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A "For Real" Christmas

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Take any happy holiday commercial —for jewelry, greeting cards, or even a beverage – and the story line is predictable: A beautiful family of four drives to Grandma’s in their brand new luxury SUV. Not a scratch, not a dent, not a problem.

As they merrily drive to Grandma’s, there are no construction delays on the highway, no road- rage traffic, and snow has, coincidentally, blanketed the landscape without landing on the road.
(Are there heated roads in the commercial?)

Cruising to Christmas at Grandmother’s house, the family carols along the way: “Have yourself a merry little Christmas, Let your heart be light. Next year all our troubles will be out of sight….” As they pull into the winding, tree-lined driveway, the camera focuses on a beautiful cottage in the distance.

Looking in the window, we can see that Grandma is beautiful, growing older with grace. As the family meanders up the sidewalk, the camera cuts to a close-up as Grandma takes a golden turkey out of the oven. It’s the last piece of the perfect holiday puzzle, as the table setting is absolutely exquisite. Just as grandma displays that golden-brown bird – it is moist, you can tell by looking – on the table, the doorbell rings. Their timing is perfect. Grandma opens the door, and the grandchildren leap into her arms, sharing a holiday hug.

All is well in the winter wonderland of Christmas commercials. But is this a “for real” Christmas? No. Everyday life bears many burdens. Perhaps your family gathering includes eating Christmas lunch with your grandmother in the Alzheimer’s care facility. Your own grandmother may not even recognize you this year. For many of us, life is hardly a “Hallmark” holiday.

Viewing the Madison Avenue version of holiday happiness, we conclude that we, too, are entitled to a carefree Christmas. And as we compare the orchestrated Christmas commercial to our “for real” holiday, we find ourselves feeling let down or even a bit cheated.

Where do you find your “for real” Christmas this year? For some, Christmas 2009 will be the first since your divorce has been final. The reality is that your children will have to be shared with your ex-spouse’s family. Other people face Christmas with fear because a chair will be empty at the dinner table. Your husband, wife, parent or child died this year, and you ponder how Christmas will have changed forever. Still others find financial crisis and unemployment foiling their spirit of holiday bliss. For you and all who hurt during this holiday, I offer four words of advice.

Realize you are not alone. The “Hallmark” holiday doesn’t exist as a reality for anyone. Only 25 percent of folks even live in what was once thought of as a traditional family. And they, of course, still bear their own burdens. A “poor me” attitude will always result if you compare your actual holiday circumstances with the illusion of the carefree Christmas of the commercials.

Refuse to let troubles rob you of Christmas hope. The list of main characters in the first Christmas story includes a poor carpenter and his teenage bride, lowly shepherds who existed below the baseline of society, and an old man, Simeon, and an aged woman, Anna, who had longed to see the Lord’s Christ. Christmas hope comes in the midst of our troubles today, even as it did two thousand years ago.

Remember that the Christ child came to suffer alongside us, not to remove our troubles. The coming of the Christ child embodies the idea that as God puts on flesh, He also experiences our hardships. Jesus experienced hunger, thirst, weariness and grief as part of His human experience. He went forty days without food, wept at the grave of his friend Lazarus, and received the bruising blows of a Roman whip.

Rejoice in the real message of Christmas. Long before Madison Avenue was pitching perfect parties as a model Christmas, the angel made the declaration, “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which shall be for all people everywhere. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Despite the fact that we have to experience a “for real” Christmas, no hardship can rob us of the joy that accompanies the coming of the Christ. In fact, our hardships are actually what make His presence “for real” in our lives.

by Dr. Howie Batson

Dr. Batson is the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Amarillo. He also serves as chairman of the Board of Regents at Baylor University.

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