Merry Christmas | Remember the Words

Advent is a time of anticipation.  Today is the day of realization.

"And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them." - Luke 2:16-20.

Finally, after hundreds of years of waiting and anticipating, the children of Israel were to receive their King.  Have you ever wondered how exactly the Israelites would recognize their Messiah?  They certainly didn't have Facebook Memories remind them annually.  

The only way that that generation would be able to recognize Christ would be if they remembered the prophecies and promises. Often handed down from one generation to the next, these words of God were the only thing that the children of Abraham could cling to.  Memory was everything.  Communicating those promises was everything.

In a year that has challenged the way that we have celebrated for generations, it will be all the more important to remember what was put into motion on this Christmas Day.  A gauntlet was thrown at the darkness, and the response was insufficient.  The King has won and sits enthroned - immovable.  Remember that no matter what the coming generations think, the Babe that was born this day two millennia ago has already defeated their purposes.

Truly, this is the good news of great joy!

Merry Christmas.

| Merry All Year Round |

Merry Christmas to one and all!

I apologize for my absence this month.  I rounded out the semester with a fairly intense three weeks between breaks, what with papers and finals!  It was tough, but a good kind of difficult that made me feel like I was ready for break.  I was also able to air out a bit of creative energy this past week, as I finally got around to writing a short story that had been bouncing around in my head.

Break is a wonderful time to relax and rejuvenate oneself for the coming semester's challenges.  I will have a lot on my plate moving forward, but I am already feeling excited for next year, and still have three weeks of break left!  Not that that will be an easy three weeks, as I intend to do lots of free reading and writing, scholarship application, and then there is a wedding or something at the end of it.  (Or so I have been told.)

But it has now reached that time of the day that all of the main festivities for the Lopez family have finished up.  We did our stockings, brunch, then had our gift-giving time, and now we are cooling down.  A thought occurred to me this Advent and Christmas season, one that I tend to wonder as the end of the holiday season comes to a close.  And it is this:  what does Christmas look like in the middle of February or the beginning of June?  To rephrase it: How should the birth of Christ impact us in our walk outside of the holidays? Because, if I am being honest, it is really easy to be joyful during this time of the year.  What with the anticipation of Christmas, being around family, and the end of the school semester. How could you not be cheerful?

But once New Years Day comes and goes, January 2nd hits like a drum.  It is easy to lose the trees in the forest.  I forget the one day that should shape all of the other days of the year.

What does Christmas look like on the rest of the days?

What did Christ do on that day?  On His birth day? What did it look like?

He sacrificed.

He humbled Himself.

He loved.

He redeemed.

These qualities color the entire story of the Advent season.  But it is so easy to forget those when we get back to work, or school, or whatever else we have going on after the New Year. So I guess what this really boils down to is what will your New Years resolutions be?  Mine?  Sacrifice.  Humility.  Love.  Redemption.  Sacrifice my selfish desires.  Humble myself in my school work.  Love my blessings.  Redeem the time I have.  Make it useful.  I need to remember that this life isn't mine.  Rather, it is God's and He calls me to give it to others.  So I shouldn't live for myself, rather I should live for others.  Live outside of myself.

Why?

Because Christ.  That's why.

Merry Christmas indeed!