:: Merry Christmas '09 ::

Giuseppe Sammartino, Nativity (A.D. 1780's)

"And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
'Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
(Luke 2:10-14)

These are familiar verses. But in them, we find the depth, beauty, and meaning of Christmas that many of us have forgotten. Or maybe better, it's a message that has become overshadowed by busy-ness of packing to get out of town; by the half-hour wait of angry drivers in mall parking lots; by the good feeling we get when we buy a gift for someone else, or by the anxious expectation of wondering what we're getting. Or maybe it's been overshadowed by a million other things, like economic or political stresses you're facing, those end-of-the-year work frustrations, relational struggles, the constant buzzing of a BlackBerry or a cell phone, or a rough year. Maybe it's sadness. Longing. Worry.

As I read these verses this morning, however, and reflected back on the brief discussions of "Advent" we've had in our church family this season, I found myself (for the first time this Christmas season), truly embracing Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. I don't know if it's the snow falling on Christmas Eve after yesterday's "December in Texas" high in the 70's, or the quiet empty house, the smell of breakfast in the oven for Jess and I as we celebrate our own Christmas before heading out to be with her family, or the prospect of a taking off the last week of '09 after a marathon July-December [that includes this blog, by the way]. But I do know that when I look at Sammartino's 'crèche,' what strikes me most is two things.

Make the picture larger. Stare at it for a few moments. First, notice the light-dark contrast: the hope of the world; the promised Messiah; the savior is born, after 400 years of silence between God and his people. That's what God is doing. Second, look at the man on the bottom right: the earnestness with which Sammartino painted him, full-body on the ground, worshipping and clamoring to get close to the God-Child who is so very small in the painting. That's our proper response to what God is doing, isn't it?

My prayer for you - and for me - this Christmas, is that no matter what holiday stresses; no matter what great sadness; no matter what worries or anxiety or busyness or distractions, we might spend a few moments on the floor of a manger with this shepherd. That we might put aside everything else and fall on our faces, pulling ourselves desperately to worship at the feet of the Christ. That we might cling desperately to the promised fullness of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love, despite the hopelessness, chaos, sadness, and emptiness we sometimes experience. That we might be in awe of what God the Father did in sending God the son; in thanksgiving to God the Son for coming to live and die for us. And that our words might echo the angels, and that our lives might follow, that in all things, we will pursue "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased."

Merry Christmas. Celebrate well.