This post has been cooking for a while, but I’m (Alex) just now getting around to writing it because of the busy holiday season. For this reason, I’m rolling this pre-Christmas observation into a year-end reflection.
I doubt it comes as a surprise to anyone, but the holiday season seems to begin earlier and earlier each year. This is certainly true in the retail world, where all things Christmas begin creeping out right after Halloween; however, this trend has spilled over into the residential world as well. It used to be (and may still be) un-kosher to decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving, but this is becoming increasingly common. While I was out walking sometime in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, I passed by a simply but tastefully decorated home, which led my mind down a rabbit trail of thoughts that are the inspiration for this post.
What is the motivation behind decorating so much earlier than in years past? The marketing major in me recognizes that some of this trend is simply a by-product of consumers being confronted with Christmas decorations earlier and earlier each year. A practical possibility is that people simply enjoy the way these decorations look. Who doesn’t enjoy driving around the neighborhoods during the month of December to see how people have decorated their homes?
I’m sure there are plenty of other possibilities and that this trend results from a combination of factors, but I wonder if there is a spiritual component as well. In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis famously wrote, “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”
What is it about the sights and sounds of Christmas that provide a spirit-lifting effect? I realize that this effect is not universal, as the holidays are a time of deep sadness for some, but I know, though I can’t fully explain, that I feel a sense of melancholy when the Christmas decorations are taken down. Is it possible that the trend toward earlier decorations is driven by something deeper? Might some people be grasping for joy and hope that has been threatened by the challenges of the last few years? Might some people be grasping, knowingly or unknowingly, for Jesus, who came that “Holy Night” (“A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn”).
As 2022 comes to an end, we are fast-approaching the three-year anniversary of our fateful one-month trip back to the States, as well as the one-year anniversary of Bethany’s dad’s HOME-going. As we anxiously await word back from the South African Consulate regarding our applications for charitable volunteer visas, we have also just seen the first signs of hope that our former home and place of service is beginning to open its doors. While we are confident about the “parallel path” we are pursuing, which is a gift from above, the timeline of our transition depends on our visas coming through, which is completely out of our hands at this point.
In all of this, I am grateful for the reminders that God is still in control. The thrill of the Christmas decorations that seem to go up earlier and earlier each year remind me that this world, along with us, is broken and groaning for its own restoration (cf. Romans 8:22-23). The anticipation leading up to Christmas reminds me of the hope that is set before all whose hope is in Christ (cf. 1 Peter 1:3-5). The taking down of the decorations and melancholy that I feel when doing so remind me that this world is not our HOME (cf. Philippians 3:20-21). And the anxious waiting reminds me that I am not in control, but I know the One Who is. Jesus is the One upon Whom Peter encouraged you to “cast all your anxieties…because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). And so we wait and trust with confidence that He is working all things together for our good and His glory. Merry Christmas and happy new year!
Praises and Prayer Requests
Praises from recent days
Continued safety on the road with frequent travels
Fellowship times with friends and family over Thanksgiving and Christmas
Joshua making his half year mark with the school year
Kindness of a stranger at the Post office one day (Ask Bethany for the full story!)
Swift arrival of packages sent overseas for former co-workers
Sharing a meal with former students from Asia, as well as friends from the South Africa team (we ate Mexican to add one more nationality to the mix!)
Prayer requests going into the new year
Word on our SA Visas
Alex's preparation to preach in upcoming services
Travel planning
Clear minds for packing our belongings
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