I have made two decisions. First, I am making the writing of this blog one of my New Year’s resolutions. I have missed the weekly discipline and I am going to try to get back in the swing.
I have also decided to see secular Christmas music as a gateway drug. It has never been clear to me how wanting a hippopotamus for Christmas connects to Jesus. But maybe it doesn’t have to be clear to me. Maybe this is just one more thing that I have to let go of controlling and let God do what God does- use unlikely messengers.
When I was a kid, my parents used to sing in the car, and the frequency was even greater during the holidays. My Dad had a lovely tenor voice and my mother provided the alto harmony. They were really good. And thinking about them singing their rendition of Silver Bells still brings tears to my eyes. That is Christmas to me as much as anything else.
People find their way to the generosity of God’s love in a million unique ways, and my job as a believer is to support that. So if mommy kissing Santa Claus is a sign of God’s love for you, that brings me joy too. We as a culture, and me as a person, have gotten too critical and fussy. And if I am honest, I am dreaming of a white Christmas as much as you are.
Praying we can all bring the compassion and love of God back into Christmas!