How have you done with the Christmas season this year? It seems to me that there was more conflict and controversy than in years past. I'm not talking about the ongoing war, I talking about the conflicts between Christians and those around them.
Some folks are upset that others choose to call this special time "Christmas" while others are upset because some refuse to use the word "Christmas" and choose to call it a "holiday season." The conflict continues to be argued back and forth, with some stating that this is a threat to the foundation of our nation as a "Christian" nation. I do agree that is a distinct possibility, as much of our religious freedoms seem to be crumbling away one brick at a time.
On the other hand, do you know what really bothers me? It's the fact that folks have become so involved in protecting their idea of what is right or wrong about the holiday that they have forgotten that the foundation of it is the proclamation of some angels who said: "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" (Luke 2:14 NKJV). Somewhere along the line, we have lost the ability to see the things that are really important about Christmas — or even much of the rest of the year.
Think about that as you read this interesting story I ran across.
"Ain't it too bad;" too bad that we fail to see with the eyes of the Savior who came to give his life that ALL might live, not just those who see it our way! The next time you hear or sing a Christmas carol, perhaps you will remember that the message is not meant for just a chosen few, but to all mankind.In one of the All in the Family episodes that aired some years ago, Edith and Archie are attending Edith's high school class reunion. Edith encounters an old classmate by the name of Buck who, unlike his earlier days, had now become excessively obese. Edith and Buck have a delightful conversation about old times and the things that they did together, but remarkably Edith doesn't seem to notice how extremely heavy Buck has become. Later, when Edith and Archie are talking, she says in her whiny voice, "Archie, ain't Buck a beautiful person?"
Archie looks at her with a disgusted expression and says: "You're a pip, Edith. You know that. You and I look at the same guy and you see a beautiful person and I see a blimp."
Edith gets a puzzled expression on her face and says something unknowingly profound, "Yeah, ain't it too bad." (Christian Globe)
If you want a real challenge, get over your own self-importance and start seeing others the way that Jesus did — an eternal person worth saving, at any cost, no matter what they choose to think about him or how or when he was born! After all, it is the words he spoke and the example he gave us that we are called to live up to in the end.
So we have stopped evaluating others by what the world thinks about them. Once I mistakenly thought of Christ that way, as though he were merely a human being. How differently I think about him now! What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT)
