When I was younger I remember before Christmas sitting on our living room floor, with the Argos catalogue and a pen, going through the toy section, circling items that I wanted to get for Christmas. This often ended up with most of the catalogue circled much to the upset of my mum. But really I was just going through and circling things that I thought 'I might just fancy' for Christmas. Obviously I had no regard for the value of money.
On Christmas Eve my brother and I would be sent to bed so that Santa could come and deliver the presents. We would be so excited and would perform our special handshake. This consisted of shaking hands and saying " Right.....Goodnight!!" and pretending to go to bed. But really we would wait to see if the other went to bed first. We would catch each other out and repeat the "Right, Goodnight!" handshake over and over until one of us gave in (Usually me) or our parents shouted up the stairs for us to get to bed. We continued this tradition until my brother got married and left home last year.
Christmas has always been a huge family time, a time to eat together, share together, talk together, have fun. A lot of hurts are often healed at Christmas.
I have gone to church since I was one, and we always attend lots of church services over the Christmas period. It's the busiest month in our church calender. It wouldn't be Christmas without the Carols By Candlelight services at Roby church. We go on Christmas day, Christmas eve, and before. I sing in the choir and this year I have also learnt 4 carols in sign language.
The Christmas Story has always played a great part in my Christmas Traditions. But the true meaning and feeling of the story has only sunk in more as I got older. As I fully understood the extent of what was happening in the story, the plan god had. What God had in store for each one of the characters. Particularly the 3 main characters;
Jesus- The son of God, the lamb, the almighty, come to earth to be a weak, little, helpless baby and then to grow up to become the saviour of the world.
Mary- A teenage mother, pregnant before marriage but sill a virgin, she would had faced outcasting and disgrace, but she knew that God had a plan. How trusting! What an inspiration.
Joseph- The father who wasn't the father, but was the father, if you get me. He still loved Jesus as his own, he still took Mary as his bride, even though their engagement was turbulent. He trusted in God. What a man!
This Christmas, lets not forget the joy and the true meaning of the season. Lets take time out of the hustle and bustle of modern Christmas times and pause to think of that baby, in the manger JESUS, the saviour of the world. Of the mother who risked ridicule to carry the child, the father, who stood by his bride and had the strength to bring up the man who became the saviour. Let us thank god that he had the BIG plan and that it came through to completion.
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