Children’s Message, Sunday, December 2, 2007, Advent and Christmas

Yesterday I went to the post office. I had to buy stamps for my Christmas cards. There were two options. One had different winter designs that look like they have been knit, like a reindeer, a Christmas tree, a teddy bear and a snowman. The other had the image of a very old painting depicting Jesus and Mary. I couldn’t decide. The knit snowman stamp was too cute not to buy, but I liked the idea of having the stamps on my cards reflect Jesus’ birth. In the end, I bought one book of each type of stamps. But that got me thinking that maybe there are two Christmases.

There is snowman Christmas. The shopping, cookie making, card mailing, party going Christmas. I love that Christmas! I like hearing Christmas music in the mall (even if it is “Rudolph the red nosed reindeer“!). I love picking out the perfect present--finding a new Christmas cookie recipe. It is a fantastic time of year, and --I wouldn’t want to give it up.

There is also the Mary and Jesus Christmas. The advent wreath lighting, singing silent night in church on Christmas eve Christmas. I love that Christmas so much. I think these four Sundays of Advent are such a gift. They are a way to count down the time, to build up our excitement, but most of all, they are a gift because they are a time to quiet the Christmas of the mall for even one hour so that we can soak up the Christmas of Jesus.

Sometimes when I am getting into the shopping and baking, I need to stop and remember a phrase that, funnily enough, I saw on a shopping bag that said, “Jesus is the reason for the season”. Oh yeah.

So I hope this Advent is a fun time for you. I hope you get to bake cookies and have parties. I hope you sing every Rudolph song there is and watch some Christmas movies, too.

But I also hope that you have lots of special moments where you remember the reason for the season. I hope you have the chance to light the candles on your family’s advent wreath every Sunday evening (and by way of a commercial, if you don’t have one already, you can make one after church today!). I hope you get to read the story of Mary and Joseph’s journey and the Birth of Christ at least once. And I hope that you get to share at least some of the love that Jesus put in your heart with someone else this advent season. After all, Jesus is the reason for the season.

Let’s pray: Loving God,
Thank you for snowmen and reindeer
For advent wreaths and carols
For friends and parties
And for Mary, Joseph and Jesus.
Amen.