December Offers Days of Miracles and Days of Joy

Dec 24, 2009

As the parents of 3 young children, Christmas is a truly special time for my wife and I. The joy and wonderment that children bring to Christmas festivities is contagious, and seeing their excited faces as they unwrap their gifts on Christmas morning is the best present I receive each year.

Christmas experienced by children today, though, is not like those that children experienced in the past. Today’s children live in an increasingly secular world that seeks to paper over the religious aspects of the celebration. You’ve seen this phenomenon yourself. It surfaces whenever someone feels compelled to offer you the spiritually empty “Happy Holidays!” instead of a spiritually meaningful “Merry Christmas.”

Despite this, we must remain vigilant to ensure that the secular and commercial distractions of the holiday (the parades, the football games, the ever present images of Santa Claus, Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer) do not blind us to the day’s true importance. Christmas is about more than what one finds under the tree.  It is, at its core, a holy day we set aside to honor our Heavenly Father’s decision to bring a Son into the world that would take on our sins in order to redeem our failings.

Could there be a greater gift to receive than that of spiritual redemption? Is any gift as well thought out as the gift of a Son whose is destined to sacrifice His own life so that we might be forgiven? I don’t think so, and I think that it is important that we take a few moments, as we wrap our presents or put up our decorations, to reflect on and be grateful for the joyous gift we received over 2,000 years ago.

The Christmas Season holds valuable lessons that arise out of different faiths as well. For those of the Jewish faith, the celebration of “Hanukkah” occurs. Covering eight days (this year it occurred from December 11 thru December 19) this holiday recognizes a miracle that occurred during the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem. Although only one day’s supply of consecrated olive oil was available for use in the rededication ceremony, it miraculously burned for 8 days, providing the Jewish High Priests exactly the time they needed in which to prepare enough sacred oil to complete the ritual.

The lesson for both Jews and Christians to remember is obvious: God will provide. Even when times are dark, and things seem grim, God will find a way to keep the lights burning so long as you place your trust in Him to do so. As we confront the struggles that have developed during these difficult economic times, perhaps that is a message we need to hear now more than ever.

From the Haridopolos family, to your family, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

 

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