It’s easy to get caught up in all of the commercial fuss of Christmas these days. When Christmas decorations and merchandising start showing up right next to the Halloween decorations in September, you know things have gone a little too far. The focus becomes on Stuff, instead of Someone. And yet that Someone is what Christmas is truly about.
Christmas means “Christ-birth.” I did a little research and the “mas” is from the Egyptian word “mes” which means “to be born.” Of course, at first when I thought of the word “mas” I thought of it as a Spanish word, which I thought meant “more.” It actually means “but.” I was wrong, but it did get me thinking. There are several verses in the Bible that offer the phrase, “but Christ.”
1. Cor. 15:20 – “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead…”
Gal. 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me…”
Col. 3:11 – “There is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.”
Hebrews 3:6 – “But Christ is faithful as a son over God’s house…”
To me, the “but” implies first rights. It’s a reminder we need to put Christ first, before the presents, before the family time, even before the holiday itself. What would it look like if we celebrated Christmas – Christ’s birth – 365 days a year, and not just during the month of December?
My pastor preached yesterday on Mary’s experience when the angel first appeared to her and told her what was about to happen. What an incredible example of following God’s will despite the fear, the uncertainty, the obstacles she faced.
As military wives, we can relate, can’t we, in a small way? No, we haven’t been tasked with being the mother of God, but we have been tasked to be mom to our own children (for those of us who are parents), we have been tasked as wives, and as God’s children. To me, the First Christmas represents an incredible gift God gave using incredible, but very normal, people to do His will. It’s a reminder to us that God uses those who are willing to say yes. It’s a reminder that He loved us so much He gave us the ultimate gift – He came down among us in a form we could relate to, giving us an example we could aspire to, and creating a path we could follow.
This post feels a little all over the place today, so sorry about that. It’s just some of my thoughts when it comes to the First Christmas. For more thoughts from military wives, visit Wives of Faith.
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Christ is truly an amazing gift!