Christ in the Flow of History

As I have pondered Advent and the whole Christmas Season, you know me, I love this whole time of year. I am the first to advocate taking time to slow down, guild and deck your house with incredible beauty, drink as much egg nog as you can, cook the most delicious food of your life, and celebrate like there is no tomorrow. Why? It is not complicated, if the Incarnation is really true, then we have more reason to celebrate than anyone on the planet; we ought to be the greatest lovers of Christmas on the planet. But as I say that, I don't want to be misunderstood.

A lot of people do the things I advocate above with totally different motives. I think that, for many people, this time of year is an escape from the grind of daily reality, a time when there is little productivity at work, parties with lots of free booze, and lots of sentimental music and movies of a nicer and gentler world.

Now, here is what I would say to that. Christmas is not an escape from reality, nor is it an excuse to put all your problems off for a month. Rather, Christmas is God's statement to a broken world, that he came to get you deeper into your own broken reality. Christmas is not an escape from anything, it is the signal that there is joy in the midst of all the broken things. If you don't believe me, just think about how hard God's own entrance into the world was!This Sunday we'll talk about it. To me, the celebration that is Christmas is deep, wide, rich, and glorious because it is God's statement that he would bring joy into the world, not in spite of the world. Hope to see you Sunday.Blessings,Jim