they could be taxed. They spent the night in the last available space, the shelter that was reserved for the livestock of those staying in a nearby Inn. Approximately 33 years later, Jesus, who lived a life of sinless perfection, was put to death on a cross in fulfillment of God's plan to offer His own Son as a sacrifice for the sin of all of us.
Even while writing that last paragraph, I felt myself slow down and become more thoughtful regarding this Christmas season. Taking seriously the real meaning of Christmas certainly will take more than just a day or two, maybe more than a month or two. It should take my entire life to just celebrate Him and what He has done for me and for you.
Now, if the stores will just hold off on Valentine's merchandise untile after New Year's.
