Christmas is one of our favorite holidays to celebrate. It’s one of the only holidays for which we’ve developed relatively consistent traditions.
This year, we were unexpectedly relocated back to the states due to the pandemic. This isn’t something that we anticipated or had time to plan for, but we were thankful to be here for the holidays and to get to share this time with family and friends, even in a limited capacity.
If this is any testament to the kind of year we’ve experienced, very little of our life’s course has been steady or predictable; holidays not excluded. We learned just a few days before Christmas that we were potentially exposed to COVID. We weren’t especially panicked at the time because 1) we didn’t really have plans to go anywhere until Christmas, 2) the “exposer” was getting tested and we could all have peace of mind before trying to do any celebrating with family. Well, Christmas Eve came, and the results still weren’t in. I was starting to worry because this would mean that we could not celebrate with family, let alone leave the house. Christmas Day came and we still had no word. At this point, I had given up on celebrating. We found a clinic that was open on Christmas that would do a rapid test, so we opted to go and get tested in hopes that we could still see family. Even though we thankfully tested negative, for everyone’s comfort, we decided to stay home and wait out the quarantine.
I don’t know if it was the stress of the day’s events or the crushing weight of disappointment, but at the end of the day, I felt completely deflated. I was a mixture of angry and sad. I spent the day trying to remind myself of the true purpose of Christmas. During this brief reflection, I was reminded of two important truths.
- Christmas is not about us or our enjoyment
Anyone in our position would have been rightfully disappointed. We are rarely “home”, let alone for the holidays, so it was especially difficult to miss out on this opportunity to celebrate together. Had we already planned on not meeting, the day would have carried on as usual. But having plans changed at the last minute under stressful circumstances made the disappointment more palpable.
When we look at what took place on the first Christmas, the events surrounding Jesus’ birth weren’t all that merry either. His very pregnant, unwed mother was forced to travel to register for a census, only to discover there was nowhere for them to lodge. She gave birth next to an audience of animals and strangers in the lowliest of circumstances. Being pregnant right now makes this event that much more relatable. I can barely sit in a chair for an hour without feeling achy. Imagine sitting on a donkey or a camel to travel cross-city!
God, in His great compassion for us, gave us the greatest gift; not a thing, but a person. Not just any person, His own Son. In that Son rests all the hope, peace, and joy of mankind. And He didn’t just give up His Son, but He gave Him up to a sinful and fallen world that would ridicule, abuse, and crucify Him. When we celebrate Christmas, we celebrate Christ with us. We celebrate our only hope for salvation, our only rescue from eternal damnation, our only true joy.
2. There is always a reason to be thankful
It had rained sporadically before Christmas and I caught glimpse of the most beautiful, gigantic, rainbow. Seeing rainbows always reminds me of Noah. God flooded the world in judgment because of the depth of their wickedness, but spared Noah and his family because he found favor in God’s sight. When the waters cleared, God sent a rainbow as a reminder of a promise to never flood the earth again. The rainbow represents God’s willingness to withhold judgment on sinners, for a time. It’s a beautiful, but grim reminder.
Even though this Christmas will probably be remembered as the Christmas-that-wasn’t for our family, I’m reminded that we always have a reason to be thankful. “…in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:18). I’m grateful that we are not ill and that our quarantine period was almost complete by the time we got tested. I’m grateful that we will be out of quarantine in time to move, because if we weren’t, we would be homeless. I’m grateful for support through our friends and family and for the countless first-responders, restaurant professionals, and essential workers working in the midst of chaos.
I am most thankful to God for His long-suffering with us. When I examine the sinfulness of my own heart, I recognize that I really deserve judgment. When I consider God’s wrath being stored up for the coming judgment, when the proverbial floodgates open and judgment is poured out onto this world for all of our wickedness, I will be spared; not because of my merit, but because that special baby was born and grew up to take the punishment I deserved.
For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6