Tuesday, December 20, 2011

of crèches and Christmas

Every time I see a crèche, I have to fight the urge to make corrections. This particular manger scene is set up in downtown Chicago. For example, the angel did not appear at the manger, and the magi went to Joseph and Mary's house later; it could have been up to two years later. And the fact that there were three gifts does not automatically mean that there were three wise men.

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Here's a random thought: Pa-rumm-pa-pumm-pumm... Do you think there is a snowball's chance Mary would have tolerated a DRUMMER boy anywhere near her precious baby? I think not.

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The baby in this manger scene is chained down and believe it or not, they have installed a GPS device inside it as well. It seems that some people like to go around stealing baby Jesus. How bizarre. Personally, I would rather that people did not display a baby Jesus, because some folks "venerate" those things, and that is a clear violation of the Second Commandment.

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Sometimes Christmas seems more complicated than it needs to be. Certainly more complicated than I wish it was. There might be tensions with some individuals that you are forced to deal with. Maybe there is the pain from the loss of a loved one. Then, there might be a mountain of details about schedules, budgets and logistics.

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My wish for you is that you receive the grace to go through whatever complications come your way. And that you enjoy and appreciate the simplicity of the main event. The triune God was perfectly content, enjoying the fellowship of each person of the Godhead for eternity past. Yet, at the right time, God chose to send his son and Jesus left the glory of heaven to join his divine nature to a human one... truly God and truly man. To live a perfect and sinless life, and sacrifice himself to atone for those he has called to himself. After conquering death, he sent the third person of the trinity to indwell the faithful. That is a marvelous gift! Let us not lose sight of that this Christmas, proclaiming it again to ourselves, as well as to others.

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Camels INSIDE the stable??? Man, that's gotta stink! How big were these stables, anyway? Hmmm... Hey, if I don't get to talk to you before then, Merry Christmas!

13 comments:

donsands said...

Great post Craver. How come our Lord gave you such good ways to say things. The truth is something that tastes good to a born again soul, for the most part. Evene when it convicts us, it's good for our soul, and we must never, ever, forget that Christ loves us, and the Father in heaven loves us, and gave us to His Son as a gift.

Merry Christmas Craver! Have a lovely season of Joy, Peace, and most of all loving worship of our Lord and Savior and Friend, Jesus Christ!

Jackie said...

Wonderfully and lovingly spoken, Craver.
From our family to your family, may I wish you a blessed and happy Christmas.
Hugs,
Jackie

happyone said...

Good points to bring up.
A very merry Christmas to you and your family.

imac said...

And a very merry Christmas to you and family Craver.

Craver Vii said...

What a gracious comment, Sandman. Muchas gracias. May the Lord comfort the heart that is disturbed, and disturb the heart that is too comfortable. I'll be by (your blog) soon to wish you and your family a merry Christmas.

I always hope my words are received well, Jackie. Thank you for the encouragement. Merry Christmas to you and Jack and the kids and those precious grandies!

Thanks Happyone. I realize that I take a chance when I mix the trivial or comical with that which is profound. I always hope it comes out okay.

And you as well, Imac. By the way, yesterday I was looking at one of the picture cards you sent me a few years ago. It was a bright red mailbox. I really like that one. Merry Christmas, Imac!

Pastor Dave said...

merry christmas! last christmas there was a photo circulating of a german shepherd dog who found a place to sleep one evening in a manger scene. to see him choose a place of "peace" like that to rest at was a great sign of Peace at Christmas.

George said...

Very well said. Although I enjoyed many of the creches I've seen, I try to remember that these arise from the imagination of man, rather than the Word of God.

Jackie said...

Oh...it's snowing on your blog!
How wonderful that is!! I love it.
Send some to us.
We are running the air conditioner wide open.
Nuther smile,
J.

Craver Vii said...

I have seen that photograph Mr. Dave. The imagery was touching. Merry Christmas!

George, may you and your Betsy have a very blessed Christmas!

Hi Jackie! Want snow? Here ya go: Spice Up Your Blog. The nice thing about this snow is that you will not have to shovel it, or drive in it. Thanks for visiting. :-)

EG CameraGirl said...

I was thinking the other day about how all those people, angels and animals would never have been there all at the same time. I guess modern-day versions are condensed versions of the original story.

I hope your Christmas is wonderful!

lime said...

heck, the stable was probably more like a cave anyway ;)

our holiday was wonderful. there is some real sadness on the horizon but the last week with precious friends was just joy.

Anonymous said...

Christmas was not exactly what i expected, but it was pretty good. I learned a lot this year, not just on Christmas season, but especially then.

Betty Manousos said...

very well said!

hope you and your family had a very blessed and wonderful christmas.