The Problem:
Materialism. In America today, this could debatably be one of our greatest issues we face. We have become a people obsessed with things, and little desire for a deep relationship with the people we often buy those things for. We’ve traded objects for intimacy. And no holiday better symbolizes this problem than Black Friday.
As most know, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving. Meaning that merely hours after spending time claiming to say what we are all thankful for, we find it acceptable to proceed to go out and fight to the death to get some object to give to someone we care about at Christmas. To make the entire irony of this concept worse, more recently stores have started to begin their Black Friday sales on Thanksgiving itself instead of previously when it would begin at midnight, which as you know, actually is when Friday starts.
In light of the holiday season upon us, what should our response be as a people of God? How do we engage in a season of giving, while remembering why we give in the first place?
The Response:
We must be mindful of what the Christmas holiday is truly about compared to what is has become. As God’s Church, we must continually remind ourselves that Christmas is for us to celebrate the Son of God coming down to create the way of salvation for His broken creation. Aside from the gifts we must focus on the fact that Jesus entered into a sinful world for our good and His glory.
That is not to discredit the other practices of Christmas. Christ has commanded us to be a giving and generous people with what we have been blessed with by the Lord. But let us not forget, it is not the price of the gift that matters, but the person we get the gift for. Too often now we have come to forget the importance of truly connecting with those we care about, instead of knowing what they may want for Christmas, we are forced to ask for a list. Not that having a list is necessarily a bad thing, but we should desire a level of intimacy with our friends and family so that we already have a general idea of gifts they would appreciate and enjoy.
Final Thoughts:
Above the giving, though, may we as God’s people have a passion for connecting with one another and celebrating the experiences and joys we have shared over the course of the year. Despite the generational gaps, and the diverse interests may we enjoy being with family once again and not taking these moments for granted. And for those without a biological family to spend this season with, my hope is we would surround these people with love and welcome them into our family to celebrate with us.
The Church is the family of God, may we remember that and act in such as way that reflects that. May we giving generously, and grow deeper with each other this Christmas as we celebrate both our relationships and more importantly the birth of Christ as we eagerly await His return.
Sloan Stephenson 