Bittersweet Feelings of Christmas

In his book Let Earth Receive Her King: Daily Readings for Advent, Alistair Begg writes that for the first three centuries of the church’s existence, Christmas was not a key celebration. He tells us that when the church began to celebrate Christmas in the 4^th century, they did so with a dual focus – both looking back to what we refer to as the incarnation and looking forward to the fact that this same baby Jesus, who had come as a baby in Bethlehem in relative obscurity, will come again in power and in glory. This idea of looking back and looking forward made me think about the bittersweet feelings I have of Christmas.

I have wonderful memories of Christmas growing up. Christmas was important to our family, led by my parents and especially my mom, who loved to buy gifts. We always had a beautiful tree, and our home was festively decorated. I remember in particular a red cardboard fireplace that we would have in the living room. The rest of our family was in the Chicago area, and I have fond memories of visiting grandparents and aunts and uncles for Christmas. A particular special memory was visiting Aunt Millie’s home, sitting in the kitchen enjoying homemade bakery (apricot kolaches!) and looking at the Christmas cards that were hanging on the door frame. Another memory was of the Christmas village set up under the tree in my grandparent’s living room. And another was going to sleep at home listening to Andy Williams’ Christmas album. Sadly, so many of those family members that we would visit are no longer with us, but the memories and photographs remain, leaving a bittersweet feeling. But we have hope of eternal life and being reunited with loved ones in Heaven.

I love Christmas music and enjoy new releases each year. But I must admit that I most enjoy the music of artists that were popular when I was growing up, such as Andy Williams, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, and Perry Como.

These days we take joy in seeing a new generation of family members and their children making their own Christmas memories. While as children we looked forward to the gifts we would receive at Christmas, now I look forward to spending time with family members that we will most likely only see a few times each year.

Christmas can be both bitter and sweet. Each Christmas I look back to the memories of Christmas celebrations I enjoyed with family members who are no longer with us, while at the same time making new memories with a new generation. I am thankful that Jesus came to earth, becoming a man, living and dying for us, and I also look forward to the return of Jesus in power and in glory.

Bill Pence is a St. Louis Cardinals fan, formerly a manager at a Fortune 50 organization, and in leadership at his local church. His life-long passion is to help people develop and use their strengths to their fullest potential. Bill is married to his best friend Tammy, a graduate of Covenant Seminary. Both have written a book. Bill’s book is, Called to Lead: Living and Leading for Jesus in the workplace. Tammy’s book is,  Study, Savor and Share Scripture: Becoming What We Behold are available in paperback and Kindle editions on Amazon. To discover more about Bill please visit his website.

Image Created by Andy Oldham using DeepAI

Christmas Eve De-stressor

It’s Christmas Eve. It is likely you are preparing for a celebration sometime today or tomorrow. Perhaps you are hosting the party or driving to the party. Maybe you have traveled a great distance or others have traveled to see you. Maybe you are alone this year. No matter what your circumstances may be, the celebrations surrounding the birth of the King, at least the way we tend to celebrate, can be stressful.

It is Christmas Eve, and it is the Lord’s Day, as well. As I sit in my dark, quiet house this Christmas Eve morning, having begun to prepare for the day, I want to encourage you to take time to bolster your heart, soul, and mind by doing three things today.

First, I encourage you to pause. The next couple of days may be filled with people, expectations, opinions, and stress. Pause this morning and tomorrow morning. Enjoy the solitude of taking a break. Give yourself a time-out to focus on the meaning of the celebration. Jesus loves you. He came to give you eternal life. That’s worth considering.

Secondly, I hope you will pray. Spend time expressing your love to the Lord. Spend time praying for those with whom you will be spending your holiday. Particularly pray for the days to go well and to reflect the true meaning of Christmas. Pray for those difficult people. Pray for your attitude and words to be loving and kind.

The third thing I encourage you to do is to participate. Most churches are offering at least one worship service on this, the eve of when we celebrate the Lord’s birthday. Take time to do it well. If you cannot go to a morning service, perhaps attend one in the evening. If you are unable to get out today, join in one of the many services being streamed today. After all, it is the Lord’s Day and Christmas Eve.

Pause, pray, and participate. These three actions will help you keep the holiday well and reduce the stress surrounding the celebration. I wish you a Merry Christmas.