Dear Friends,
It's 7:45, and I just got up. It is a little different from most
Christmas mornings when I would be up before anyone else, would go downstairs
to check out the presents scattered around the tree, maybe make some coffee,
and wait until everyone else got up to celebrate the day.
But a lot of things are different this year. No large Christmas Eve
service in the sanctuary, but a much smaller gathering in our gym, Simplicity
was the word. The children performed, all dressed up in their costumes, as they
portrayed the events of that first Christmas. A second service of carols and
scripture was held with a brief message and invitation, and of course the
lighting of our candles. Nothing was polished or well scripted as it might have
been at more elaborate Christmas services in the past. It was simple church.
We enjoyed dinner with a dear friend in our church at one of our
favorite Italian restaurants, and while it took over an hour to have our food
served, we didn't mind, as who counts time when you are with a friend.
Friendship is such a simple gift.
Jean and I both decided that we would avoid exchanging gifts this
year, and for me that meant Christmas would be simpler- no hurried last-minute
trips to Outback for a gift card or to Walgreen’s for some Jean Nate. We both
agreed that we already have everything we could possibly need, so if we are going
to spend any money, we wanted to spend it on our kids and on others who need
things more than we do.
Yes, Christmas is a lot different this year with the Pandemic
raging. But despite the changes and the differences, I find myself thankful for
the simplicity of this year's Christmas.
Time Out! My granddaughter Reese just arrived at my desk to
beckon us downstairs to watch our family open their presents. To be
continued……….
I'm back, and I'm bringing with me my favorite gift of all, a
present from my daughter, Rachel, who runs the 'Geek Squad' in our home. The
last two weeks she has been trying to solve a mysterious and perplexing
computer issue of mine- a malfunctioning mouse.
Her gift to me was a simple mouse pad, simple but unique,
given the pictures of her family and an annual calendar, both printed on
the mouse pad. Such a simple and modest gift, but one of the best gifts I have
ever received as it has solved the complex and frustrating problem of an
erratically moving mouse on my computer screen. Sometimes the simplest gifts
are the best gifts of all.
And when I think about simple gifts and a simple Christmas, I am
reminded of the simple and modest circumstances surrounding that first
Christmas- a baby birthed in a cattle stall outside a cheap motel with the only
guests a few unpretentious shepherds. An in reflecting on that simple birth
that turned out to be so momentous that it changed the dating of our calendars,
I have come to believe that maybe the simple Christmas is the best Christmas
after all.
Wishing you all a safe and simple Christmas. And may the most
magnificent gift you receive be the simplest and yet most costly gift of all-
the loving gift from the hands of our Father who gave His only Son to die for
our sins upon a cross, and in so doing would change our lives today and for all
eternity.
Merry Christmas
Tom
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