Worshipping the Newborn King (Luke 2)

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Christmas is a time for worship. The recorded history of the birth of Christ in scripture points us to people who worship the newly born king. Could it be that our crowded, consumer-driven lives have squeezed out this most important aspect of the season? Spend a few moments pondering the scripture and the following thoughts that probe our Experiences with God.

It's been said that if Satan can't make you bad, he'll make you busy… Can you relate to that? You may be a person who makes good choices on a daily basis. You respect others and live by the golden rule. You work hard and have a reputation for being a good person, but when you reflect on your life and all your obligations, God is just not a priority. He gets pushed to the back of the shelf on a regular basis because all the pressing demands of the day crowd in ahead of Him. You want to pray, but you don't have time to pray. You want to read your bible and know more about what it says, but you don't seem to have the time to sit down for that long. You feel if you got up any earlier or went to bed any later, you just wouldn't be able to function the next day. And you're the only person who has this problem, right? Wrong. We all deal with the same issues and none of us like it.

What makes it worse is that our busyness seems to peak during the Christmas season; the time we should be reflecting on hope and peace. So much for that, huh? A girl in a college ministry I led many years ago once made an astute observation. We were talking about busyness and how God gets crowded out of our lives and she said, "I know it's not the things I put into my life that make me tired, it's the things I've left out." Wow… those words still ring true. The things that are pressured out of my life are the things that bring focus and vitality. So, something must be out of balance.

Richard Exley made the following observation, "We worship our work, we work at our play, and we play at our worship." Take a moment to reflect on each of those phrases: worship our work… work at our play… play at our worship. I do love my work. And I when I play, I play hard. But could it be true that I play when I worship? God help me if that is the case! Is that what my life has come to? And if so, can I really stop this cycle before I totally lose touch with the Savior who came to this earth to show me how to live the abundant life? Yes, I can.

After the angel of the Lord proclaimed the birth of Messiah to shepherds, the heavenly host broke forth in praise. The message of the song was simple, "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!" It strikes me that they first glorified God, and then pronounced the blessing of peace on those who please God. Some are left out of this blessing! Who are they? Those who do not please God. You see, life outside of seeking to please God is hard and unsatisfying. There is no truly fulfilling reward unless it has an eternal element to it.

If we were to boil life down to its most basic elements, we would love God and love others, the greatest commandments. If you examine closely the life of Jesus, that's what He did. His days were committed to pleasing God by serving him and loving others. Was this work to him? Yes. Scripture tells us that he grew tired and weary and at times withdrew to a solitary place to pray. It was there His soul was refreshed. He worked late in the evening and rose early in the morning. As word of His ministry grew, people followed him everywhere. But He never lost perspective and never failed to pursue the mission of loving God and loving others through everything He did.

Many of the demands we have allowed to be placed on our lives have nothing to do with God. Think about it. We've been duped into chasing the ephemeral, not the eternal. The things we think we own really own us. And our pace of life is so fast that we will soon come to the end of our days and wonder where the time went. Will we stand before God empty handed? Will we have anything to show for all our busyness?

Chances are you'll get a few days off work during this holiday season. Take time this Christmas to stop at the manger and evaluate your life. Pick up your bible and see what God might have to say to you. How can you slow down to enjoy the goodness of all God offers? Are there things you should say "no" to that have no eternal significance? Are there things you should say "yes" to that might change you forever and draw you nearer to God? Consider the words of the poet:

I counted dollars while God counted crosses
I counted gains while He counted losses
I counted my worth by things gained or store and
He sized me up by the scars that I bore
I coveted honors and I sought degrees
And he wept as He counted the hours on my knees
I never knew till one day by the grave
How vain are the things that we spend life to save.
- Author Unknown

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