Okay... thanks.
I am an odd cookie in the realm of non christmas practicing Christians. I have never attended a church that preached against christmas in my life and I participated in the holiday until my early 30's. My eldest daughter had her last christmas when she was 2 years old. My other 2 have never participated in the holiday.
The interesting thing, to me, is that when my daughter was 2 and Christmas was nearing my wife and I had been so busy writing, producing & putting on the Christmas play at the church that we had not found the time to buy a tree and it was December 24th. We finally decided that, even at that late hour, we would see if we could find a tree.
We did... and we decorated it etc and at the behest of my MIL who told us we'd better go out and get that baby some presents... we did so. (She didn't show much interest in the presents but she did LOVE the cardboard boxes they came in.
)
As I stated I had never been in a church that preached against christmas. I had always celebrated christmas and had never had a thought in my mind that we should do anything but celebrate christmas.
That evening as we sat in our living room with the lights out, music playing and the christmas lights blinking I uttered a phrase so matter of factly that it really escaped our notice at that time. I sat there and said "Someday this will be as wrong for us as halloween is today."
That was our last Christmas. A series of circumstances began to come into motion beginning in February of the next year that led to us never picking up the practice again. I have to admit that in the infancy of my conviction the pagan origins were the basis that I focused on. There was a need built in that it be a sin... and wrong... because in Christianity we don't hold convictions that won't send us to hell. We do everything that doesn't send us to hell.
But over the years my conviction and love for the conviction has grown, deepened and centered itself to where I am today.
I am free. (Please... no one need to make a comment on that... this is just a statement of how I feel)
When I watch the chaos and madness of the season I am increasingly glad the hold on me is no longer there. It is frustrating that you can't go buy a wrench because of the huge masses of people and I can't even listen to good ole contemporary christian music on the way there.
My parents fought me tooth & toe nail but now state that I couldn't drag them back kicking and screaming. I am thankful for the freedom we have from the craziness that is inherent with the celebration. I get together with my family because we all have time off. I also get together with them in the summer some time and we always have fun... it's just the result of family getting together.
Some people used to smoke cigarettes and if they say "I am free" it isn't because they don't smoke anymore. It is because they don't smoke anymore AND they don't want to smoke anymore.
If one doesn't smoke anymore and yet still want to smoke... they are smoke free... but they aren't yet free. People who refrain from celebrating and yet still yearn to celebrate will seldom ever be free.
They may be free from certain practices.
They may be free from created unnecessary debt.
They may be free from a list of required gift giving.
But until one is free from the desire... one is never free.
I repeat... I am free. And it is a wonderful feeling.
I don't require anyone else follow in my footsteps and I don't condemn those who don't follow in my footsteps. God led me here. Not man... not condemnation... not even hell, fire & brimstone preaching.
And as I look around I have to give Him thanks because this is a beautiful place where I reside and I could have never, ever found it on my own.
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