It is Christmas Eve. Over my lifetime, I have come to
cherish this day because I am reminded every Christmas Eve that no matter how
bleak the current situation, there is hope.
Do you have Christmas traditions? My family has always
opened their gifts on Christmas Day. December 25th is always full of
activity. When my children were young, they would wake my wife and me up early
in the morning. They wanted to open presents as soon as they got out of bed.
Then we ate a very large breakfast before we cleaned the place up and I started
putting together the latest gadgets. We played games, watched Christmas movies
until midway through the afternoon, then my wife would bring out a feast and we
would eat again. Even as my children are now adults, they still come around for
the tradition of Christmas Day.
Christmas Eve is different than Christmas Day is for me. It
certainly is filled with tradition, but it is not as focused on one activity
after the other as much as it is about contemplating my standing in the
universe. First of all, no matter how good or bad the year has been, Christmas
Eve helps me gain a proper perspective. It helps me not get too high or too
low. It recalibrates my thinking. Secondly, it reminds me that there are things
much bigger than me that have impacted my life in a very positive way - things
that I have not earned or learned in an advanced degree or purchased in a store
for myself. These things are free and they are life changing. Thirdly,
Christmas Eve reminds me that there is good at work around me and that good can
overcome any bleak disposition, no matter how dark the night and how deep the
despair. Light shines in the darkness, but the darkness cannot overcome it.
You can call me a supreme optimist and claim that I have my
Christmas-colored glasses on. I’m okay with that label, but I would encourage
you to stop and give it a try before you discard Christmas Eve as just a day
before the big event. I would urge you to take some time to slow down and
listen to that which stirs your heart. For me, that includes gathering with a
group of people at my church and singing Christmas carols, lighting candles and
allowing our hearts to be moved (that is a choice for most of us.) Even if you
don’t normally take the time to contemplate much of anything at all, I would coax
you to do so this Christmas Eve.
This has been quite a year, hasn’t it? Could you use a
little hope in the midst of it? Why not allow a little light to brighten a dark
place inside you. Take it from a Christmas Eve optimist, it has worked wonders
inside me.
Merry Christmas!