A Call to Discipleship: Reflections from Colossians

December 25th

Christmas Day

And be thankful….

And with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs…

Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks…

Colossians 3: 15-17

Christmas morning. Antsy kids wait down the hallway. Stockings full. Wrapped gifts under the tree. Santa gifts lovingly laid out. Go! Kids run down the hallway. The culmination of the long wait. Stockings explored. Gifts unwrapped one by one. Breakfast… eggs, bacon, sweet treats. The glories of Christmas morning.

My Mom’s favorite Christmas TV show was The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. The Grinch took great pleasure in trying to steal the glories of Christmas morning. The gift opening. The celebration. The roast beast. But the Grinch misunderstood the gifts and the feast. Christmas still came… without ribbons, tags, packages, boxes, or bags. And the Whos in Whoville still gathered and sang. Christmas still came… and with gratitude in their hearts, they sang.

And I wonder…would we do the same? Would we sing without ribbons, tags, packages, boxes, or bags? The question lingers in my heart each time I read this book. Sometimes we get so caught up in the worldly glories, that we forget that these glories are only a shadow of the True Glory… the birth of the Savior.

The omnipotent, in one instant, made himself breakable. He who had been spirit became pierceable. He who was larger than the universe became an embryo. And he who sustains the world with a word chose to be dependent upon the nourishment of a young girl….

God had come near.

God Came Near

Max Lucado

Today, Christmas Day, let us fully enjoy each moment of Christmas’ earthly glories. But let us also fully remember that this day is only a shadow of the True Glory…. Our God came near to be with us! He loves us that much! Let this day be full of gratitude and wonder, a day worshiping the baby King! Merry Christmas, dear friends!