4 Days to Christmas. Monday, Dec 21, 2020

“Giblets and Cranberries”

As we creep one day closer to Christmas, folks are making their lists and checking them twice to make sure that everything is ready for Christmas. Menu ingredients for the special meals, soft drinks and holiday mixers, and last-minute stocking-stuffers are just a few of the obvious items that folks are gathering. Preparing for Christmas Day is a bit like preparing for a long vacation as folks try to make sure that all the proper items are prepared and purchased.

Mary and Joseph’s journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem may have been similar. Given the unusual events that surrounded their trip, they needed to make sure that they were prepared as well. Sure, God would provide for their needs, but it still didn’t remove their need to be prepared for a potentially long, extended time away from home.

The faithfulness exhibited by Mary and Joseph during their journey provides great insight into our own journey to Christmas. Yes, they would be in need of lots of things, especially because Mary was pregnant and her baby was due at any time. However, since they couldn’t just run down to the local hardware store and rent a U-haul trailer for the journey, they would need to make careful choices based on what was essential and could be easily transported.

In these last few days before Christmas, we are making choices regarding the special items that “we can’t do without.” Today provides a good opportunity to reflect on some of those things. Rather than wearing ourselves out by making those multiple, multiple trips to the stores, maybe we can reflect on our real priorities and determine if those last-minute forgotten items are worth the worry and concern we give them. How essential is the giblet gravy? Does anyone really eat more than a small taste of the can-shaped cranberries?

Christmas is about giving, but it is also about each of us receiving the gift of God’s love. Make room for God these last few days before Christmas. Some items may not be nearly as essential as we think, while other things could be the most valuable of all. Create some quality quiet time to reflect on God’s work at Christmas. Adjust the schedule to make room for important, special time with family and friends. Let’s prepare our hearts and minds so that we can receive the very best gift of all, Jesus Christ at the manger.

“My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips…” (Psalm 63:5, CEB)