As we recently decorated our house for Christmas my grandson declared that he and I were “the Christmas boys.” I readily agreed which set off a lively conversation with his sister and grandmother about who in our family really liked Christmas the best. Although we had to concede that the girls actually liked Christmas as much as we did we held firm to the belief that their love for Christmas was different. What this means of course is that we concede nothing and remain in our minds the “Christmas boys” who like Christmas the most.
This is a fun discussion in our home and family which is great drama for a preschool boy and his seven year old sister revealing that Christmas is special for us and our family. But in reality I am a Christmas Boy and I want my grandchildren to be what their parents and grandparents have become over the years. I am always the first to want the decorations put up but but it is only an outward statement of an inward joy. Christ is my real motivation. I enjoy the opportunity to make the name of Christ large, welcome, important and enjoyable each year in a world of strife, confusion and longing. I am without reservation a Christmas Boy because Christ is my Savior and Lord.
As mysterious as the Christian faith can seem to people inside and outside of its reach, it remains the best and truest alternative to everything else offered. People everywhere still ask four questions that must be answered in order to live confident, purposeful, and important lives namely,
- Where did I come from?
- How did I (and my world) get messed up?
- How do I correct what’s wrong?
- What happens to me when I die?
Jesus Christ answers all those questions and puts to rest any fears we might have about them. No other religion, philosophy or moral construct can even come close. He created all things, has redeemed us from our sins and failures and gives us eternal and abundant life through his death for our sins, burial with those sins and resurrection to new life. Every other alternative simply cannot satisfy us with confident answers to our fundamental questions.
My hope for you is to be a “Christmas Boy” or “Christmas Girl” this season. Its the only way to live, die and live again.
