Never Ending Praise The Lord

Isaiah 9:6 NIV For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince Of Peace.

                Like many children, Christmas was always a really magical time. It wasn’t just about gifts for me though. Christmas meant the weather in South Florida changed for a couple days. It meant being part of Church Christmas plays and costumes, egg nog, movies, and… it was the one day of the year my brother and I seemed to get along. Christmas morning was always met with my older brother waking me up first and then we woke up our parents together. The rest of the day was filled with laughter and joy, and all was right in the world.

                Traditions changed as I got older. My brother left the house, and it seemed pointless to wake my parents alone. Then I got married and Christmas became movie theatres and Chinese food. The magic was lost on me, and it became just another day. This was compounded by the loss of my Father on Christmas Eve in 2017. My dad had truly loved Christmas and he tried making it special every year. Without him, Christmas didn’t feel like Christmas at all anymore.

                For several years now, I’ve really missed the nostalgia of Christmas as a child but as I’ve grown deeper in my faith, learning about the origin of Christmas has left me even less enthused about the holiday. Why do we celebrate the birth of our messiah when he wasn’t even born on December 25^th? Maybe the better question is, when was Jesus actually born? Sadly, we don’t know the answer. There is a lot of speculation and in my research, I’ve seen different answers. My favorite theory is that Jesus was born around the feast of tabernacles. This is a celebration of harvest so typically in the fall. The feast of tabernacles commemorates the Israelites exit out of Egypt and how God was with them as they wandered the desert. God guided them by day as a pillar of cloud. By night, he lit their path by fire. If Jesus was born at this time, it would make sense that he would be called Emmanuel which means “God with Us.”

                As I’ve questioned God about how to celebrate and honor him at this time of year feeling the way I do, he has reminded me that it’s less about the date and more about our heart’s intent. God can take any date, season or tradition and fill it with his presence. It’s not the date that is holy; it’s HIM that’s holy. The manger became a throne. God came to us in human form and walked among us, teaching and showing love with miracles and then by suffering human cruelty and death on a cross. The shepherds, considered ‘nobodies’, outcasts and social lepers, were the first to witness Glory. They didn’t just proclaim the good news- they hurried to do it. God even made an overlooked small town like Bethlehem the birthplace of a King.

                The beauty of Christmas isn’t in the date, but in the person of Jesus. He is the reason for the season, and he truly is Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince Of Peace…Emmanuel. Merry Christmas to you!