Trees tend to be the center of attention this time of year. They may not always be at the literal main focal point in whatever room they’re placed in with each home that celebrates Christmas, but they tend to garner their fair share of interest, to say the least. For those with the living forms, it takes a fair share of planning in finding just the right one and transporting it as well as getting it into the living room without unleashing seemingly millions of pine needles to cover the entire floor. Although, that would still be my preference, no matter the nuisance leading up to it, children have a way of altering Christmas tree plans, let alone life in general.
So, now we have this tall skinny pre-lit non-living tree tucked away in a corner, where we hoped (beyond hope) would capture the least nuisance caused by the younger life. Of course, no matter how well thought-out the plans, the cord still gets pulled out of curiosity, the ornaments still get seized with ha-ha-ha’s, and sometimes thrown, and the whole apparatus might sway just enough to make the more-advanced-in-years lives a little more interesting than it already is from the day-to-day. But it still serves as an attention-getter to Christmas getting ever so captivatingly close. Granted, for the relatively newbies in this world, they tend to focus on those wrapped-up boxes that haven’t made it just yet from mom and dad’s room to around that tree. But around that tall skinny close-enough-to-the-real-deal thing, life still manages to spring forth, with more smiles and giggles and joy and excitement and all the other forms of life-giving-ness that somehow make all the cord-pulling and ornament-seizing worth it, in the end.
Nevertheless, once those little ones finally cave into sleep at the end of the day, I sometimes take advantage of the modernness of these non-living trees, by switching from their coveted color lights to the clear-lighting option by the simple press of a button on that same cord that gets constantly pulled during the daylight hours. And for a moment I can be transported back to the days when all seemed to be a bit calmer and peaceful (although I’m sure my parents wouldn’t necessarily agree on that), to a living tree with not quite as much fanciness, but still precious, nonetheless.
It’s a rather interesting combination holiday, this Christmas celebration. It is a day that pulls at your heartstrings with some of those most treasured memories (at least, for some of us) all of life has to offer. And yet, the same day can beg you to believe that this year’s rendition might still bring in its fair share of smiles and giggles and joy and excitement and all the other forms of life-giving-ness. Then again, not every household has the younger-life stampede rushing down the stairs in the morning, as if the whole universe is riding on what’s under that tree. And yet, God is more than capable of finding other life-giving ways to pull it off, in all years of life. God is more than capable of bringing the story to life that can very well unleash just as much joy and excitement in 2026 as it did for those who first heard about thousands of years ago. Because, the Gospel still insists that Christ was born for them, and you, too. So, in whatever way you celebrate, may you know that God’s adoration of you soars higher than any tree that is standing in any place tonight and tomorrow, and that long ago, even heaven itself could no longer contain it.
From all of us at Divinity, we wish you and yours a wonderful Christmas!
In Christ,
Pastor Brad