Beverly's Thoughts

In this Advent season, I find it easy to think a lot about all the food we get to make or all the presents I need to buy or make still. Thinking about the Christmas parties and the meals that are approaching, it could be very easy to get stressed. This Christmas season, I have been wondering what Christmas will look like for my children and grandchildren. Will Christmas be stressful, something just to get through, for them? Or will they remember what it meant for Christ to be born? Because I have every intention of helping to build a covenant community (maybe there will be future posts about that, I’m not sure), I want my kids to know how to celebrate in joy, and to truly celebrate Christ in covenant. Even though my children are not born yet, how I act this Christmas will affect how my children view holy days.

The early church seemed to have celebrating down pat. Acts 2:46-47 says,

“So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” In everyday life, the early church went from house to house, eating and fellowshipping with one another, in simplicity of heart. If the church ate in simplicity of heart every day, I am sure they were well prepared for big celebrations. This is the challenge for me as I face the Christmas season. Am I going to stress out about the sheer amount of preparation that I need to do before Christmas and guests arrive, or will I make Christmas better for everyone by simply calming down and offering what I do have without apology? I am a strong believer in making delicious meals and tasty desserts for special occasions, but I also know that the juiciest roast can taste like cardboard when the air is tense.  Maybe stress over Christmas comes from not believing the food or hospitality is ”good enough” or that people will like what you make. For me, this Christmas is a challenge to stop apologizing and offer my best, even if I didn’t do all I had hoped to do. This Christmas, I want to set the standard for future Christmases. I want my heart to be simple and full of joy as I celebrate Christ. The early church was made of people just like me, so I know that if they could celebrate like the people of God, so can I. I am encouraged by the example of the early church and I look forward to restoring a godly and joyful celebration of Christ!