Hi there! It’s mid-December. Do you know where your Christmas presents are? Having two holiday birthdays in our family means that I often struggle to keep up with all the presents I’m supposed to be responsible for this time of year. I do pretty well with the presents, actually, but those birthday cards that come in the mail from the long-distance relatives don’t always stay where I put them.
It happened this week. I lost a birthday card from Nanny in San Antonio. It had money in it and everything. I found it already--just in time for the party. Not soon enough however to save me from having a complete come-apart.
Have I taught y’all that word yet? Come-apart is a Dothan term for hissy fit. Otherwise known as a howling spell, but the kind that the less spoiled rotten of us have. It may present with light tears or a full-on falling down kicking and screaming on the floor kind of thing. I usually throw myself crosswise across the bed, but, you know. It varies.
I was clicking along through Thanksgiving with all kinds of major important tasks to hold down and check off. I won’t say I was fine, but I was praying through it. Not having quiet time exactly, but definitely letting God in on my days. Then one little temporarily missing birthday card sent me into full-blown meltdown.
Now you think I’m going to chastise you with all sorts of verses about being still and the joys of simplicity. But I’m not. I’m going to ask you a question.
Does it really make sense for us to try to relax during the holidays? Women? Sisters, daughters, mothers? I ask you. Is this realistic? Or is this one more way for Satan to guilt us into immobility? Doesn’t the birth of the Saviour mandate celebratory sorts of behavior? Should we be daunted by the extra work and the estrogen levels it brings? Or is this the kind of celebration that merits our above average ambitions?
Here’s another question: Which honors God more? A woman who flies apart over a birthday card, and, in order to avoid more such episodes, decides to forgo any further once-a-year stress-inducing activities, like cooking Christmas dinner. Or a woman who cries the tears, considers them a normal reaction to the battle she is fighting, and after having dried them continues on in a manner worthy of her calling. With God as her witness, she embarks on an unapologetic, riotous, highly decorated season of feasting in honor of her Jesus come to earth. Complete with appetizers and hand tied bows.
Can we defend our amped-up activity levels during the holidays? Biblically, I mean.
Well, let’s see.
In defense of Christmas cards: Phillipians 1:2-3, 7-8
In defense of meal planning: John 6:4-5 (See? Planning ahead for meals is a Christlike endeavor. When great multitudes of people come to visit, they have to eat.)
Re-read John 2. (It has always seemed to me that this first miracle taking place at a wedding meant, among other things, that Jesus is okay with our celebrations of life. This time I had to laugh at what a prominent part Mary plays in this story. If she hadn’t stepped in would this have been the first miracle? Do you think she was stressed out on behalf of her friend? Was she trying to save the family some stress?)
I know. You don’t have time right now to read. That’s okay. You’ll catch it in January maybe. Or April. Whenever. God has time for you to spare.
One more question: Can God handle your stress? I dare say He can. Don’t forget that. He may not want you to stop working, stop doing. He may want to transform you through the very force of your efforts. He may want you to tap into His power to do more than you would have thought was possible. Every memory of the holidays is an altar to remind future generations that what you believe is worth the celebration. We don’t make a big deal out of it. It is a big deal. It is worth the stress. Worth the tears. Worth the battle.
Go work hard right now. Hang in there. Do your absolute very best and whatever that entails at your house in your family. Jesus surely deserves it.
Take care. And Merry Christmas!
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