We went to a Candlelight Christmas Eve Service in a neighboring (much larger) town tonight. I have been in anything but a Christmas mood and I knew I needed some serious intervention if I was to cease being a Scrooge.
It's not my fault really. The kids at school and church have been nuts and I have been at my wits end trying to maintain some semblance of order in my classrooms. I have focused so much on the repetitive "going through the motions" Christmas stuff....making sure kids did not cause blood to leak out of another child, allowing no name calling that would cause a serious self-esteem issue to follow them throughout life, and, of course, ensuring that the quota of Christmas crafts had been met.
In all of my focus, it seems that Christmas just popped up without any warning this year and my mood was anything but festive. I am so glad that I attended the Christmas Eve Service. It's not that I forgot that Jesus is the star of this show. It's that I forgot to remember Him and the sacrifice He made on my behalf and the behalf of all mankind. I love a line that the pastor used in his opening prayer: "At Christmas we celebrate Jesus - who became something He was not without ever ceasing to be who He is." Wow. That really brought it home for me.
As you celebrate your freedoms, your families, your friends, and your fancies, please remember that the only superstar worthy of celebrating showed up in a Bethlehem manger some 2000 years ago with no freedoms, little family, few friends, and no fancies. He gave up a glorious crown in Heaven for a crown of thorns. He sacrificed fellowship with God Himself to hang out with a bunch of tax collectors and prostitutes. And He did it ...not to be the star of the show...but rather to allow us to be a friend of God. Jesus is the ultimate "Kid Magnet"...desiring only to bring His kids closer to God by drawing us closer to Himself. "Greater love has no man than this...."
Thank you, Jesus, for becoming something You were not without ever ceasing to be who You are.
Merry Christmas!
It's not my fault really. The kids at school and church have been nuts and I have been at my wits end trying to maintain some semblance of order in my classrooms. I have focused so much on the repetitive "going through the motions" Christmas stuff....making sure kids did not cause blood to leak out of another child, allowing no name calling that would cause a serious self-esteem issue to follow them throughout life, and, of course, ensuring that the quota of Christmas crafts had been met.
In all of my focus, it seems that Christmas just popped up without any warning this year and my mood was anything but festive. I am so glad that I attended the Christmas Eve Service. It's not that I forgot that Jesus is the star of this show. It's that I forgot to remember Him and the sacrifice He made on my behalf and the behalf of all mankind. I love a line that the pastor used in his opening prayer: "At Christmas we celebrate Jesus - who became something He was not without ever ceasing to be who He is." Wow. That really brought it home for me.
As you celebrate your freedoms, your families, your friends, and your fancies, please remember that the only superstar worthy of celebrating showed up in a Bethlehem manger some 2000 years ago with no freedoms, little family, few friends, and no fancies. He gave up a glorious crown in Heaven for a crown of thorns. He sacrificed fellowship with God Himself to hang out with a bunch of tax collectors and prostitutes. And He did it ...not to be the star of the show...but rather to allow us to be a friend of God. Jesus is the ultimate "Kid Magnet"...desiring only to bring His kids closer to God by drawing us closer to Himself. "Greater love has no man than this...."
Thank you, Jesus, for becoming something You were not without ever ceasing to be who You are.
Merry Christmas!
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