From Thanksgiving to Christmas
I’ve often heard people voice dismay at how quickly we turn from the Thanksgiving to Christmas.
It is a little odd to have a big celebration one day, and then begin preparing for a different celebration right away. But I have noticed in recent years that the transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas, or Advent, as the case may be, is for the Christian a logical progression.
You see, we spend Thanksgiving celebrating God’s goodness to us in providing food, shelter, and fellowship with family and friends. But Christmas is also a celebration of God’s goodness in providing something we needed, but would not have without His provision: forgiveness.
Thanksgiving is a reminder to stop and say thank you to God for all He has done, and as we give thanks for temporal things, our hearts and minds are naturally reminded of eternal things.
So, I wanted to mark this turning point between two reminders of God’s goodness, as I often have on this blog, with Mary’s song of gratitude to God, found in Luke chapter 1. This passage always touches my heart, because it was a genuine response of thankfulness to the opportunity to bear the Savior, the long-awaited Messiah.
This opportunity, however, would have come with a lot of uncertainty and the possibility of shame, public humiliation, and even a slow, painful death.
Mary’s song is a declaration of confiding trust, a rejoicing in the fulfillment of God’s promise, regardless of the difficulties and dangers it might entail. Not knowing exactly what the future would hold for her, but trusting that God did, Mary’s heart overflowed in praise.
As you read this, don’t skim: take time to read slowly and be reminded of the great things God has done, then and now, in Mary’s life, and in your own.