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“Merry Christmas” is a simple greeting but over time it has
come loaded with everything but the Spirit of Christ Jesus. First the word Christmas is from the mass
that many of our Christian brothers and sisters celebrate to honor the birth of
Jesus. The word “Merry” has become favored in the US over “Happy” that is
dominant in the UK. [1] Then there is the whole hoopla over “Happy
Holidays,” when in fact the word Holiday comes the from Middle English holidai
meaning "holy day" much like Halloween which is derived from Hallowed
Eve.
For me the disappointment is that so few people really enjoy
Christmas however they offer a greeting for it.
It becomes a frenzy of activity focused on consumption and appeasing family,
not centering on Christ and God’s eternal grace. What would happen if you didn’t buy that
perfect toy or newest game or designer clothes? Would your family love you less? NO! Overtime,
what you would give them is even more precious because you would give them a true
sense of what is real and what is important in your life. You love them and you cannot buy or earn
their love. That’s right you cannot earn
love. You can earn respect but not
love. Love is freely given. When your
children care about you for who you are rather than for what they can get out
of you that is love.
Most Christians know by heart John 3:16 “For God so loved
the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not
perish but have eternal life.” Yet few of us continue to read in verse 17 “For
God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world
might be saved through him.” Whoa! Not
to condemn the world? Yes! That is God’s
love. We sometimes call it unconditional
love, but real love does not come with conditions. Love can be hard and tough as the one loved has
need, love can hurt the one who loves.
Maybe I should say love often hurts the one who loves. But love is not
turned on and off based on the loved one’s behavior. Jesus told a parable of a prodigal son, whose
father never gives up hope for his son’s return.[2] The father never stops loving his son. That is the very good news of love. Neither the lover nor the loved one has to be
perfect. You do not have to have the
same politics, ethical stance or religious persuasion to love someone. What was true during the time of Jesus and in 1965
when Hal David wrote “What the World Needs Now is Love” is still true
today. So let your heart be filled to
overflowing with love not just for a season but all your life long.
So Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays but most of all I love
you! Even if I do not know you, I love you
because my heart has been open by the love of God for all of creation. You are a precious part of this
universe. You are a child of the Living
and Loving God. I dedicate this blog to
YOU!
