See clearly

Advent is a season of preparation for Christians who will soon be celebrating the gift of God in the birth of Jesus.

Our precious preparation will be mostly ignored by people with little or no faith in God.

The “delight” of shopping grasped me firmly by the throat yesterday. At a big supermarket I won’t name, they were selling everything Christmassy from jumpers to hot cross buns.

Read that again. Hot cross buns? At Christmas? But they taste good and sell well all year.

This butterfly photo came from my summer holiday. I’m putting some pics into a Photobook to remember a very special trip. This one appeals to me because of the way the sun shines through wing and leaf- except where the shadow of the butterfly blocks the light transmission. I wonder which you saw first- light or shadow?

I fear our fellow shoppers are at risk of missing the BEST of Christmas because all the glitz and greed will take our attention. Instead of Jesus, we may settle for the shadow, the illusion. He is still there in the picture- but obscured and no longer central.

Don’t get me wrong. I absolutely LOVE celebrating Christmas, and will enjoy the seasonal goodies as much as anyone else. My hope is that I will see Jesus afresh at Christmas. The light that shines picks out wonder and beauty in so many ways and people. But if we only focus on the shadow, we miss out.

As an Advent thought: what are the “good” things in your life that may obscure the BEST of God’s good news this year? Have you remembered that preparation of our heart is the best way to truly experience the “Joy to the world” that is real Christmas?

Enjoy a blessed Christmas- seek a clearer sight of Jesus, the CHRIST of Christmas.