SEASON AND REASON

It's that time of the year 🎅 🎄 🎁
Before the day ends, most of us will have received like a thousand "Merry Christmas and remember that Christ is the Reason for the Season " texts. Most happy holidays messages will actually be from or to people whom we haven't met or heard from the whole year! Ain't that the truth! Christmas has a way of reminding us of the number of people we have on our contact list 😅 Which is a good and not so good thing, because I believe that friendship should be intentional, that means checking on each other every so often. On the flip side it helps reconnect with people, family especially. This comes in handy for families that treasure spending the holidays in upcountry. So you get to meet Aunty and Uncle so and so and their children and all that traditional stuff that goes on during the festivities. And the famous..... sahani, vijiko na soda ni za watu wa Nairobi, watu wa nyumbani ni kama kawaida 😂😂😂
A typical African Christmas involves large family gatherings, a life snatched from a poor unsuspecting goat/sheep/bull, crates of sodas and new clothes and shoes for the kids (this was my favourite bit as a kid, my sister and I would get matching outfits, so did our brothers.)
For the longest time, I looked forward to Christmas because of the "newness" that came with the holiday. It meant that I'd have a new Sunday best 😅 I'd have more than a bowl of meat to chow down all by myself 🙌 What were your highlights?
So do I still get excited about Christmas? Yes I do. But is it about the new outfits? Not anymore.
In my view, with age comes a better sense of understanding of a particular occasion/occurrence/tradition. You still get to enjoy, however, the reason for celebrating maybe totally different from what it was previously.
So over the years I've come to appreciate that Christmas is an integral part of the Christian faith. Despite the controversies around the exact birth date for our Lord Jesus, His birth was and is definitely a foundation for the Christian community. Most of us will commemorate it on 25th December, Ethiopians celebrate Christmas on 7th January. In fact, for the first three centuries of Christianity’s existence, Jesus Christ’s birth wasn’t celebrated at all. The religion’s most significant holidays were Epiphany on January 6, which commemorated the arrival of the Magi after Jesus’ birth, and Easter, which celebrated Jesus’ resurrection. The first official mention of December 25 as a holiday honoring Jesus’ birthday appears in an early Roman calendar from 336 A.D. However, the various designated dates aren't a hindrance to our celebrations. We ought to celebrate Jesus every day, CHRISTmas day included.
Do we truly believe in the totality of the statement that Jesus is indeed the reason for the season?
This typically means that Christ is the core of the celebrations at Christmas and reminds us of the events succeeding the birth of Jesus on the manger in the little town of Bethlehem.
With a special focus on the scripture in Matthew 2: 1-12  we get three core aspects of the Christian life as illustrated by the Magi. NB: The Magi were the three wise men who went to see baby Jesus guided by the star.
As recorded in the Bible, they bowed down and worshiped Him, brought Him gifts (that they considered costly) and on completing their mission successfully, they left for their own country by another way.

The Worship
On seeing the star 🌟 the Magi were filled with joy and after entering the house they bowed down and worshiped Him. The posture showed great reverence for the newborn baby who was now the King of the Jews and the Saviour of the world. Even with their social status, the Magi lay prostrate before the King. In the recent years, worship may not necessarily translate to laying prostrate (though it is still acceptable) instead, it focuses more on the postures of our hearts.
As Jimmy Needham put it in his Clear the Stage song; worship is more than a song, It's a lifestyle, we can sing all we want to and still get it wrong. We must not worship something that's not even worth it. So let's clear the stage and make some space for the one who deserves it. Clearing the stage means letting go of all that seeks to dethrone God from His rightful place in our hearts and our lives. Worship is how we choose to respond to circumstances and live our lives, whether things are failing or working out.

The Gifts
We may not have the opportunity to present the physical gifts like the Magi had. That doesn't mean that we have nothing to offer Christ. Romans 12:1 gives a practical way of how we ought to dedicate ourselves to Christ :
Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies [dedicating all of yourselves, set apart] as a living sacrifice, holy and well-pleasing to God, which is your rational (logical, intelligent) act of worship.
The challenge with living sacrifices is that they regularly attempt to or actually crawl out of the altar. You ask how! The moment we are knowingly or unknowingly walking in disobedience to God, choosing the flesh over the spirit,  then we are crawling out of the altar.
Ours, may not be a one time gifting ceremony, rather, it's a daily act of submission to God thus alluring Him to use us as He pleases, for His own glory and for our sanctification.

The Reroute
Herod heard about the birth of Jesus and His existence became a threat to him. He wanted him dead. With his craftiness, he approached the Magi with the lie that he was interested in worshiping the Messiah too, he begged them to bring a report on returning from Bethlehem. God had other plans. He knew how dark Herod's heart was. He delivered His warning to the Magi in a dream and they weren't about to disobey Him. See they met Christ, therefore a transformation ought to have taken place. No one meets Christ and goes back to how things were. He's a life and destiny changer, He shakes what needs to be shaken in order for us to live abundantly. He brings in a change of plans, restructures our desires and ways of living. No one ever meets Jesus and stays the same. Rerouting has to happen once we encounter Christ.

I believe that today, being Christmas day, and every other day, we can confidently choose to worship Christ, to live in constant surrender and continue experiencing the powerful transformation that can only be found in Him.
May the Lord grant us joy, happiness and good tidings this Christmas. A Merry Christmas to you and yours 👪
🔔 🔔 🔔 🎁 🎁 🎁 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎅 🎅 🎅

Article inspired by this year's  final sermon at K-Krew BS