For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6
With all due respect to Cookie Monster, today C is for Christmas.
Although we wouldn’t snark if you want to send us Christmas Cookies.
Ho, Ho, Ho, as they say.
You’ve seen the memes. I’ve shared the memes. At midnight on October 31st, pumpkin spices turns into peppermint…or something like that.
You could call it rushing the season. I call it having work to do.
As a kid, I would religiously watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. It fascinated me, even in black and white (do not snark). But it never made sense to me that Santa was at the end of the parade. I mean…it wasn’t Christmas yet.
That was before I understood what was meant by the traditional start of the Christmas shopping season.
Those were the days when we’d often go to the mountains to cut down our tree just a week or so before Christmas. And also the days when my parents would make sure the house was back to normal by New Year’s Day.
But when I started playing the Jolly Ol’ Elf, well, things began to change.
In reality, I’m thinking Christmas 365 days a year.
What do I need to learn to be a better Santa? What do I need to purchase to look better as Santa?
And what, please tell me what, do I need to do to get my hair white.
We won’t talk about the product disaster that left me with two purple racing stripes down the side of my head for most of the year. Thanks to a professional, they’re gone.
All I will say is that being Santa is more than just putting on the red coat.
I fell into the Santa thing by accident. But now I see it as a mission. A ministry if you will.
It’s like Santa said in the 1994 remake of A Miracle on 34th Street:
I’m not just a whimsical figure who wears a charming suit and affects a jolly demeanor. You know, I I I’m a symbol. I’m a symbol of the human ability to be able to suppress the selfish and hateful tendencies that rule the major part of our lives. If you can’t believe, if you can’t accept anything on faith, then you’re doomed for a life dominated by doubt.
That’s so much better than playing Internet politics.
But I also take my mission as Santa back a bit further to the original story of St. Nicholas, a priest who
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provided for needy children. He did it because of his love for people and his love for the Savior.
That’s the real reason for the Christmas season.
The way I see it, all the trappings, all the decorations, all the commercialism, all of it points back to the one reason for the season.
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:9-11
It really is the most wonderful time of the year.
It’s pretty wonderful in Virginia this morning. Yesterday, Virginia elected a Republican Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attorney General, the most diverse ticket in the state’s history. We made history by electing the first woman to a statewide office. She just happens to be black, an immigrant, a mother, and a Marine. And we elected the first Latino man to statewide office. He’s the son of Cuban refugees. And finally, in a squeaker, the Republicans re-took control of the House of Delegates.
I could write a lot of commentary, and I may at some point. But I’m trying not to be political here. Still, after such a long time, this feels good.
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With all due respect to Cookie Monster, today C is for Christmas.
white (do not snark). But it never made sense to me that Santa was at the end of the parade. I mean…it wasn’t Christmas yet.
We won’t talk about the product disaster that left me with two purple racing stripes down the side of my head for most of the year. Thanks to a professional, they’re gone.
