Why We Should Still Be Celebrating Christmas
Celebrating Christmas after the Big Day
Wow, it’s already two days before New Year’s Day. By this time, many of us can barely remember Christmas.
In recent years, I made a discovery — Christmas Day is the beginning of a 12-day season in the liturgical calendar — called — you guessed it — Christmas!
Phillip Reinders, in his wonderful devotional, Seeking God’s Face: Praying with the Bible Through the Year, Compact Edition
“The twelve-day Christmas season, beginning on Christmas Day, may be the healing remedy needed to reclaim this holiday from merchants and marketers. After all the annoying ads and repetitive jingles fade, when everyone else is burned out on Christmas or has moved on to year-end reviews or gym memberships, now the follower of Jesus can focus on the Christmas miracle.
It’s a season of light in darkness, where we are taken deeper into the growing light of the Word made flesh. Reflecting on the birth of Jesus, we have time to delight in the how of incarnation as we’re also led into deeper wonder of its meaning for our world.
At the heart of the Christmas season is the mystery of the incarnation, of God becoming human…The Christmas season grounds our faith in space and time — this world that is broken, this body that bleeds. Materiality is not an embarrassment to God; he created it and revels in it.”
I pray you will find some time to rest and remember the true story at the heart of Christmas in the coming days. May we all continue celebrating Christmas all year long.
Amen! I hate that so many start celebrating “Christmas” before Thanksgiving & stop the day after Christmas, taking down trees & putting away decorations. Growing up in Pennsylvania we put our tree up Christmas Eve & took it down after Epiphany. Let’s face it, getting ready for Christmas can be stressful! The beginning of the celebration & the ability to actually enjoy it starts on Christmas Day. I’m all for celebrating the 12 days of Christmas as they should be, truly reflecting on & enjoying the birth of my Savior. It truly is an amazing gift!!
Amylynne — Thank you for your passionate response, and especially for your story of how you grew up celebrating the 12 days of Christmas. It made me remember how when I was in my high school years, after I had become a Christian, I used to work in the Young Life Christmas tree lot. I would come in at night, turn off all the lights except the Christmas tree lights and sit and stare at the tree and think of the light Christ brought into a dark world. I don’t get to turn off all the lights much these days, but I still love staring at the tree and remembering the stories of God’s grace.