Something to be merry about

Merry Christmas

Those two words can be hard to say sincerely, even hard to hear at times.

Christmas is sold to us as a time to celebrate family. To get together with relatives, come home, sit by the warm fire and find someone underneath the mistletoe.

It’s a time to celebrate love, both love of family and romantic love.

But, when neither your family nor your love life are anything like you want, it can all feel a little hollow.

I want to make this time meaningful and memorable for my children. But I also feel tore open. When I hand them over to their mother (who used to be my wife) to experience Christmas with her and her family, I can’t help but feel a deep emptiness. How is this a season to celebrate Christmas when you can’t have your family all under one roof?

To make things worse, all the playful little loves songs that find their way on the Hit Christmas playlists have found their way under my skin. Little reminders of something I long for and miss. If I’m honest, it’s not so much the lack of love in my own life that bothers me, but imagining my ex-wife enjoying all the Christmas traditions with her new boyfriend makes me want to vomit.

But, I am here to remind myself and you of a deep truth.

This Cultural Christmas is a joke.

If American Cultural Christmas is all we have, it’s simply a time we fall into a collective delusion, listening to the same songs, watching the same movies and bringing trees, which were perfectly happy to be outside firmly rooted in the ground, inside our homes where they slowly die of dehydration.

Fortunately this is just the facade of Christmas. When you peek behind, you will find a deeper, more meaningful purpose for the holiday.

I like to summarise it in one word

Emanuel.

God with us.

The story of the Christ child’s birth is more than the miracle of virgin birth. It is the story of God coming to be with humanity. Even at our lowest. God comes to shepherds, to prostitutes, to lepers. He comes to those who need healing, defending, those the rest of the world despises.

If God chose to be between two thieves hung on a tree, certainly he will choose to be with me in my troubles. And I believe he will be with you as well.

So, I encourage you, take a look around today and find the presence of God. Look at his creation. Look at your friends and family, who bear His image. I bet you’ll see Him. And that is something to be merry about.