Savor the Moments of Christmas

Savor the moments of Christmas.  I am amazed by how quickly Christmas decorations go up after Thanksgiving (for some it’s after Halloween!), but what amazed me more this year was how quickly Christmas decorations were taken down. Instead of savoring the last moments of the Christmas season, people are spending the time before New Year's taking down Christmas decorations. It saddens my heart to see churches and Christians making the 25^th of December a check off the list day rather than savoring the magic and amazingness of the baby just born. Too quickly we put the nativity away and turn off the carols.

Epiphany has yet to happen. The Wise Men have not found the baby in a manger. However, we put the decorations away before the celebration of epiphany. Christmas, the celebration of Christ’s birth, a day that should be celebrated and cherished for more than what the commercialized society says is Christmas season. If anything Christmas, for the Christian, should be shifted from Christmas Eve to Epiphany as well as the whole year.  Think about it...What if God packed up the star right after Jesus was born?

As I have witnessed many friends having babies all year and around Christmas, especially this year, there is of course the promise of the baby before he or she is born, but the true joy and excitement happens after the baby is born. This is when lives are changed. Life just does not pack up quickly to fit into a box until next year’s birthday. You celebrate the baby’s life with pictures and oohing and aahing every moment of every day. People come after the baby is born to meet the new little miracle. The same is true of Christ’s birth. After Christ’s birth, the people began to witness the miracle of the baby whom would change the world.

Perhaps there is an underestimation of why Epiphany is so important. Epiphany marks the day that Jesus, God, first revealed himself in physical manifestation to Gentiles. Epiphany is defined as “a sudden intuitive leap of understanding, especially through an ordinary but striking occurrence”. The days after the birth of Christ are the days that brought God’s change to the world. Before Jesus’ birth the story of the miracle was just that; a story between a woman, the man she was promised to marry, an angel, and a few family members. The WOW factor came after the birth of Jesus. When all of a sudden the shepherds heard the angels’ chorus and the Magi (wise men) followed the star. After the birth of Jesus the word about the baby from King David’s line to one day sit on the throne above all thrones was no longer just a promise but a fulfillment to all peoples of the earth. Savoring the moments of Christ’s birthday after the 25^th of December is important to a Christian, because Christ brought the promises of God to the whole world.

In Galatians 3:24-29 one can find what beautifully changed because of Christ’s birth and Epiphany.  “The law, then, was our guardian until Christ, so that we could be justified by faith.  But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ like a garment. There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise.”

God came and manifested himself in human form revealing himself not just to the Jews who long awaited Him, but revealed himself to the “outsiders” of the rich heritage of faith in God. On Epiphany, God opened the doors for everyone to believe and be part of His family. No longer did God’s favor just rest on a certain group of people with a specific heritage.

Epiphany used to be a day Christians would celebrate with feast. In Spain children leave hay on the windowsill on the Eve of Epiphany to feed the Magi’s camels and the hay is replaced with gifts from one of the Magi. As if to say Epiphany is the day we should celebrate the way we celebrate Christmas. What happened to the celebration of Epiphany in every Christian heart and church? I so wish Epiphany was a bigger celebration for the church. God opened the door of His family for every sinner to walk in on the day of Epiphany. May the church once again celebrate and savor the moments of Christmas for more than the commercialized society dictates.

I had the opportunity this Epiphany to go to a service. During the service we were encouraged to light a candle as a symbol of our commitment to shine the light Jesus was and still is to the world. The service was a celebration of God’s light revealed to all. A video was shown about a little boy searching for darkness with his flashlight. Too often we say darkness is all around us. True. However, when we are holding the flashlight (God) darkness has to flee. For that reason it is significant for us not to pack up the guiding star of Christmas too quickly. The light of Christmas allows the seeking to find us. As Matthew 5:14-16 so clearly states to us, “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” As lights in the world do not pack up your Christmas too early, but commit to shining brightly all year the miracle of Jesus’ birth. The wise men went back to the East and the shepherds went back to their flocks and towns talking of what they had seen. Which way will you go to shine the light of the Good News that Jesus has come?