Luke 2:1-14 - July 30, 2023 - Christmas in July

I don’t know if you are like me or not, but I make lists. I write it down. Got something to do? It goes on the list. If you’ve ever visited me in my office, you may have noticed the pad just to the left of my laptop with all of my “to dos.” 

During the normal Christmas season, my list gets really long. There are lots of things that get scratched off, but lots of things get added on, too. Even if you don’t make lists, I am sure your brain is darting left and right remembering all the things you have to do. That’s what Christmas is all about, after all. 

Are the presents purchased? Price tags removed? Wrapped? Under the tree? Did you remember to include the gift receipt?

Family visits planned. Clean the house. Budget. Buy. Give. Sing. Sleep. Return. Buy more. Malls. Over budget. Traffic. Indulge. Tree. Tinsel. 

Lights; broken. New lights; work! Crowds. Bake. Decorate. Eat. Family. How many days? Shop. Screaming kids. Indulge some more. Nap. Cook. Christmas letter. Picture. Not good. Picture. Ok. Picture. Got it! Postage, mail, presents. Whew. 

That’s what Christmas is for most of us. Wait - that isn’t even Christmas. That’s preparations FOR Christmas. Why do we do that to ourselves? It isn’t Christmas without all that stuff. Right?

I think most of us would acknowledge that the month of December is crazy for all of us, and it usually has nothing to do with actual Christmas. It’s all the other stuff. And while the stuff is fun and exciting, sometimes it crowds out what Christmas is all about. 

The Lee family just got back from a week at Lutheridge - a Lutheran camp near Asheville, NC. Our kids were in cabins with counselors and 6 or 7 other kids their age. Dana and I led the Bible Study sessions for 28 middle schoolers, with a couple of familiar St. Philip faces in the crowd. 

On top of that, it was Christmas Week at camp. (Maybe you get where the idea for this worship service comes from.) The theme helps us to try to refocus on what Christmas really is all about. This year, characters from Christmas movies showed up at camp - the Grinch, Buddy the Elf, Rudolph, and even Kevin from Home Alone. They all tried to convince Mr. Scrooge that Christmas is all about sharing and joy and singing and not being alone. 

But through the week, these characters started to see that Christmas wasn’t just about those things either - as good as they may be. Christmas is about how God brings those things to us in the birth of Jesus. It is in Jesus that true joy and welcome and love are found. 

Christmas Week at camp - and Christmas in July - helps us focus on Christmas apart from all that usually comes with the season - no lists, no stress, no pressure. 

As Dr. Seuss puts it in ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’: "It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages, boxes, or bags! …"Maybe Christmas," the Grinch thought, "doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more!"

Maybe Christmas means a little bit more.
When we take away the stuff, all we’re left with is… Jesus. Christ. God’s Word. Love Incarnate. And that is enough to change the world. 

Christmas is the mysterious wonder of the Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing.
Christmas is God sending the Light into our Darkness.
Christmas is God bringing Life, life for all people.
No more will sin and sorrow grow, but instead, for you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. In Jesus, we see who God is. God is compassion and love; giving, healing, caring. God changes the world in Jesus Christ and shines so brightly that not even death can stop the love of God.
Christmas is the wonder of how deep God’s love is - not just on that one special day, but every day. 

And while the stuff isn’t the story, the stuff can help us in our telling of the story.

Today, we’ve got some decorations up. We’re singing the songs. It all helps to direct us. 

While at camp there were reindeer games. There were Christmas socks. There were Santa hats and snowmen and elves. There were those movie characters that didn’t have much to do with a baby in a manger. But they all were used in a way to point toward Jesus. And while sometimes those things can be distractions - just one more thing to add to our to-do list - sometimes they can help us point out the true meaning of Christmas. 

The key example of that today is our Angel Tree. All month long, we been collecting money to help children and families in need - foster kids, foster parents, kids without a home, families who need some joy, sharing, singing, and not being alone. But we have raised money and decorated that tree to the point that is full - our goal wasn’t just reached, but surpassed. And that money will be used to bring some love where there isn’t much. We will bring love where it may have been absent. We will show them that someone cares, even where they are. We can share the love that God gives us, be a light in the darkness. 

Hopefully, donating - or even remembering to donate - wasn’t too stressful. Hopefully it wasn’t just another thing added to your list. Instead, maybe it was a way you got to think about the gifts God has given, and then share those gifts with others. Perhaps, it was a way you showed love. Maybe it was a reminder - that this gift in July reminds us that God is still working, even though it is not Christmas. 

Because even today, Christ is born for us. God is with us. Love has come. It’s the story we hear, the story we tell, the story we live. 

The whole point of today is to remind us that God shows up in our world and in our lives - and not just in long lists and immaculately wrapped presents; not just in the big, festive holidays we get stressed out over, no. God gives love now.

God brings hope to our lives in simple ways, every day. God comes to us, God gives to us, God’s love is born into our world and our lives. And the more we can hear that news - just that news - the more we know the love of Jesus in our everyday. 

Today, on a hot day in July, with hopefully shorter lists and slightly less chaos, we get a chance to tell the story again - and this time, really hear and really remember.
Because every time we tell the story, we tell of God’s love.
Every time we hold the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper, we hold God’s love.
Every time we sing a carol, share a gift, hear the angel say, “to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord,” we feel God’s love.

That is the story we hear, the story we tell, that’s the story we live. Christ is born for us. God is with us. Love has come to us. Now and forever.