Christmas is always full of anticipation. And expectations. And, sometimes, perhaps more expectations?
It is so very easy to fall into the trap of thinking this year, this is the time everything will be perfect. The perfect cards, delicious cookies, a delightfully planned calendar. The social media-worthy meal or party. Yes, it is so very easy to allow the media or our news feed to tell us what this season needs to look like.
I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with expectations. I think one of our blessings is to be able to be excited about or expectant of the good and wonderful moments this life has to offer. However, we can be setting ourselves up for disappointment if we believe there is only one way Christmas has to look, feel, or be.
This year in our house, we started our Christmas season off with a comedy of errors, including a leaning tree. It wasn’t beginning to look a lot like Christmas. It was really beginning to look like a hot mess, a lot like what happens when I try to wrap gifts with actual wrapping paper. Thanks to the kindness of a neighboring Good Samaritan who brought a fresh perspective and a jolly attitude, the tree was righted and all was well in that moment.
In the grand scheme of life, a leaning tree is hardly of noteworthy significance. The first Christmas, however, is a story of epic proportions.
I do not want to pretend I know what Mary and Joseph were feeling as they made their way to Bethlehem. Mary must have felt anticipation, but could she have also felt trepidation? I have to imagine being unsuccessful in finding a place to birth her son caused a great deal of distress.
On this incredibly important night in human history, very little appeared to go to plan in the eyes of us as humans, but God’s plan – His ultimate and sovereign plan – was playing out on a stage for all the world to see, and one that we still celebrate now, more than 2,000 years later.
As we navigate this Christmas season, I pray we will hold a little less tightly to the idea of a perfect Christmas, and cling firmly to the greatest story ever told. Jesus, born in a manager, born to save the world. When we reflect on the eternal impact of this story, it makes leaning trees and less-than-ideal gift wrapping seem … momentary, and very, very small.
I pray that this season, we delight in the treasured moments. I also pray that when life does not go to plan, that we look up and remember the night that one star brought a light into the world that remains with us to this day and for eternity.
“We saw his star when it rose, and we have come to worship him.” Matthew 2:2 (NIV)
Rooted in Grace and Grit 