Christmas Day
December 25
By The Rev. Linda Ferguson
Isaiah 9:2-7
Titus 2:11-14
Luke 2:1-14(15-20)
Psalm 96
We all have our favorite Christmas movies, the ones we watch year after year – movies
that bring friends and families together, that inspire us, and that make us laugh. And
sometimes, they remind us of what Christmas is all about – the timeless story of hope and
joy and love and the birth of a child.
One of my grandchildren’s favorite Christmas movie is “Elf” where actor Will Farrell
plays the main character “Buddy”. In this movie, Santa Claus is making his rounds one
Christmas night, and during a visit to an orphanage, one of the babies in the orphanage
manages to crawl into Santa's sack by accident and is whisked away to the North Pole.
Buddy, who is the baby from the orphanage, is raised by Papa Elf in the North Pole. One
day when Buddy struggled with not belonging in the elf world…not fitting in; his
adopted father told him about his biological dad and how to find him in New York City.
Buddy begins his quest to seek out and establish a relationship with his long lost father.
He soon learns that relationships are just as complicated as they were at the North Pole.
Now you might ask; what does this have to do with Jesus or the Christmas message?
(Pause)
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Because, the story of Buddy the Elf is a lot like God’s story… in each of us having a
relationship with God and our search to be accepted into the family of God.
I would like to share with all of you a recently published story from the December
issue of Guidepost Magazine; Jessica Distin writes a story about her first Christmas
with her then fiancés family and her insecurity in their faith in God.
THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP…The way my heart was pounding, you would think
I was going to my execution instead of spending my first Christmas with my soon to-bein-laws. My fiancé, Blake, steered his pickup down the winding country road to his
grandparent’s house. I stared outside, my breath fogging the passenger window. Could I
do this? I felt so intimidated by these folks. Even dreaming about our spring wedding
plans could not settle my mind.
Do not get me wrong. It’s not like the Distins were criminals or anything! No, what
worried me was just the opposite. They were Christians. That’s right. Christians. But
they were not the typical churchgoing folks I was used to. In the two and a half years
Blake and I had dated, I had met his Nana and Papa just a few times, but it was obvious
they were the 24-hour-a-day, everyone-in-the-family-is-in-ministry kind of Christians.
Blake’s grandfather was even a pastor!
I had no idea what to expect…or, worse, what they would expect of me. Would they
question my beliefs? Ask me to pray? Quiz me on bible verses? It’s not like I was a
non-believer. But there are believers and then there are “believers”.
Usually I was super confident. I was a former BMX champion. “No fear!” That was my
motto. I had challenged and pushed myself all the way to the world-class level by the
time I was 16. I had acted in high school and local theater, even nailing a scholarship to
the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts. “Insecure” was not in my vocabulary.
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Yet I had panicked getting ready for the trip. I packed and repacked twice. On my third
attempt, I threw in my favorite blouse, the black-and-white polka dotted one that Nana
and I had both shown up wearing to Blake’s sister’s graduation. Maybe that was a good
sign.
Or…maybe not. Who was I kidding? My family hadn’t gone to church while I was
growing up. To me, God was somewhere up there, not up close and personal. I never
really slowed down to think about him.
Then I met Blake. He was more comfortable in his faith than anyone I had ever known.
He loved the Lord with his whole heart. We had been dating for about two months when
he asked me to join him at church. Soon we were attending services together every week.
It seemed as though the more I opened my heart to God, the more I felt his love for me,
And the more my love for Blake deepened.
Still, as a young believer, I was un-nerved at the prospect of spending several days with
Blake’s very religious family. Lord, I prayed, I’m new at this. I don’t want to disappoint
Blake.
As if on cue, Blake’s truck muffler went from a rumble to a growl as he pulled into Nana
and Papa’s driveway. There was no turning back now. I got out of the pickup and we
walked slowly toward the house. Blake’s family all rushed out. “Merry Christmas,
y’all!” they said. Inside, carols were playing and a mountain of brightly wrapped
packages nearly swallowed the Christmas tree. Trays of warm cookies covered every
spot on the kitchen counter.
Everyone loaded up on mugs of coffee and plates of goodies. Nana and Papa herded us
into the living room to exchange gifts. I tucked myself into the corner of an overstuffed
sofa next to Blake, right near the door. Blake’s grandfather opened the festivities with a
prayer and led everyone in a surprisingly reverent rendition of “Happy Birthday” to
Jesus, I had never seen before.
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I did my best to cover my nervousness with each gift I received. The last present I
opened was in an old box. I thought that was kind of odd, but inside was a cute blazer
that would go great with my polka-dotted blouse. I held it up for everyone to see, and a
bright yellow apron fell out. They all laughed. “What’s so funny?” I whispered to Blake.
Honey, you got the prank box he said. It’s a family tradition. It holds a nice gift and an
apron, because the recipient gets blessed with the chore of cleaning up after Christmas
dinner. I wasn’t sure what to make of that. Then Blake opened his present. It was a
second prank gift box! I had to laugh. Clearly the Distins were trying to make me feel
included.
My in-law insecurities settled down some. During the familiar chores of loading the
dishwasher and wiping down the counters with Blake made me relax a bit more. Enough
of my confidence returned for me to point out to Blake how much I had in common with
his family.
“Obviously, Nana and I both love polka dots, since we own the same blouse,” I said.
“Your cousins and I collect forties and fifties music. Your sister and your mom and I are
all crazy about dogs. And the guys are totally impressed by my sports knowledge. Do
you think I passed the test?”
Before he could answer, Nana walked up. “Jess, let Blake finish the cleanup,” she said.
“Come sit with me in the dining room. There is something I want to talk to you about.”
I followed her to the dining room and took a seat at the table across from her. She
handed me something small wrapped in tissue paper. “I want you to have this, Jess,” she
said.
I carefully peeled away the paper. Inside was a delicate white hankie, trimmed in
ornately crocheted lace. Its lovely I said. “Did someone make it?” Blake’s greatgrandmother Lillian,” Nana said. On Sunday’s she always carried hankies in her purse. I
know she would have loved for you to carry it on your wedding day.”
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I was speechless. If she was passing on something so special, that had to mean… Then
Nana said, “There’s something else I want to tell you.” I braced myself for whatever it
was that Nana was gearing up to say to me.
“Lillian gave me a gift for my wedding day too,” she said. Now I was really confused.
“Jess, when I met Blake’s grandfather, I was a mess,” Nana said. “Both of my parents
were alcoholics, and their kind of life was the only one I knew. I couldn’t bake brownies,
but I could mix a cocktail. I knew cuss words, but not the words to a single hymn.”
What? I never, ever would have guessed that from the way Nana was now. “What about
Papa’s family? Weren’t you afraid to meet them for the first time?” I asked, fiddling
with the hankie.
“Heck, I was terrified!” Nana said. “Papa’s family was so nice, so squeaky clean, so
normal. I didn’t think a family like theirs existed except on Leave it to Beaver. I felt so
out of place.
“Since we lived in a small town, they must have known all about my folks. But right
from the start, Lillian gave me the gift of acceptance. She took me into the family with
open arms.”
“Right away? No questions asked?” “That’s right,” said Nana. “And over the years,
Lillian taught me all she knew about God’s love. She was not only my mother-in-law but
my mentor and best friend.”
Nana reached over and squeezed my hand. She didn’t need to say any more. Now I
understood the true gift she was giving me – how opening your heart to God lets you love
the people he brings into your life with your whole heart too.
Nana and I got up and joined the rest of the family. Our family.
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Isn’t that what God does for us? He accepts us for who we are…unconditionally. We are
all called to be one in unity with Christ, to support one another, to live out the bonds of
our relationships, our connections to each other; and thus better live out God’s calling for
us to be a part of his family. Jesus’ purpose and the significance of his birth are not
isolated by the Christmas season. Remember Jesus all year long. Remember your loved
ones and friends all year long. Remember the less fortunate all year long.
In the movie Elf, Buddy would proclaim the Christmas message by proclaiming these
words: “The best way to spread Christmas Cheer is singing loud for all to hear.”
And just like Buddy, we should proclaim our Christmas message by shouting loud for all
to hear: "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all
the people: to you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is the Messiah,
the Lord.” - “Jesus, Emanuel”; “God with us.”
(Pause)
The ultimate test of how well we have celebrated Christmas this year will not be in what
was under the tree, it will be in how well we open our hearts to the Christmas message.
So, let each of us pray that our lives may show His life and His love; and may we do so
this Christmas, and always.
Amen
Resources:
The Text
December Guidepost Magazine 2013
NRSV Study Bible
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