Signs of a Delusional Mind

Once again Christmas is upon us. And once again it appears as though Christians have no idea what to do with it. It's as if Christmas is too sacred to touch, too holy to be near and so we act like the rest of the world, becoming completely indistinguishable from others. We're too scared to be different, and too frightened to actually, truly approach God. So the Christ-child is relegated to the side of the room as a miniature, peripherally illuminated by the lights on the tree.

Do we doubt its reality? Or do we simply refuse to allow it any reality? Because I don't believe this remarkable, miraculous, beautiful event is being done any justice, but is instead being trivialised by being melded with what the world is doing. We see it, but from a safe distance so that we can get back to whatever it is we really want to do. We've got to re-claim Christmas for what it is - the celebration of the birth of God as a man. The rest is irrelevant.

Faithful God, we rejoice that You have sent Your promised Christ. And yet, O God, we confess that we are still not ready for Christ's coming; we are reluctant to live as if the whole earth were Your domain. We know the story - the shepherds, the angles, the magi - but we don't fully understand what it means. Awaken us to Your Spirit, let Christ's birth make a difference in our lives.
--Ruth C. Duck