I just hadn't been feeling the Christmas "feeling". I wasn't feeling the "Christmas Jones". Traffic was getting worse. Stores were getting more crowded- even the grocery departments!
Our church's Christmas program last weekend was--if I may be blunt--messy, too complicated, and lacking in focus. I loved the singing children at the beginning, but the main presentation and sermon was.. . let's just say when it all ended, my first thought was "what the. . .?" My attitude was descending faster than a mountain biker who just took a header down a rocky slope. Christmas? Bah Humbug.
The Mrs. must have picked up on my crabby vibe. Because last Sunday night, she recommended a visit to the Live Nativity staffed by the combined efforts of the Lynchwood Church of God and the Lynchwood Christian Church on SE 174th. Both Churches get together annually to present live scenes of the life of Jesus, from birth through crucifixion and resurrection.
So we went Sunday night. It was raining. Hard. We were prepared and wore our rain gear. But it was very wet. and cold. The Live Nativity was low-key but powerful in its imagery. No bad "churchy" over-acting (you know what I mean). Just silent, still, but very much alive scenes. The every day humdrum slowly drifted away with each scene. Congested traffic and crowded stores were forgotten. In the silence. In the rain.
Afterward, we gladly accepted an invitation to join others inside the church to warm ourselves with wassail and pleasant conversation.
The bah-humbug frustration of the busy, rushed, crowded Christmas season failed to visit me this week, although I have driven through busy streets and shopped in crowded stores. Streets and stores can have their version of Christmas. I like mine better.
No comments:
Post a Comment