This little piece of wood was found in a box of Christmas lights as we were putting up our Christmas tree.
Rene' pulled it out of the box and laid it up on the table and I ask, "What is that?"
She responded, "That's Jesus...that got lost in the shuffle." I immediately knew what she was talking about, and we just both looked at each other quickly, because of what she had just said, and we both knew that what she had said....would "preach"...in a round about way...and after we had time to think about the significance of what she had said, but had actually meant in another way. If you didn't quite understand all that..well, I am not sure I did either...so I will continue.
This is actually a little carved piece of wood that was part of a nativity scene. This particular piece of wood is the "Baby Jesus", that was laid in the manger of the scene. In the shuffle of a Christmas past, this piece had gotten lost and ended up in the box with the string of lights, after somehow being removed and lost from the manger where it should have been.
So, why does this preach? I am sure you also have already figured it all out and already got the point...but for the sake of those who may have not....here are the thoughts that came oozing through the gray matter, all at once, as Rene' spoke those words which carried a lot more suggested meaning than one might at first think...and maybe only after really thinking about the hidden message that might be for all of us to consider at this time of the year once again.
So, before I try and explain the thoughts that immediately raced through my mind when Rene' said those words, let me begin by asking a question. Why is this time of year so dog-gone stressful and hectic? I don't really understand why we have allowed it to become the crazy, fast-paced, shopping frenzy, party-packed time of year where winter and snow and presents and food and lights and stores and traffic and rushing and hustling and bustling and parties and programs and mailings and travelling and tinsel and holly and whole lot of other things that on their own are not particularly bad in and of themselves, but when all thrown together in a one-month period of time...end up spelling Christmas as we have come to know it. I don't know about you, but every year I end up feeling guilty about what Christmas has become. Not all of it...but most of it. And I often wonder how God feels about it all. And I often feel like I am a Scrooge for feeling this way...so I try and justify some of the better parts of it all...and then I come back around and enjoy parts of it...while down deep inside I still feel like we have just got parts of Christmas all wrong.
And how does all this relate to a piece of wood found in a light box? When Rene' said, "that's Jesus...that got lost in the shuffle"...all of these thoughts and more raced through my head in a split-second and they all came rushing down at me instantly saying, I am guilty of losing Jesus in the shuffle...and I don't like it.
I believe there are a whole lot of very good things about Christmas, things that Jesus would be pleased in, and might do Himself, if He were here now. I think we should "intentionally" be about "those things" and make them the priorities of the season. What are they? I believe we probably all know what they are...and could list them. So let's do it! And then let's do those things...and not let Jesus get lost in the Christmas shuffle.
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