Christmas is more than a birthday observance. It’s a theological gold mine as followers of God from all time and all places realize the miracle of the incarnation.

Though not just a birthday, let’s not forget it is a birthday all the same.

My wife has her birthday just one week before Christmas. My brother actually gets to share his birthday with Jesus.

Why do we make such a big deal about the event of His birth?  We don’t do that with our birthdays. With the exception of maybe a mother, most of us don’t care to hear too much about the day, the setting, was it night, was it day, was it silent (wanna guess?) were there any animals inside the hospital, what kind of gifts were given for the kid.

No. We don’t celebrate birthdays that way. We celebrate by honoring the person. We make a fuss over them.  The best gift I can give my wife is time and attention. I give a couple of gifts and we do something special together. This year we went to a wedding, a concert and a museum.  Busy 24 hours!  Usually it’s a fun meal. A new trail.  Sometimes it’s just an extra special day off together.

You probably get my point already.

Along with the wonderful traditions and festive gatherings, what if we add a simple component to our Christmas.  Let’s honor the One born.  Don’t make it complicated. A couple of gifts, some extra time.  We are made in His image, so I think some of the stuff we like, He too likes. Like a couple of gifts and some special attention.

Merry Christmas.

If you’re in Flagstaff, join us at Grace for our Christmas Eve services Saturday, at 4:30 or 5:45.  Christmas morning, we’ll gather at 10 for a brief Christmas morning worship.