That's the...
That’s The...
Three weeks ago, I received a wake up call out of the mouth of my four year old son, when he looked at me and said, “Christmas is all about Santa dad.” As I shared in my last blog, this was doubly shocking since we don’t even have Santa as a part of Christmas in the Robert’s house hold. We don’t try to shelter Zane from Santa, we just don’t incorporate the jolly, make believe fat man into our Christmas.
After unsuccessful attempts to reason with my four year old, I took chance to reflect on me. I realized that it wasn’t enough to just remove Santa from Christmas, but that regardless of whether we had him there or not, Jesus needed to be overwhelmingly proclaimed. I wanted Jesus to be what Christmas is all about for my little Zane. And so since then I have intentionally taken every opportunity to share with Zane what Christmas is all about.
One afternoon Zane and I made a Cabelas run. (By the way, it’s so cool living this close to a Cabelas.) Any way as we were looking for a gift for my father in law, a nice lady who worked there leaned forward and asked Zane, “Are you ready for Santa to come.” Now I wasn’t really paying attention because Zane talks to everyone and I had some important shopping to attend to, but his reply brought me to attention. He said, “Santa’s not real.”
His answer must have shocked her as well, because she stood there with the most confused look on her face, stammering and trying to get reoriented. A million things ran through my head all at once, but there was no time to react, because she sort of mumbled something that must have communicated to Zane that she didn’t understand, because Zane said it again. “Santa’s not real.”
Now I am going to stop here for some commentary, because the conversations I have had over the last couple of weeks make it necessary as your pastor. When I wrote the last blog, I started by explaining that we don’t have Santa as a part of our Christmas.
This is what I wrote,
“Long before the Lord ever blessed us with our son Zane, we made the decision that Santa Claus would not be a part of our families Christmas celebration. Let me pause because experience has taught me I need to. Please do not get hung up here. This is usually where people start asking a million questions... Why? What is Zane going to do when he goes to school, etc. I have heard it all before. This is not the point of this Blog. There is nothing wrong with having Santa as part of your Christmas, it’s just not for us. We are not zealots, we still do Christmas tree’s, presents, stockings, just not Santa. Emily and I have chosen to only emphasis the Person of Christ for Christmas.”
The point of that blog was not whether you have Santa as a part of your Christmas, it was actually about Repentance., but it is the point of this blog.
.
Over the last three weeks since I posted my blog, I have received more feed back, more frustration, more support, just more than all the other blogs combined. Something is going on. I must have hit a nerve. A sacred cow so to speak.
These conversations have clarified and solidified our decision and given me reason to be a little more bold in asking your to reflect upon yours. I still think its fine to have Santa as part of Christmas. Pastor Jeff and Mary for example have always had it as a small part of their Christmas celebration. But if this blog or me publicly making mention that we don’t include Santa in our celebration, or if I would warn that Santa could be a distraction to Christmas is offensive, we have to ask the question why?
It hit me when I saw a grown woman at Cabelas with a cross around her neck stammering and confused. It hit me when my reaction was not a comfortable one, but briefly embarrassed, dreading what she was going to say. It hit me when Zane continued on... and I held my breath.
For she stood there discombobulated, visibly looking for footing. You would have thought Zane had punched her in the mouth or kicked her dog or something. But with no hesitation Zane said, “Christmas is all about Jesus.” then he looked right at me with imploring eyes and said, “Right Dad? Right?”. To which I replied “Yes, Zane that’s right.” only mildly embarrassed to be outed as a Christian when I had only come to Cabelas to buy duck decoys. He looked back to her and said with a note of finality, “Christmas is all about Jesus.” And I couldn’t have been more proud.
Her eyes got big and the stammering continued. I am not joking or exaggerating in saying her world had been rocked. She made this clear with the conglomeration of attempts to relate to Zane, in the next two minutes to include partial phrases such as, “Well that’s right, but.” and “I have never had a child say.” and “I guess I shouldn’t assume.” and finally ending with this statement that wasn’t really directed at us as much as a conversation with herself as she walked away, “What an eccentric little child.”
I too went through the range of emotions. I went from embarrassed to resolute, to looking into the future, imagining Zane saying this to classmates at school, to shame that I would be anything other than proud of my son for proclaiming Christ to a stranger at Christmas time, to absolute pride that a Cabelas clerk who identifies herself as a Christian would call my son "weird", in a nice way, as she walked away.
With a big smile on my face I moved on, no longer thinking, “What the...”, but “That’s the...” Because it is... Jesus is what its all about.
It is Christmas Eve today. Christmas is tomorrow. So I want you to ask yourself this question. “If you were to out Santa, either today with your kids or back when you had kids that age. If you were to expose the harmless white lie to your kids, would it ruin their Christmas? What would be left?”
That’s the point... For Christmas is all about Jesus. Whether you have Santa as a part of your Christmas Celebration or not, this should be abundantly clear to your children. For Christmas is simply Jesus. That He has been born to us, Immanuel, God with us.
Father thank you for the gift of your Son. Thank you that we can celebrate together as the body of Christ. Lord give us boldness and wisdom that we may impart this to the next generation. Let us all be a little more eccentric. Amen.
Merry Christmas,
Pastor Guy Roberts
