It's All About Christmas

    The Wife and I were still in the stages of developing Christmas traditions, and since we had been married for only a couple of years, we did not have an abundance of decorations for the big white house on North Third Street we had moved into the previous summer.
    We were looking for bargains, knowing full well we would do better to wait for the after-Christmas sales to stock up on lights, garland and the other items we wanted for filling the seasonal decoration void.
    At the top of an escalator in an anchor store of a mall, we saw a table of trimming items and a large "sale" sign.
    In the middle of the table was a beautiful nativity set.
    This was no inexpensive creche. The stable was nearly a foot tall and over two feet wide. It included all the supporting characters: shepherds with sheep, both lying and standing; Wise Men with camels and gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh; a brilliant angel with gossamer wings.
    It was eye-catching and astounding.
    A special sign was attached to the stable.
    "Nativity. 1/2 Off. Jesus missing."
    A closer examination proved the sign to be accurate. Bales of hay, Mary and Joseph and even a tiny wooden manger were included.
    Baby Jesus was nowhere to be found.
    Half off the retail price. But Jesus was missing. We stood and pondered silently, and then with a discussion worthy of the best theological seminary. Was it worth even a fraction of the cost without Jesus?
    We determined it had no value without Christ.
    Fast forward to a summer ago. At the estate sale for my aunt and uncle's household items, I purchased a large buffet, their dining room table and chairs. Without a vehicle to transport them, the new owner of the house graciously let me leave the furniture in the garage for a week.
    When I returned the next Saturday to get my purchase, an additional item was in the buffet, an item I did not purchase. The owners told me later my uncle placed it there when it was discovered unsold at the end of the day.
    A nativity set. The one I remember from my childhood. The one I admired whenever I was at my aunt and uncle's home. It always sat on that buffet during the Christmas season, the center of their celebration decorations.
    Mary and Joseph. Shepherds. Sheep. A cow. Wise Men and their trusty dromedaries. An angel hovering over the stable.
    Baby Jesus in the manger.
    A complete nativity. A complete Christmas.
    So much commentary has been written and spoken this year about retailers making this a holiday season instead of a Christmas celebration. Retailers and businesses don't celebrate Christmas, they sell stuff.
    Believers in the Messiah, the Emmanuel "God with us", the Son of God celebrate Christmas.
    It is fine to be a consumer this time of year if what we spend our time and energy on--and what we put into ourselves--is the knowledge and appreciation for what Christians call "the Greatest Gift".
    Without Christ, Christmas is, at best, a half-off celebration on a holiday bargain table.
    With Christ, it is a priceless family heirloom, destined to be passed on with love to another generation.

This Page was last update: Wednesday, January 3, 2007 at 9:19:38 AM
This page was originally posted: 12/21/06; 4:24:18 PM.
Copyright 2008 David Friedli

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