by Brandon Campanella
It happens once a year, every year.
The once clean house is a mess. The perfectly wrapped boxes are now but a pile of torn and shredded paper and cardboard. The lights so carefully strung are now ready to be taken down and stored away. Christmas has come and gone, and
– if you are like me – you are now trying to figure out what it all cost this year.
How much did this year’s season of giving hurt the bank account? How much did it set us back on credit card debt? Will the gifts – given and received – be cherished, lasting forever? Or will they be thrown to the side in a week or two?
But, we know there is more to it than all that. Don’t we? Think of the time spent with our loved ones. Remember seeing that sparkle in another’s eyes when they unwrapped that perfect present. Of course, there are those extra pounds we packed on too. Oh, and the actual celebration of the birth of our Savior!
Once the tree is down and the nativity set is put away…what do YOU do with baby Jesus?
Certainly, I’m not saying all this because I forgot the central purpose of this celebration. Nor did I purposely put Jesus into the background. But to be honest, in the midst of all hustle and bustle to get ready, the trips back and forth from the grocery store, the frantic last-minute gift shopping, and the mental preparation needed to handle the influx of relatives – it’s easy to lose sight of why we’re doing all this.
Christ our Savior was born. He came into this world and would remain for 33 years. He would live a life not as a king but as an average man, fully embracing the human experience. However, He would succeed where we could not by living a life free of iniquity and thereby becoming the perfect sacrifice needed for the propitiation of our sin.
And that is something we can – and should – be celebrating every day. Christ never asked us to give Him a birthday party. He does not require us to throw elaborate festivals. But we are to celebrate Him. We are to thank Him for his coming and His sacrifice by recognizing that He is Lord and telling others of the gift God has given us.