A New Christmas

Christmas has always been a tough time of the year for me. I’m a grinch at Christmas time. Last year, I didn’t do any shopping at any stores, no malls, no travel out of the ordinary. I did all of my shopping online, and any gifts that needed to be purchased in store, was typically purchased by my lovely wife. I can’t narrow it down to any one particular thing. The commercialization of Christmas, the hustle, bustle, angry shoppers, the traffic, it always puts me in a bad mood. Cassandra and I had the opportunity to take a night off from parenting last night and went on a “date night”. The evening started off very nice with a full 3 course meal at Iron Hill Brewery and then we decided to check out the new IMAX theater here in Lancaster, and went and saw the new Harry Potter Movie. As we were standing in line, we were maybe 8 or 10 people deep, as we were there early. As the line grew in length though, we noticed that there were 2 people in the front of the line that were “saving” a place for the rest of their family. Out of no where, a group of “their family” show up, and we’re watching as 15-20 people walk by us and join their “family”. Now as we stood there, I watched these people introduce themselves to one another, and it became very obvious that most of them had never met before. A gentleman in the line in front of us, spoke up. He noted that he had been there much earlier than all of these people that we all had witnessed, and proceeded to ask them to move to the back of the line. I didn’t think this was an unreasonable request. But it became a rather heated issue, and quickly escalated into shouting and making rude comments about and to this man.

I felt really bad for this guy. But it reminded me why this time of year is so difficult for me to deal with. For some reason the holiday season brings out the worst in people. Selfish ways, and our own desires out-weigh the common decency that we all deserve. You read online and hear in the news that people are trampled in Wal-Marts, Targets, and malls across the country in a mad dash to get the best deal. Is this the direction the world has gone? Are we that far beyond common sense and human decency that we have to butt in line, trample other human beings, or belittle someone verbally, all to further and fulfill our own selfishness?

In my devotions this week, I’ve been reminded continuously that we’re all human and our human nature is sinful. We all make mistakes. But human nature does not excuse sin. God sent his son not only to forgive us of our sin, but to provide a means for all of us to rise above our sinful nature and become more like God, by allowing him to live through us. With thanksgiving now in the rearview mirror, we’re quickly approaching Christmas. This is a time of year to celebrate with family, friends, and loved ones, the gift of Jesus Christ, the son of a living God, who was sent to this earth to save us all from our lives of sin. The reason we give gifts is to serve as the reminder for the gift that God gave each of us. The best way to show your Christmas spirit is by being a blessing through those around you and being gracious and courteous to ALL.

The biggest change for us this year has been the addition of our first child, Carter. This is the chance for a new start in the way that I celebrate Christmas this year. As a father, I don’t want my child growing up in a home where his Daddy is a grinch every year for Christmas. I want him to grow up in a home where Christian values are instilled, not only by knowing the true meaning of Christmas, but by showing love, care, compassion, and kindness to those around him. He needs to understand common sense, human decency, and have morals that display integrity.

If you find yourself at all like me, and you’re a grinch during the Holiday season, remember its never too late to start anew. This week has been a big change for me. Its time for a New Christmas for Darin Zook.