We Are Christmas

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. -Luke 2:10 (KJV)

Today is Christmas. That is quite obvious. Whereas we ought to sing and shout, "Joy to the World," someone wants to sing Etta James' "At Last." If this is how you feel on today then it may be due to the fact that your celebration of Christmas is rooted more in the lure and seduction of our culture and not the belief and teaching of the church. Our culture is one in which, each and every year, at Christmas, we spend money we don't have to buy things we don't even need for people we don't even like. We can save ourselves a whole lot of money and whole lot of time by reclaiming and occupying Christmas and reminding ourselves what it's all about. Allow me to help you toward this end. In your retail store of choice, some angelic voice will welcome you and bring a smile to your face by announcing the items that are now on sale. But listen to another angelic voice as recorded by Luke, "behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ Lord."

Each and every year we need to be reminded of the real meaning of Christmas and our role in it. I can remember (still) when I was child how I took pride in being handed the longest speaking parts for our church's Sunday School Christmas presentation. We called them Christmas "pieces." I can remember that when it came down to the nativity play, youth would covet certain roles in the Nativity play. Depending upon who was selected to play Mary, young men would fight; I mean line up to play the part of Joseph. Seemingly though, no matter how small or how large the church, there would be enough parts for everyone. There was something for everyone to do. The casting call listed a need for someone to play King Herod, shepherds were needed, angels had to be identified, wise men needed to be found. If you or the director thought that you would not be able to memorize your lines then you became a part of the scenery. At an early age, I understood that I had a role to play in Christmas and the cost was minimal but the reward was great.

A few years ago, my niece Sufiy, a huge Oprah Winfrey fan, was watching one of her shows, during the Christmas season. On this particular show, Oprah handed out a check for $1000 to each person in attendance. She told them that they were to spend it on a total stranger. My niece observed that one lady paid for a woman's face to be repaired. An abusive spouse had shot it off; another lady stood in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart and gave out gift cards. My niece was moved to tears and so she prayed and asked God what she could do with the little that she had and believe me it was little. God spoke to her quickly and she moved from prayer to action. Her assignment was to go to a local homeless shelter and take 5 people to the movies to see "The Pursuit of Happyness." After she took the first group friends and family began making contributions. Someone wrote Oprah to tell her the story and Oprah decided to send a film crew to follow her around and to bring her on the follow-up show. She was just playing the part that had been assigned to her. I believe it was William Shakespeare who once wrote, "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players.

I love this time of year and one of the reasons is the music that accompanies the Christmas season. I dare not miss the performance of Handel's Messiah by the Shiloh Senior Choir but another song captured my attention this year. While perusing the Internet, I came across a video on YouTube of the Spelman College Glee Club performing a song that bears the title, "We Are Christmas." It's a sermon set to music and it's lyrics are now stored in my heart.

Remember we are Christ among us
And we live for his cause.
Fulfill his purpose daily
As we bring joy to all.
We are comfort for the hurting
Mending each broken heart.
We are friendly to the lonesome
And unite those far apart.
We're his hands that touch the sick
And they're instantly whole.
We are water for the thirsty
And bring peace to every soul.
We are Christmas!
We are God's hands.
Together one another
In these war-torn lands.
We are Christmas!
The love that we share
Will carry one another
Until we understand
Jesus lives in me
Yes, he lives in you.

The Christmas story is an ongoing story meant to be performed not once a year, but each and every day of our lives. God sent his son to us, so that he could get all up in us, so that he could work through us. We are Christmas!

 

Comments

[marierocks]

04:51 PM on 12/25/2011

This story reminds us of how much good we can do, but we don't need to believe in magical babies and imaginary sky daddies to do so. :)