May the God of peace, who brought back the great shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, from the dead by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with every good thing to do his will,
by developing in us what pleases him through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory forever and always. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21
In the movie National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, poor Clark Griswold just desperately wants to have “the most fun-filled old fashioned family Christmas ever." His hopes and expectations are set so incredibly high that he is actually sabotaging his plans of merriment to setting himself for failure.
Do we all tend to have a little bit of Clark Griswold in us? I think if we answered truthfully, we would have to admit--yes, we do! We want the lights, the decorations, the tree, the trimmings, the relatives, the packages, the cookies, punch, and goodies. We want it all.
In trying to have it all, we actually end up with less: less sleep, less money, less energy, less joy, less peace . . . less Christmas. The holidays end up becoming hopeless instead of hopeful. Maybe if we would shift our Clark mentality to Christ spirituality, we would gain something?
If we make Christ the center of our Advent and Christmas season, we can settle down to have more common sense plans. We need to start each day on a good foundation of scripture, prayer, and meditation. We can listen to God’s still small voice directing us in the ways we should go. He will not place heavy burdens on us or give us jobs too big to complete. We can allow Him to do His work through us. He can be our strength, stamina, and help. He will “equip us with every good thing to do his will.” This sounds like the kind of Christmas which pleases Christ and is doable for us.
I pray that we will all decide to have a Christ Christmas this year instead of a Clark Christmas. I confess that I have been guilty of trying to do too many other things instead of Christ things. I pray that He will guide my path and remind me daily to choose Him. I am sure it will make for a much more peaceful Christmas season.
Dear God, Help me to focus on You through the Christmas season. In Christ Jesus I pray, Amen.
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