He continued, “Go home and prepare a feast, holiday food and drink; and share it with those who don’t have anything: This day is holy to God. Don’t feel bad. The joy of God is your strength!” [Nehemiah 8:10 (NLT)]
The countdown has begun and it’s just two weeks until Christmas. At this point in December, we’ve probably made ourselves and our families crazy while preparing for this wonderful holiday. The word “holiday,” however, doesn’t come from “holler-day” as in holler at your family because you’re over-booked or over-drawn, nor does it come from “hollow-day” as in feeling drained and exhausted. A holiday is not supposed to be a “horrible-day” either! The word “holiday” actually comes from the words “holy” and “day.” Its original Old English meanings were “religious festival” and “day of recreation.”
As we prepare for the upcoming holiday, we want to remember to keep the day “religious” which means keeping Christ in our Christmas festivities. But what about that other meaning of the word holiday: a “day of recreation”? Perhaps it’s time to stop the madness and do some refreshing and recreating. Try taking a break from all the holiday prep and listen, truly listen, to the beautiful music of the Christmas season. Ponder the words, “joy to the world” or “tidings of comfort and joy” and let them fill your heart. Sing along with the carols’ words and let the hallelujahs, glorias, and fa-la-la-la-las echo throughout the house. (FYI: “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” and “Santa Baby” are not Christmas carols!) Put your feet up and read some Christmas stories or poems—the first two chapters of Luke are a great place to start. Perhaps you’d prefer O. Henry’s The Gift of the Magi, Max Lucado’s The Christmas Candle or even The Grinch Who Stole Christmas! Watch a holiday movie, drink a cup of cocoa with marshmallows, sit quietly by the fire, or make a list of things for which you’re thankful instead of things you need to do or want to purchase. You’ve probably spent hours decorating the house but have you paused to enjoy the decorations or think of what they represent? Notice the star on the top of your tree and imagine the magnificence of the star of Bethlehem. Take the time to look at your nativity scene and think about the people depicted in it. Remember the purpose of all this holiday hubbub: the celebration of Christ’s birth. The Jews were told by Isaiah to clear the way for the Lord. Have we cleared the way for His presence in our hearts, not just during the holiday season, but all year long?
Father, as we busy ourselves with preparations to celebrate Christmas, keep our hearts and minds focused on the real meaning of this holiday—the loving gifts of salvation, forgiveness and restoration brought to us by the Christ child.
And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more. [Dr. Seuss]
As I picked up another starfish and tossed it back into the water, I thought of Loren Eiseley’s essay about saving starfish and making a difference in people’s lives, one life at a time. Remembering Eiseley’s essay got me thinking about an announcement made last week at Bible study. While a local family was driving home from church last Easter, a driver sped through a red light, t-boned their car, and changed their lives forever. Their two small children were seriously injured and one, a three-year old girl, was airlifted to another town. On life support for about a month, her injuries left her a quadriplegic. Now four, this sweet little girl has more surgeries and months (if not years), of medical, physical and occupational therapies ahead of her. Meanwhile, her family struggles with mounting medical expenses. Although the family does not attend our church, their need came to the attention of our pastor. Being restricted to a wheelchair has kept this little girl and her family from their favorite Florida activity—going to the beach. Since the wheels of a normal wheelchair would sink in the sand, family beach time has been just a memory until now. Yesterday, along with a sizeable check to help with their expenses, our church presented them with a sturdy all-terrain beach wheelchair. This vehicle enables her not just to go to the beach but also to go into the ocean and play in the water once again.
With their huge medical bills and needs, the $2,200 spent on a wheelchair may seem a little frivolous—but not to a four-year-old girl who had given up all hope of ever going to the beach or feeling the waves again! There are some people who will analyze how many mission trips, meals, blankets, immunizations, medicines, bricks, or Bibles could have been purchased with that same amount of money. They may disagree with how the church spent our tithes and offerings. Without a doubt, there is a tremendous need in our world for just the bare necessities of clean water, food, shelter, and health care. Sometimes, however, a need is right in front of us—a need to make life a little easier for a neighbor, a need to bring some joy back to a family or to put a smile back on a child’s face. Sometimes what seems extravagant to someone is a necessity to another—a great wig or a day at the spa for a woman with breast cancer, a davit that allows a paraplegic man to get into his boat again, skiing on a sit-ski for a wounded warrior who’s lost his legs, a week of summer camp for a teen with diabetes, a weekend at Disney for a child with leukemia, a trip to the Super Bowl for a boy with cystic fibrosis, or even a teddy bear for a tot recovering from heart surgery.
Devotions of the Heart 