Same Old Christmas

Same Old Christmas

Same old Christmas. Same old Story.

We’ve heard it all before. It’s really quite boring.

A virgin mother, her husband in tow.

No room at the inn so to the stable they go.

A baby is born there. In a manger he lay.

Surrounded by shepherds from their flocks pulled away.

A bright shining star in the heavens leads kings

to bring the Christ child many wonderous things.

We’ve all grown so weary of this story told.

There are no surprises. This really gets old.

We’ve become complacent. We choose not to ponder

the miracle of the Christ child that should hold us in wonder.

Some talk of the reason Christmas is placed here.

A substitute for solstice in long gone pagan years.

The solstice renews the world’s four seasons.

Christ is renewal. Christ is the reason.

How many wise men? No one really knows.

And a star in the heavens? Was that real? We suppose.

We try to dismantle the miracle that as children

we believed to be the story of the true Christmas season.

So now it’s about Santa and presents and wrapping

and all of those seasonal habits and trappings.

But what if for just of a moment we said

that we were unwrapping Christmas instead?

What if we decided to consider again

this miracle, this Jesus who came to serve men.

He who gave up his heavenly throne

to become one of us and make earth his home.

To live like any other. To grow up and make friends

To worship and wander. See life through our lens.

Truly get to know us. Know our joys and our pain.

To know our triumphs and flaws and all that remains.

Then to move on and give up His life once again.

For all of us here. For all of his friends.

We could have gone on just as before

never knowing we needed redemption once more.

This is the true gift of a Father, His son.

That none would be lost. Not one single one.

A promise of happiness delivered in prayer.

No sin. No death. No endless despair.

Can we open once again this gift God has given?

Our Lord’s true forgiveness. This promise of heaven.

Let us wonder again at this heavenly dawn.

Offered to us on this Christmas morn.

Without the true gift of Mary’s own son

there could be no salvation. We would be undone.

I know there is sin in the world all around

But with this gift God’s mercy abounds.

Set aside for the moment the world’s preoccupation

with toys and things that have no relation

to the world we’ll encounter at the end of our days.

Let’s all raise our voices in heavenly praise

For God has given to us the best gift of all.

Deliverance from sin after man’s tragic fall.

Our end will be our beginning one day

One gift from one small infant asleep in the hay.