Is it Christmas without a tree?
We have no tree. It’s not that we don’t have a tree, it’s just that we did not put it up this year. My decorations are deep in a cardboard box buried under mounds of household junk waiting to be unpacked when we finish our move. The thoughts of pulling them out only to repack them in less than 2 weeks makes me wilter…my new made-up word for the collision between wilting and withering.
Our tree is getting on in years and it looks like I sometimes feel; frayed around the edges and losing its bits. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with it hubs has insisted for the past I don’t know how many years. I beg to differ.
Years ago when the kids were still living at home it was a family affair to get the tree up. Hubs & I tackled the set-up and lights, the kids rounded out the joyous occasion with decorations. There were always a few teeny-weeny moments where vocal decibels exceeded the normal requirements of tree-putting-upping. Fingers were sometimes pinched in the sharp spokes and, well, once in awhile all the huffing and puffing would blow the whole good will to all men thing down, BUT, once the tree was decorated, straightened and the angel perched precariously on top the most exciting moment arrived: turning out the living room lights.
The darkness revealed much.
It exposed uneven gaps where I strung the lights too close in some spots and too wide apart in others. Small shadows yawned where we had neglected to space the ornaments just-so. Most of all, light exploded from the surrounding darkness like millions of stars across the Milky Way.
Darkness showcased the soft, radiant colors dancing through the room. Darkness became the envelope that held this wondrous treasure in it’s penetrating gaze. Dark was still dark, but it drew our eyes towards the vibrant light. The darkness gave outline to space and time; memory, hope and joy as our eyes drank in the emanating light.
In John 8:12 Jesus says, “I am the light of the world.” Although there is darkness all around, he IS light. Christmas tree lights provide us with a stunning visual of this truth: that in the middle of utter darkness he came to the earth to give us his great light.
His light is inside of us.
He tells us in Matthew 5:16 to let our light shine before mankind so that others will see the way we live and as a result God will be glorified. Remember that when you’re looking at your Christmas tree. Your life is a unique, beautiful light shining in the darkness for all to see. Your warm glow is a reflection of the very presence of Christ and he casts rays of peace and hope to those in the darkness around you. Your acts of mercy and kindness, your pursuit of God-given gifts and talents are lights in the darkness.
As inky black as the darkness sometimes feels, all it can do is magnify Jesus as the light of the world. His light pushes back the darkness, forcing it to surrender; his light is the power source for overcoming fear and finding forgiveness.
I pray that the light of Christ will illuminate your path as you head into 2024. I pray that your life will be a beacon of hope and a reflection of Jesus.
Merry Christmas!