Jesus wasn’t born on December 25th, yet we still celebrate Him. At some point in history, people intentionally marked a time on a calendar to commemorate the God child. Perhaps it was a conspiracy to silence Santa, or maybe it was something more. Maybe those folks of old knew something about life and faith. Perhaps they knew the inward pull that grabs all men and women. Eventually, unchecked, it lays waste to our life and stagnates our faith. Christmas is a warning against the settling of age.
The idea of Christmas is to remember. We look back into our heritage as family and as wounded followers of Christ. Honestly, the rest of the calendar passes with little fanfare. But in December, we try to remember through strained memory. We try to search for “God moments”. Honest followers will admit to the difficulty of faith. Sometimes we don’t feel presence and love, but the enduring Spirit within us beckons us to remember – to concede our doubt and place trust in an unbelievable story. When we look back, we see His humble handprints on our days. However small, when we can recognize these moments and attribute them to our founder, then our lives find holiday peace.
I too often struggle to remember. Part of this might be the diabetes, part of it could be attributed to heavy youthful libations, but most of it is from a worn down life found on the other side of hope. Life becomes a battle after a certain age. Experience wears us down and we have to fight to remember things like faith, hope, and joy. This is where we need intention. We discipline ourselves to remember our past and put hope into an otherwise bleak future. The Nativity scene is a horn blown in the mundane and irritated. It is revolutionary, unexpected, and counter to all we think we know. We must let this narrative take root in our heart, every waking moment, in order to live in the other plane of faith.
He came. He will come. Today, remember to remember.
Matt simon blog 