Perspective

 

Christmas quickly came and just recently went.  In Lebanon, two Christmas dates are celebrated as there is a large Armenian population.  Traditionally, they celebrate on the 12th day of Christmas (January 6th).  

Tommy recently posed the question, like the Who's, would we still celebrate if we woke up to nothing on Christmas morning?  Is it Christmas without a ham and sweet potato casserole?  Is it Christmas without a platter of goodies?  Is it Christmas without caroling?  What about the gifts?

What was your perspective this Christmas?  

My perspective of things changed after moving from Beirut to the Beqaa.  I understood the protests and yet, I didn't.  What had been frustrations when the power went out daily at 10 am and 6 pm became heightened when we moved here, and I couldn't figure out when to run a load of laundry with a constant flow of power.  And running a heater at the same time as the washing machine is really iffy.  

Last year we spent our first Christmas away from family and so this year should be easier, but I feel like I'm back at square one.  The stores here don't have as many expat friendly foods as Beirut does so my baking has been a little bit interesting to say the least (I can't find brown sugar, corn syrup, real butter, chocolate chips, etc.).  But I walk past and visit people daily who don't have some of the basics to care for their families and it keeps things in perspective.  While I couldn't make some tried and tested goodies, I made several new recipes that turned out so well that I made plates of cookies to take to all the neighbors.  It was a great opportunity to reach out to them and connect since we're new.  

I hope and pray that Immanuel is enough for each of us.  God is with us.  It doesn't matter if the cookies have the essence of buttered popcorn because margarine was available, it doesn't matter that we might not be as on top of the laundry pile as I'd like.   God is with us!  When we see that He came down to be with us, each of us, it changes our perspective on what Christmas means.
The girls are unaware of the global events that have the possibility of impacting their lives greatly.  Instead we focused on the freshly fallen snow and friendly neighbors who took delight in the children’s joy.

On a more serious note though, your perspective on Christmas and on who Christ is and why he came should also affect the way you view the words of Christ.  If you perceive Christ to be God incarnate, you should also pay attention to the words he spoke.  His words were counter-cultural then and they are today.  They go against our sinful nature and even what we may have been taught by our parents.  It is not easy following the commands he gave.  But that doesn't mean we give up trying.

We are called to love our enemy.  Christ demonstrated that love on the cross as he asked the Father's forgiveness for those that hung him there.  If you perceive Christ to be just a good man but nothing more than those words may seem like something unreachable but not life changing.  However, if you believe Christ is who he said he was, the Messiah, then they are not merely a suggestion, they are a command.

We do not know how last week's decisions will impact us here.   For the time being, things are safe for civilians.  We hope and pray that war does not erupt.  If the embassy here orders a mandatory evacuation, we will comply, but we are praying that we are able to continue in ministry here.  The countries in the Middle East are much smaller than the US and interwoven and connected so if war breaks out in one, there will likely be an impact on us here as well.  

Pray for unbelievers in the region to not be hindered in coming to know Christ because of the actions of the White House.  The perception is that these actions represent the feelings of Christians and therefore Christ.  This is not how Christ commanded his followers to be known... and yet, people will perceive it to be so.  Pray that they see the love of Christ, not hatred from their enemies.

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