Not Your Typical Christmas


 
What does your typical Christmas look like? Shopping, Baking, Decorating, Traveling, Church Services, Family and Friends?
Or is it more like chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose, yuletide carols being sung by a choir?

A typical Christmas may look vastly different to individuals, but if it’s typical to us it still seems right. And when things don’t go as planned it can make the season difficult.
A couple of weeks ago I discovered that Apple and iTunes has hijacked my favorite Christmas music, I then arrived at church to find the kitchen flooded just as we needed to get the preparations done for the tea. Things were hinting at a different type of Christmas. And to top it off instead of being snuggled by a fire surrounded by family, I will be traveling on Christmas Day. All of those things make this a non-typical Christmas for me.

Maybe your holiday is shaping up to be different this year too. Perhaps you have a loved one who is missing this year due to illness, divorce or even death. Or due to finances the tree might not be lined with presents as in the past. Loneliness, depression and anger might be the words that come to your mind this year instead of love, joy and peace.
Whatever it is that makes this Christmas different, you are not alone. The Bible gives some pretty good examples.

  • For Jesus, Christmas was unlike anything He had known before. After all He left the comforts of His heavenly home to come to earth as a newborn baby.
  • Mary was pregnant with a baby and was shunned because of it.
  • Joseph couldn’t even find a place for his family to spend the night as they traveled far from home and family.
  • The shepherds being startled by the angels took off leaving their flocks to find this mysterious child.
  • The wise men traveled to a far away country making the sacrifice of time, money and resources to see the newborn baby.

Christmas for all of the Biblical characters was far from typical, yet their lives were profoundly changed by it. So if you are finding yourself a bit disturbed because this in not going to be your typical Christmas, why not pray that  God will use the uniqueness to change your life profoundly too.

God knew and directed their plans; He will do the same for you.
Merry Blessed CHRISTmas!

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

www.hearthope.org

Comments

Kellie said…
I love you Olga!! Just what I needed to hear. Merry Christmas
December 23, 2015 at 8:10 PM
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