This is my Christmas crazy week. Do you have one of those? Two 50 mile trips to Corydon. Two 50 mile trips back. Finals week for two college classes. Speeches to be given. Grades to be calculated and turned in. Five normal work days. A wedding. A Christmas party. Family. Friends. Sunday school lessons. Newspaper articles. The fast-paced commotion simply will never stop.
Over the past several weeks, we have been looking for ways to take the stress out of the holiday season. We have centered on several practical ways to better manage the hecticness that so often accompanies the end of the year. Here are the thoughts in an easy to remember list.
1) We must remember the faithfulness of God.
2) We must control our minds and our memories.
3) We must read the Scripture.
4) We must strive to be thankful.
The Monday morning darkness was as real as the slumber and sleepiness still inside my head. As I tooled across the East end bridge, I fidgeted with the radio and tuned in a Christian music station. Christmas carols and peaceful music might be just the solution needed to start my busy week and bring comfort to my long early morning drive.
Her voice is almost always recognizable to me. Amy Grant has been a part of my music life since college days, having actually met her when she was a teen touring with a stop in Cincinnati. A calming breath of fresh air seemed to slowly fill my lungs and my heart. I could name that tune in four notes.
I’ve made the same mistake before
Too many malls, too many stores
December traffic, Christmas rush
It breaks me till I push and shove
Children are crying while mothers are trying
To photograph Santa and sleigh
The shopping and buying and standing forever in line
What can I say?
December comes then disappears
Faster and faster every year
Did my own mother keep this pace
Or was the world a different place?
Where people stayed home wishing for snow
Watching three channels on their TV
Look at us now rushing around
Trying to buy Christmas peace.
I need a silent night, a holy night
To hear an angel voice through the chaos and the noise
I need a midnight clear, a little peace right here
To end this crazy day with a silent night.
In an effort to reduce our stress this holiday season, let’s take a lesson from one phrase of Amy’s song. I need a silent night. Here are three ways to make that happen this season.
First, carve out time at the end of each day to be silent before God. The Psalmist says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Make sure that each day contains moments that all of the strivings and contentions of the world are set aside and replaced by a time to reflect and realize that God is still sovereign and in control.
Second, in the silence, reflect on God’s holiness. Jerry Bridges, in his classic book “The Pursuit of Holiness,” writes, “Our attitude toward sin is more self-centered than God-centered.” We never see sin correctly until we see it in light of God’s holiness. As the prodigal proclaimed, “I have sinned against heaven and against you.” We have a deep need to see how short we really do fall of the glory of God.
Peter writes, 13-16 So roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that’s coming when Jesus arrives. Don’t lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel like doing. You didn’t know any better then; you do now. As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, “I am holy; you be holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16 MSG).
Thinking about the holiness of God keeps a proper perspective on our own lives. No one overcomes the stresses and temptations of this world overnight. There are two ways that we participate in the holiness of God in our own lives. The first is through a humble and consistent devotion to understand God’s holiness. The easiest way to accomplish this is through intake of the Scripture. The second way is to pray for holiness. Paul told the Ephesians that he prayed that God would strengthen them with power through the Holy Spirit in their inner being (Ephesians 3:16). He prayed that God would fill the Colossians with knowledge to live a holy life worthy of their calling (Colossians 1:9-10). Paul would pray the same prayer for you and me.
Finally, ask God for the peace that during the holidays definitely passes all understanding. Paul writes “and the peace that passes understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” In the hectic pace, the strained relationships and the painful memories that often travel with the holidays, let God guard your heart and mind with his peace.