"Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid . . ." - Angel of the Lord, to Joseph in a dream (Matthew 1:20b)
Dear Friends in Christ -
When the unexpected happens, we have those regular, human reactions . . . we cringe in fear, lash out in anger, and/or laugh with nervousness. In Advent, the call of God is - even in the midst of those emotions - to listen. Something new is breaking forth.
The following story came to me yesterday from a friend. It's about seeing something new in the midst of our hectic Christmas routines. It touched me, called me to listen. I hope it touches your heart, too.
Blessings,
Janet+
The "W" in Christmas
Last December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm, peaceful experience. I cut back on nonessential obligations - extensive card writing, endless baking, decorating, and even overspending. Yet still, I found myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments, and of course, the true meaning of Christmas.
My son, Nicholas, was in kindergarten. It was an exciting season for a six-year old. For weeks, he'd been memorizing songs for his school's "Winter Pageant."
I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd be working the night of the production. Unwilling to miss his shining moment, I spoke with his teacher, who said there'd be a dress rehearsal the morning of the presentation. All parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to come then.
Fortunately, Nicholas seemed happy with the compromise. So, the morning of the dress rehearsal, I filed in ten minutes early, found a spot on the cafeteria floor and sat down.
Around the room, I saw other parents quietly scampering in. As I waited, the students were led into the room. Each class, accompanied by their teacher, sat cross-legged on the floor. Then, each group, one by one, rose to perform their song.
Because the public school system had long stopped referring to the holiday as "Christmas," I didn't expect anything other than fun, commercial entertainment - songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and good cheer. When my son's class rose to sing, "Christmas Love," I was slightly taken aback by its bold title. Nicholas was aglow, as were all of his classmates, adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters, and bright snowcaps upon their heads.
Those in the front row held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing "C is for Christmas," a child would hold up the letter C.
Then, "H is for Happy," and on and on, until each child held up their letter and the complete message was presented, "CHRISTMAS LOVE".
The performance was going smoothly until suddenly, we noticed her; a small girl in the front row holding the letter "M" upside down - totally unaware her letter "M" appeared as a "W".
The audience of 1st through 6th graders snickered at her mistake, but she had no idea they were laughing at her. She stood tall, proudly holding her "W".
Although the teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together. A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen.
In that instant, we understood why we celebrated the holiday in the first place, the reason for our festivities. When the last letter was held high, the message read:
"CHRISTWAS LOVE"
Indeed, He was. And He still is.
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