With the beginning of the year, most of us take down our decorations that were in place for Christmas. The tree, if it was a cut pine of some kind, gets hauled to the street with the yard waste. Otherwise it gets boxed or bagged and stored. The lights come down. Ornaments get stored carefully so they are ready for next season. Nutcrackers, snowmen, reindeer, and Santas go back into their respective storage locations.
I read a story recently about a family who took down their decorations, but when it was time to box the favorite nativity set, the baby Jesus figurine was nowhere to be found. They looked everywhere, even through boxes of ornaments and lights. They searched under furniture and behind the TV.
Finally they gave up, assuming they would find him the following year as they began to decorate. Weeks passed. One Saturday afternoon while sitting on the couch, the man shifted his weight and felt a poke in his hip. He moved the couch cushion and found the baby who had been lost. What a relief. And what a moment of realization – the Baby of Christmas was there all along.
Keep the Baby in View
The challenge is to keep Jesus with you even though the celebrations are over and the decorations are down. I’m not suggesting that the baby Jesus figure from your nativity should stay on display, but that family decided to put the figurine on the window sill for the rest of the year. Christmas might be over, but Jesus is still with you.
Sometimes we need that reminder. We need a sign that God is there. For the Magi whose arrival we remember at the start of the Epiphany season, the sign was a star. For Mary and Joseph, God had told them through angels and dreams that all they were experiencing was real. For us, God’s presence might seem less tangible. But when we pause and consider our lives, we can see God at work. We have experienced answered prayers, or at least we know people who have. God comes to us in the Sacraments and speaks to us in His word. With this New Year, make a priority of seeing Jesus. Beyond a token or seasonal celebration, see Him in your daily life. Spend time with Him in devotion and prayer.
1 Chronicles 16:11
Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!
God is with us. That promise that we remember leading into Christmas, that He is our Immanuel, is a promise for all time. God is with YOU. Wherever you are. Whatever is going on in your life. In this New Year. Live in His presence and experience all the joy and peace that He gives.
Living in the presence of the Savior,
Pastor John