By Steven Norris
My wife and I looked at each other with shock and disappointment. How had we allowed it to happen again!? We had just finished coordinating our calendars for the week. Here it was, only the second week into Advent, and there was not a free night all week long.
Just last year, we promised ourselves that we were going to do better. We were going to make time as the days shorten to slow down and join Mary in “pondering” the meaning of Advent and preparing our hearts for Christ’s coming.
Yet, here we are running from concert to party to church event to outreach ministry with little end in sight. Who has time to savor the season when you feel caught in a giant game of tug-of-war? Who has time to love deeply when your whole life is skimming across the surface of never-ending responsibilities?
Some years ago, I came across a rewrite of 1 Corinthians 13 (the “love” chapter) by Sharon Jaynes. She applied it to the Christmas season and the busy-ness that can infect our lives this time of year. Consider this:
“If I decorate my house perfectly with lovely plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights, and shiny glass balls, but do not show love to my family – I’m just another decorator.
“If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals, and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love to my family – I’m just another cook.
“If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home, and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love to my family – it profits me nothing.
“If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties, and sing in the choir’s cantata but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.
“Love stops the cooking to hug the child.
“Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the spouse.
“Love is kind, though harried and tired.
“Love doesn’t envy another home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.
“Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of your way.
“Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return, but rejoices in giving to those who can’t.
“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.
“Love never fails. Video games will break; pearl necklaces will be lost; golf clubs will rust. But giving the gift of love will endure.”
As the world rushes headlong toward December 25th, I invite you to take time today to breathe. Maybe five or ten minutes is all you can give, but take a moment to search your hearts. Our calendars can be jam-packed with activity, but it is meaningless if we forget that this season is about love incarnate. Gifts are meaningless unless they are a reflection of the greatest gift of all: God’s love for us, in us, and flowing through us. May you slow down long enough to remember that you are loved — today and always.