Believe (12/24/2023)

Today my family gathers to begin our Christmas celebrations. We’ve always gathered on Christmas Eve to remember and honor the Father’s gift to us of His only-begotten Son. We have many traditions: we always eat oyster stew, chili and homemade pies; we always take turns opening our gifts; we always have special drinks. But the primary tradition is telling the Christmas Story and then placing Baby Jesus in the nativity scenes. It happens before any of the rest can happen because we believe, and we know that believing is the proper beginning.

We gather around my largest nativity set, and I begin telling the story of how Mary came to be the mother of our Lord, Jesus Christ. And then I begin asking my grandchildren questions about the story that they have heard so many times. When one of the younger grandkids is stumped, one of the older grandkids chime in because they know the story well, they’ve heard it for over 20 years. May prayer every Christmas eve is that in learning the story and sharing the story and eventually being part of proclaiming the story we become part of the story.

This year, a friend surprised me with a special angel holding a banner that reads “Believe.” I have visited her every day since she arrived. She is small, but her message is huge. Every day she reminds me I am what I believe and if I allow it, what I believe I will live. She represents to me why I tell my children and grandchildren the Christmas Story every year and why as they grow older, I call upon them to tell it, to speak it.

Just as saying out loud “I love you” to my husband the first time and every time since actually increases that love, I believe that speaking the story of the LORD’s love for us out loud increases their belief in the wonder of this act, the love that precipitated it, and the love that can change the world.

Speaking our beliefs out loud grows our belief exponentially. Articulating our beliefs for others helps to concretize that which makes us who we are so that we can not only claim it but live it.

This year, as we begin our Christmas activities and celebrations, let us take time to speak in our own words of the wonder of this gift given to us as humankind. Let us tell of our belief to family and friends. Let us not only recall the reason for the season; let us also speak of it, sing of it, so that we might live it.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.