Christmas comes just once a year, my favorite time of the year, and every year my family has a tradition. On Thanksgiving night after all the hubbub of stuffing ourselves to bursting we come home and set up our Christmas tree together. We look at all the ornaments and remember why it's special. And of course, we put the star on top of the tree. Silver, shining, the first thing someone looks at when they see a Christmas tree.
While setting up the tree this year I was feeling rather down. Just another year. Nothing new. Whatever. You know the feeling. And as we were sitting around the Christmas tree admiring our work there was one ornament in particular that stuck out to me. It was a square nail, about four inches long, with a red bow tied at the top.
I remember, when I was younger, asking my dad why we hung a nail on our Christmas tree. He took the opportunity to remind me of the story of Christ's death and resurrection. Yes, yes, I knew the story well, but I still didn't understand why we had an ornament that celebrated an end when Christmas was to celebrate a beginning.
As I scrutinized the ornament this year, I realized this: Christmas does signify a beginning, a birth. But it also is the end; Christmas is the end to ordinary. Jesus came to save the world. He saved us all. He saved you.
We get so caught up in the presents and the tinsel that we forget what we're creating all the stress of this holiday for. We lose focus on who's birthday we're celebrating.
This Christmas don't celebrate for you. Celebrate for Him and what He has done and what He is doing in our world today.
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