Thou Who Wast Rich Beyond All Splendour

I'm always overwhelmed at Christmas by the love and generosity of friends and family.  This year is a little unique for my family, as some changes may be coming in the next month or two.

As our families were assembled for a Christmas Eve and birthday party brunch, I prayed a grateful blessing that included the little one we're missing, the little one who may be soon leaving, and on all the beloved individuals (big and little) we call family.  Our time together may be limited, but the love is not.

I am not my child's greatest caretaker.  I am not always with them, but Jesus is.  Christmas is the best reminder of how intimate and personal our Savior is.  

In church this morning, we sang Thou Who Wast Rich Beyond All Splendour: 

Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,
All for love's sake becamest poor;
Thrones for a manger didst surrender,
Sapphire-paved courts for stable floor.
Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,
All for love's sake becomes poor.

Thou who art God beyond all praising,
All for love's sake becamest man;
Stooping so low, but sinners raising
Heavenwards by thine eternal plan.
Thou who art God beyond all praising,
All for love's sake becamest man.

Thou who art love beyond all telling,
Saviour and King, we worship thee.
Emmanuel, within us dwelling,
Make us what thou wouldst have us be.
Thou who art love beyond all telling,
Saviour and King, we worship thee.

Love beyond all telling.  That's Christmas.  We may read the story over and over, but it's beyond telling.  Thrones for a manger, sapphire-paved courts for a stable floor.

Thank you, Jesus.

to santa or not to santa

Growing up, my mom had this little statue among the Christmas decorations of Santa bowing before a baby Jesus in the manger.  I remember asking her one year why she had it, and she said it was a gift and didn't want to be rude because the gifter often visited our house. But, the next year, Santa didn't come back out of the attic. I think that was the last straw in pretending we bought into the whole "Santa thing" in my growing-up house.

I never believed in Santa Claus, at all. I don't think it's about me not remembering. I think I had two older sisters who would have been happy to relay the truth to me, but I also think I had parents who weren't really into Santa either.  My family always had enough "magic" of our own, believe me!

When I was in fourth or fifth grade, my oldest sister started signing her stocking gifts to me "Love, Rudolph," but it wasn't like she expected me to believe that they were from him.  We just enjoy Christmas music and lights and movies and cookies and I guess the whole "Santa" thing is a part of that.. so here's a cassette tape and a Lip Smackers from a Reindeer!

As a Christian, I am neither adamantly for or adamantly against Santa.  My personal thoughts are as follows:

• I want to teach my children to be grateful for things, so why give them a heap of presents and then not ask them to thank anyone? Like me and their father, for example, who picked them out, paid for them, and wrapped them.

• I firmly do not want my children to ruin the fun of other families (to the best of their ability). So my kids have been warned: Santa isn't real, but it's ok that other people want to pretend he is. You may not spoil it for people who are enjoying that make-believe.

• I want to teach my children the most important truth of Christmas. There are already so many, many things competing for my children's understanding of truth (Star Wars, for example). The last thing I want them to wonder about is if the story of Jesus coming to earth because of his overwhelming love for them is true. So to me, rather than saying "this is all true!" and then later telling them "well, that one part was just pretend," I'd rather just be up-front right away.

Personally, I don't think there's any valid argument that Christian families can't "do" Santa; we just don't. Your kid's eternal fate will not be affected by whether or not you remembered to drink the room temperature milk and eat the stale cookies quickly at 5:43 am before they run downstairs.  I think the things that will impact their perceptions of Christ and Christmas are far more about your pouring the Gospel of grace into them throughout the entire year.  

the best and worst Christmas songs

I have weird taste in music.  My top three Pandora stations are called Beach Boys Radio, Movie Soundtracks, and The Battle Hymn of the Republic.  Weird. Taste. In. Music.  And then some of my favorite songs of this moment: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen (although I must confess I heard it first in Shrek), Cheap Thrills by Sia, Honey I'm Good by Andy Grammer, Lost Boy by Ruth B, and Home by Phillip Phillips.  Weird. Taste. In. Music.  This preface is so clarify that you might hate/love the same songs I love/hate. And that's ok. 

Songs I Hate

• Baby, It's Cold Outside. How. how, how, how, how is a song about date rape played in the US? We are offended by EVERYTHING and ANYTHING, and yet I'm forced to listen to this song. (Hey, what's in this drink? Ew. Go home.)

• Santa Baby. [shivers] This song is creepy and horrific on every level. Hate. Hate. Hate.

• I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas. Kill. me. please. ZHOAS.

Songs I Love

• Little Drummer Boy. I usually cry on this one. Little old me with nothing to offer is still loved. The Gospel, simplified: I am a poor boy, I have no gift to bring that's fit to give a King.

• All I Want for Christmas Is You. Adorbs all the time. Mariah Carey's best song.

• Twelve Days of Christmas. Straight No Chaser still makes me laugh every time with this, and my kids trying to sing along is sooo entertainingly arrhythmic.

• A Hallelujah Christmas. Because this Cloverton song uses the same melody as Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah, it's beautiful but the message is also Christmassy. Maybe this makes me a sell-out, but I like it.

Songs I Might Hate or Love Depending on my Current State of Mind

• Let It Go. Honestly, I might belt this out so loud it'll make Idina Menzel cry or I might throw something at the radio in the hopes of shattering if permanently. It just depends.

• Mary Did You Know? I really do usually love this song but every once in a while, I'm compelled to just be like YES SHE DID THE ANGEL TOLD HER and flip the dial. (Well, let's be honest, I don't flip dials, I swipe to the left.)

• Pentatonix. Sometimes I'm like YAY and other times I'm like REALLY? AGAIN? Just depends. Their songs are great, but I feel that they get worn out with soooo much repetition.

You know, music is magic and love and twinkle lights and the smell of a Christmas tree and it makes the world go 'round and all that.  So dance like a maniac or turn the station. I probably won't notice, because I'll be laughing at the weird lyrics my kids just made up to what used to be my favorite song.