Unfinished Christmas

"I also know that you are enduring patiently and bearing up for the sake of my name, and that you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first." - Revelation 2:3-4

Dear Friends in Christ -

Over the past 10 days, I have done lots of good things. I have rested, I have played, I have done TONS of laundry, I have worked (much less than usual!), I have prayed. And I've made progress on getting Christmas presents out to my parents and friends, but I'm still not done.

I called my mother today to confess what she already guessed: her gifts haven't even been entrusted to the good folks at UPS yet. She said, "That's OK. I'm just calling this the 'unfinished Christmas.'"

I laughed . . . and felt relieved by her patience and good humor. And then I started to wonder: Is Christmas ever 'finished?' Is it supposed to be finished?

The birth of Christ was just the beginning. Our annual celebration of Christmas is the reminder that we're all in the midst of a process of being made new. And though we often for finished perfection NOW, heaven is not yet. We still have work to do.

The words of the apostle John (above) in today's reading from Revelation call us not only to continued patience and good work, but also to remember to keep Christ, our "first love," at the center of our lives even as we cross over beyond the Feast of Epiphany into a new season.

The words of Howard Thurman (below) point the way for us to live Christ's love in the days ahead.

Faithfully with you in the continuing work of Christmas,
Janet+

When the star in the sky is gone,
When the Kings and Princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost
To heal the broken
To feed the hungry
To release the prisoner
To teach the nations
To bring Christ to all
To make music in the heart.
--- Howard Thurman