What does Christmas mean to me?
Victory.
Since this is my space to write some opinions, this one is important.
While the weather in Cleveland, Ohio hasn't been like Christmas seasons of the past, it is still the Holiday Season. A time of year the author cherishes. It is special.
Why?
Because it represent victory.
Victory over what?
Many things plague humans in their daily lives; terrorism, relationships, health, finances and even unexpected disasters, etc. They can be like "bruises."
But do you know what Christmas represents?
It represents the overcoming of the things that are getting in your way.And there is little question humans need help with this "getting in the way."
For example, although most people disagree, the author is not fond of summer. There is no football, no basketball, no escape from the heat, insects are more prevalent and, as someone in the non-profit world, a time when donations dry up. No wonder it is called the "non-profit desert."
Things are bound to get in your way. But, even if you have a different bruise, this time of the year represents overcoming those things.
If you stop and think about it, no word in the English language can contain the concept of Christmas.
Christmas is the idea of the God Of The Universe coming to earth as a human and taking on all the "bruises" of humankind to overcome them for good.This idea of God becoming human is so amazing that, at one time, the Russians didn't want people to talk about it because it sounded like a fairy tale. Too good to be true, and they did not want people to be delusional about something "out there."
Yet Christians do not think the idea is out there. It is the foundation of their faith.
"It does not seem like it", you might think. Human problems are still there and it doesn't seem like the Devil has been defeated.
The best way the author has heard of describing it came from a Biblical scholar. He compared it to D-Day in World War II. After the Allies took control of the beaches in France the end of Hitler and the Third Reich was imminent, even if it had not occurred yet.
Maybe it wasn't complete yet, in a certain sense from a certain perspective. Many "bruises" were yet to happen.
But the ending was complete and inevitable in the long term.
Yes, you might have "bruises" left in your life, too. It is inevitable. But, just like Hitler, the Devil has been defeated in an inevitable way in the long term.
The eternal life God has in store for you will not have all the bruises. He told you that in his Word.
So, while humans are not large enough to overcome all that plagues them, the God Of The Universe found a way to send something that did.
After all, you are his. You did not create yourself. In John 15:16, Jesus says, " You did not choose me, but I chose you." (You were chosen by the God Of The Universe)
God doesn't want things in your way forever.
How do you know that? By his own revealed Word.
1 Corinthians 2:9 reads,
"No eye has seen and no ear has heard the things that God has prepared for those who love him."So, please have patience. The patience that the God Of All has something better lined up. He chose you and he wants better for you. Better than you can comprehend with a human mind.
So, what should you do in the meantime? Maybe take some advice from the wisest human in the world in Biblical times, which was King Solomon.
He wrote a book in the Old Testament. Ecclesiastes 2:24 reads,
"There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This, also have I seen, that is from the hand of God"So, maybe your holiday party is following some wise guidance - in moderation. He is saying to enjoy these things until the something better lined up happens.
And, if that is not enough, just picture this: if you had a life without all the bruises it would actually be kind of boring and meaningless. Value doesn't come from easy things or taking shortcuts.
The bruises have a reason for being there.
Hebrews 12:6 says the Lord disciplines the one he loves. Not for punishment, but for improvement.
And, maybe the whole path is not evident to you yet. The Allies did not know how long it would take them to defeat Hitler, either. Unexpected things happened in the meantime.
But they thought something better was in store.
In Romans 8:24, St. Paul writes,
"Who hopes for what he already sees?"The path has been set for you and the ending accomplished.
That is what this time of the year is about. It is about the entering into the world of the one could can make it better, and did. And, what is just as good is that his work is complete. He does not have to keep doing it.
It is also fitting that Christmas comes at the end of the year, in the last week. However your year started, it ends on a positive note of that hope. All the things that plagued you from January 1 to December 25 have been defeated, with God's approval.
That is what Christmas means to me.