Merry Christmas?

I have to admit...I don't like "Happy Holidays" or "Holiday trees" or "Winter break". For me, it's always going to be "Merry Christmas" and "Christmas trees" and "Christmas break"!

That said, there is something about those greetings that has important implications for the transformed church. Think about it. Why, really, would Wal-Mart or JC Penney or Target feel the need to proclaim "Christmas" in it's true meaning? And why should we as the church feel offended if the CEO's of Fortune 500 companies forbid the greeting "Merry Christmas" or call them "Holiday trees" in adverstisments? What is their job? Their job is to sell stuff. Their job is not to proclaim Christmas, at least corporately. However, that is the job of the church!

I normally delete forwarded emails as fast as humanly possible. I do scan them, but only for a short few seconds. I received a forwarded email last week. OK, I received about 50 forwarded emails last week, but one in particular stood out. The way it started out almost got it deleted before I read it..."Letter from God" or something like that. I've got a bunch of those. If most of them are from God, no wonder there are so many atheists.

But this one was markedly different. The gist was this: does God really care if Wal-Mart or Target keeps employees from saying "Merry Christmas"? Does God want Don Wildmon to spend precious time worrying about such things? In the opinion of that email's writer, with which I concur wholeheartedly, the answer is a resounding "NO!"

I do believe that God desires that His followers, in any line of work, including retail, honor Him in any way they can. I also believe that God would have all His followers do something that would present an accurate understanding of who He is to the world, rather than the normal drivel we usually direct against our distinctly pagan culture.

So, in keeping with the spirit of the email sent to me, I would suggest that we followers of Jesus, instead of protesting and writing letters to the editor, do these things this Christmas season:

1. Instead of protesting your town for not having a nativity scene, why don't you and your fellow believers buy one and put it on your lawns? If all beleivers did that, municipalities wouldn't need to.

2. Say "Merry Christmas" to everyone. They may want to say it and can't, or they may need to hear that someone understands why we celebrate.

3. Instead of giving so much to those who need so little, how about giving an offering to mission causes or to Angel Tree or Toys for Tots.

4. Consider giving an offering to Samaritan's purse in honor someone you love. We did this last year, and will again, in honor of every family member. They like it, and want us to do it again.

5. Be nice. I know that you want that good parking spot as much as the other guy. I know you wished that Wal-Mart shoppers knew what a crosswalk was or that anyone knew what a "Yield" sign means. But be nice anyway. This is the hardest time of year for many people, like those who have lost loved ones or who are lonely. Suicide is a big cause of death this time of year. What if you smiled and acknowledged EVERBODY this year? It could well make a huge difference in somebody's life.

6. Give an offering to Jesus before you give presents to your family. My family, well before we open any presents, will offer a gift to Jesus. It can be a song or a commitment or a story or a conviction or a poem or an act of repetance - the gift will depend on chronoligical and spiritual maturity. But make Christmas about giving to the One who gave it all, not about how much we can give to people who need very little.

"Merry Christmas"? Most definitely. But spoken in word and deed by Christ's people to the ones who Christ came to save - the lost, the lonely, the least, and the left out.