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Saturday, November 26, 2011

"Bah, Humbug!"

Something happened on Thanksgiving that has me just not feeling the whole Christmas thing yet this year.


Wednesday afternoon we had been given a turkey and some canned goods in the hopes that we'd know someone that needed it. We did...we had received a letter at the radio station from a family that said they were out of work and had nothing: no food in the house and a week away from being homeless since their landlord sold the house they were renting. The Christmas Wish program we've been accepting letters for, in the hopes that we'll be able to grant some, has flooded us with letters describing tremendous need. Most of them needing just the bare basics of life.

So we met up with this family to give them a turkey and a few cans. They were truly grateful. Seeing their faces, talking to them for a few minutes, showed us they were telling the truth. This young couple with two kids had no food and almost no home, but a glimmer of hope that God would provide. Probably mid-thirties, this man told us how he was now cancer-free after two years, but unable to work due to the after-effects of bladder and prostate cancer. His $500 a month disability check is what they've been living on since his wife was laid off in July. We walked away feeling overly-blessed with what we have!


So there we were on Thanksgiving, surrounded by friends and family for a feast, and talking about all the things we're thankful for. None of them material things. We truly had a wonderful day!


Sleeping in on Friday morning we saw all the news shows talking about the 'must-haves' for Christmas this year, where to get the deals and how to make everyone on your list happy.


Televisions, laptops, jewelery, games. It made me sick to think after a day of discussing what we're grateful for, people were going to great lengths to get the best deals on a bunch of stuff; getting trampled, pepper-sprayed and beat-up in the process. I don't get it!! And many of these are the same people that are going to insist we say "Merry Christmas" and "keep Christ in Christmas" instead of "Seasons Greetings" and "Happy Holidays". Whatever!


What Christmas has become today in America has nothing to do with Jesus. If we love Him and want to celebrate His birth we can do that by living lives to honor Him each and every day. Christmas is a festive season where we give gifts, have parties and want to be with those we love. I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, we should just call it what it is.

2 comments:

  1. Love this Robin!! There is nothing wrong with blessing those you love with gifts but there is something VERY wrong with turning a blind eye to the need that is around you while doing it. We are going to have to give an account for every word spoken and I believe probably every dollar spent... that's a sobering thought this time of year. Is God going to say well done good and faithful servant you stood in line for hours to get your child that video game he/she wanted. Probably not.
    As a family we are desperately trying to find balance this year, how do we love like Jesus would at Christmas time. Where would his time and energy have been spent? What would he have done for his family and friends and what would he have done for the strangers in need around him. It's a shame that WWJD became such a "catch phrase" and burned out because really every day, in every situation, I believe we should be stopping and asking ourselves what would Jesus have done right here- right now.

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