the day after...
I've been meaning to sit down and write for days. I've had thoughts on my mind and heart and, unfortunately, little time on my side. I'm sure you felt the same way, too. Because this season of joy is also a season of unrest. It's like we work so hard to celebrate Christmas that by the time it arrives we're too tired to fully enjoy it. The older I become, the less I appreciate the American way of Christmas. The gifts, the decor, the expectations are exhausting. This has really escalated since having children. Sure, Christmas is magical through the eyes of children but I often find myself fighting this inner-conflict on what I want Christmas to look like for our family. Is it full of picture perfect, Hallmark worthy traditions? Do we go all out on gifts? Do we keep it simple? Do we talk about Santa or do we not acknowledge him at all? And how do we keep our focus on the true meaning of Christmas when there are a million other distractions pulling our eyes away?
The day after Christmas is one of the saddest days of the year, don't you think? It's like we built all of this amazing excitement and anticipation that falls to the wayside the moment we lay our heads down on Christmas night. We wake up the next morning and it's back to life as usual. The absence of decorations makes our spaces look so sad and empty. The night is no longer lit up with bright lights. The good cheer and kindness that is expressed all month is gone as if we only have the ability to practice such behaviors once a year. The storefront windows boast of sales, trying to clear out the leftover items and quickly make room for a new season. And just like that we find ourselves facing the rest of a long, cold, dark, gloomy winter with nothing much to look forward to until the beautiful time-change in Spring.
I thought about Mary yesterday. I know Jesus wasn't born on December 25 and that Christmas wasn't a holiday at the time, but for the sake of this post, let's just pretend that was the case. Christmas Day with a newborn. I really hope that Jesus was an "easy" baby for Mary's sake. She was miles from home and staying in a barn. She needed a break! And Joseph, too. Not only were these two going to parent the long awaited Messiah, but Joseph had to deliver the baby. Did they take Baby Delivery 101 before embarking on their journey to Bethlehem? I took all of those baby classes before giving birth to my first child, and truth be told, they didn't help that much. I would have been terrified to give birth on a barn floor with Aaron acting as the doctor! Anyhow, these two were in the thick of it. Great joy comes with the birth of a child, but so does great exhaustion and fear. Here's your sweet baby, now enjoy rearranging your entire life and getting little to no sleep while you do it. I bet it was a bittersweet Christmas Day, don't you? I was so grateful to become a mother, but the months following the arrival of my child were difficult. It wasn't smooth and easy and fun, yet I knew that it was just the beginning of my journey. It was a transformational point in time, and I was learning more about myself than I had ever known. Motherhood isn't an easy road, but it's certainly one worth walking. Full of highs and lows and every emotion in between for the rest of your life because a mother is always a mother no matter the age of her child.
I think the problem with December 26 is that we find great joy in the birth of the Savior for weeks and then once the day comes, it's over. It's how we often view Jesus. That we just need him in the moment. We just need him for the season. But the thrill of hope dies away with a new season because we leave Jesus in the manger where we found him instead of moving forward with him. We forget that the little baby we celebrate on December 25 is with us each day of our lives. He's not just a tiny baby, a miracle worker, or a man on a cross. He is the eternal one, the resurrected Christ who came to give us thrilling hope every day. The one who came at Christmas not to increase our burdens but to lighten them. The one who gives us rest and peace and joy and not just for 4 weeks a year. And so, December 26 is part of the journey. It's not over at Christmas, it's just begun. And no matter where you find yourself on the journey, you're not alone. There may be spaces of emptiness, but He can fill them completely. There may be darkness, but He can pierce it with light. Valleys will come, but He will lead us through them. That's the whole purpose of Christmas. Not so we can decorate trees, eat ourselves into bigger pants, give gifts, write letters to Santa, or hang lights. He came with a purpose to heal the brokenhearted and to bind up the wounded. To shine light into the darkness and bring hope to the hopeless. To set the captive free and to give all who believe in Him eternal life. He is the one who was, who is, and who is to come!
The day after Christmas is one of the saddest days of the year, don't you think? It's like we built all of this amazing excitement and anticipation that falls to the wayside the moment we lay our heads down on Christmas night. We wake up the next morning and it's back to life as usual. The absence of decorations makes our spaces look so sad and empty. The night is no longer lit up with bright lights. The good cheer and kindness that is expressed all month is gone as if we only have the ability to practice such behaviors once a year. The storefront windows boast of sales, trying to clear out the leftover items and quickly make room for a new season. And just like that we find ourselves facing the rest of a long, cold, dark, gloomy winter with nothing much to look forward to until the beautiful time-change in Spring.
I thought about Mary yesterday. I know Jesus wasn't born on December 25 and that Christmas wasn't a holiday at the time, but for the sake of this post, let's just pretend that was the case. Christmas Day with a newborn. I really hope that Jesus was an "easy" baby for Mary's sake. She was miles from home and staying in a barn. She needed a break! And Joseph, too. Not only were these two going to parent the long awaited Messiah, but Joseph had to deliver the baby. Did they take Baby Delivery 101 before embarking on their journey to Bethlehem? I took all of those baby classes before giving birth to my first child, and truth be told, they didn't help that much. I would have been terrified to give birth on a barn floor with Aaron acting as the doctor! Anyhow, these two were in the thick of it. Great joy comes with the birth of a child, but so does great exhaustion and fear. Here's your sweet baby, now enjoy rearranging your entire life and getting little to no sleep while you do it. I bet it was a bittersweet Christmas Day, don't you? I was so grateful to become a mother, but the months following the arrival of my child were difficult. It wasn't smooth and easy and fun, yet I knew that it was just the beginning of my journey. It was a transformational point in time, and I was learning more about myself than I had ever known. Motherhood isn't an easy road, but it's certainly one worth walking. Full of highs and lows and every emotion in between for the rest of your life because a mother is always a mother no matter the age of her child.
I think the problem with December 26 is that we find great joy in the birth of the Savior for weeks and then once the day comes, it's over. It's how we often view Jesus. That we just need him in the moment. We just need him for the season. But the thrill of hope dies away with a new season because we leave Jesus in the manger where we found him instead of moving forward with him. We forget that the little baby we celebrate on December 25 is with us each day of our lives. He's not just a tiny baby, a miracle worker, or a man on a cross. He is the eternal one, the resurrected Christ who came to give us thrilling hope every day. The one who came at Christmas not to increase our burdens but to lighten them. The one who gives us rest and peace and joy and not just for 4 weeks a year. And so, December 26 is part of the journey. It's not over at Christmas, it's just begun. And no matter where you find yourself on the journey, you're not alone. There may be spaces of emptiness, but He can fill them completely. There may be darkness, but He can pierce it with light. Valleys will come, but He will lead us through them. That's the whole purpose of Christmas. Not so we can decorate trees, eat ourselves into bigger pants, give gifts, write letters to Santa, or hang lights. He came with a purpose to heal the brokenhearted and to bind up the wounded. To shine light into the darkness and bring hope to the hopeless. To set the captive free and to give all who believe in Him eternal life. He is the one who was, who is, and who is to come!
Comments
Post a Comment