A boy and a girl were singing “Silent Night” together a few days before Christmas and as they ended the song the boy belted out “Sleep in heavenly beans.” The girl promptly corrected him and said, “That's not the way the song goes! It's not beans, its peas!”
Sometimes we get so stressed out around Christmas time that the lyrics might as well be “beans” because we surely don't have very much peace. Christmas should be a time for warmth and joy, but instead it can often bring us stress, depression and heartburn.
We cruise through this season of peace and joy not focused on the Savior who was born in a manger but focused on making sure the lights, sound and video comes off flawlessly for our Christmas productions. The average American spends about 42 hours on their holiday preparations. It shouldn't surprise that tech directors probably spend five times that amount...if not more!
In Luke 10 we read about Mary and Martha throwing a party for Jesus. Now I don't know if this was a birthday party or not, but it certainly could have been. We all know the story about how Martha was busy working while Mary sat at the feet of Jesus. Martha got upset because Mary wasn't helping her out, but Jesus told them both that Mary had discovered the most important thing.
Think about that. Martha had the Son of God in her home and she was too stressed out to notice. Sometimes we may get so stressed out on the production details of preparing a celebration for Jesus that we forget all about Jesus! We find ourselves stretched like a rubber band getting ready to snap. Sure, we are serving God and want to please him with our offerings, but do we ever stop and just enjoy being in His presence?
Spending time with Jesus will always be better than simply preparing things to celebrate Him. The holidays do not have to be the most stressful time of the year when we are focusing on the things that are most important.
Jesus came to bring us peace, not stress. Isaiah called Him the Prince of Peace.
John 14:27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid.
This Christmas are you living in stress or are you living in the peace that Christ brings? Are you living in fear or are you living in faith? If you find that the stress of the holiday is starting to overwhelm you then maybe it is time to take a few steps back and just spend some time with Jesus. After all it is His party. We are celebrating him!
