Redeemed Christimas Memories

What is it about childhood that makes Christmas seem like a magical time of year? Is it all those visions of sugar plums dancing in our heads? For me, childhood was a precious, innocent time that will always remain untouched from the reality of the world we live in today.   I enjoyed driving through neighborhoods with my family, seeing the bright holiday lights and manger scenes of Jesus.  Let’s not forget the Norman Rockwell moments where the relatives would gather around our warm fireplace, drink eggnog and laugh while the old episode of Charlie Brown and his wimpy Christmas tree played in the background. Midnight mass was the final “hoorah” before the jolly fat man in the red suit squeezed down the chimney bearing gifts.   December brings me back to many late Christmas Eve nights staring out the frosted window pane, whispering to my younger sister, “Do you see him yet?” Of course, I was referring to Santa Clause, not the recent boyfriend who might be declaring his love to me outside on our front lawn.  The anticipation of waiting to open up our gifts at times was more than I could bear and morning seemed an eternity away!  My sister and I would wait up all night to spot the famous Rudolph, but somehow we never caught a glimpse of that luminous snout in our neck of the woods.  We even tried leaving him reindeer treats, but we were left thinking they were not as delectably gourmet as the ones in Milan, Italy.

Life didn’t get much better for that naïve, brown-eyed girl who believed that joy only came once a year in the form of presents and man-made tradition. Thankfully, as God would have it, I have been redeemed from childhood fantasies, and I have replaced them with lasting joy in the form of a Savior who is willing to celebrate with me all year round, whether or not I get put on the naughty list! My honor for Jesus will not be limited to just an annual Christmas card but rather rejoiced daily.  The beautiful Christmas lights I saw as a child are now replaced with the joy lit in my heart as I celebrate the coming King who will one day take me as His bride to a wonderland far better than any Macy’s parade could ever display! Childhood memories have their significance in our lives, but the memory of a Savior born about 2000 years ago is one memory that will last throughout the generations, long after the Christmas trees are taken down and ornaments stored away.