Before the autumn pumpkins are off the porch we’ve already moved on to the bright red and green. It makes the transition feel almost instant. How can we avoid getting tangled up in a holiday knot of Thanksgiving menus and Christmas checklists both at the same time?
We get one time to experience this Thanksgiving and this Christmas. So, don’t miss it!
When we allow Thanksgiving and Christmas to collide, we blend two sacred seasons together and get robbed of one or the other. Each year, Thanksgiving seems to get swept under the Christmas rug because of what comes next. To go from We Gather Together to Silent Night skips over the mystery and wonder of the anticipation of Advent. And Jesus didn’t come to earth just to mess with our schedule.
So how can we reclaim the season as we enter into a time of reflection on God’s goodness into the soft light of an advent-quiet?
Culture tries to reframe what we want to reclaim. Thanksgiving is still about taking a sacred pause to look back on the year and thank God for His faithfulness. Traditions can change, but the truth doesn’t. It tells us to give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you In Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18.
It also says that though trials and blessings make up our lives, we can give thanks continually, not seasonally. So, ‘tis the reason to slow down and think about it. I’m grateful for a set-apart day to gather around the table with those I love and pass down a legacy of true gratitude to the next generation.
Between the hype and the hope we have this ritual sprint from October to December trying to make all things work. While trying to be holiday perfect, let’s not lose sight of those who are caught in the middle and have reason not to feel thankful or joyful during a less than perfect holiday. The ones who despair and want to get through the sentiment of the season simply to survive the emotional weight of feeling recent loss or sorrow. And we all know one or a dozen . . .
May we be the light to live out the joy that Christ has come while living in a world not fully restored and waiting for the rescue of His coming again – the sacred tension of the already but not yet.
The absolute light and hope on our path . . .
Those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness on them has light shone.
Isaiah nine~two
Verna
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