Dear Jesus (or an invitation to bend low),
It is Christmas time, and just about now people everywhere are writing letters to Santa, spending too much money, getting more stressed than they knew was imaginable, and some are wondering about you. You see we celebrate your birthday on December 25 and to celebrate we give each other gifts. People say we give gifts because the wise men brought you gifts so long ago when you were laying in a manger, but every year despite the fact that I want to be a good gift giver, these gifts make me think less of you and more about stress, overspending, over committing, etc. When you came here, you did almost everything paradoxically to what people expected. You have never fit into a little box. You do things unexpectedly and different. Today, I am inviting you to do the same thing in my family and through this blog.
Lord, I want to truly know you and make you known to others. Show me how to break the mold of Christmas celebration with you and your presence in us. We want to know you, understand why you came, and share the truth you teach to others. Do a fresh work in this place and in my heart. You know exactly where I am and how you’ve been calling me to bend low. Bring me lower, Lord.
with all my heart and love,
Jamie
p.s. my friend, Tanya, would like to sign her name to this letter, too.
btw, i heard an interesting program the other day. maybe focus on the family? a guy was explaining that gifts actually *didn’t* used to be involved in the Christmas celebration (i think before the protestant reformation?). in short, church folk used to have 1) a day to celebrate saint nicholas, which involved gifts and 2) a (separate) day to celebrate Christ’s birth, which didn’t involve gifts. and at some point, the protestants decided to merge the two celebrations, which is how we ended up with one day/holiday that celebrates both, & involves gifts.
hmm, so i can’t help but wonder if the wise men application to our gift giving has simply been the church’s intellectual alibi all this time . . . interesting thought to chew on, huh?