Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas is the title of an old Christmas song that is anything but merry. To be merry is to be cheerful, festive, and bright. The song’s melody has the sound of melancholy as it talks about how your heart should be light and troubles put out of sight. In days past they were happy with friends and maybe one day they will be again, but until that day we will just muddle through somehow. This is the attitude many people have about life. It is all about the things they can get from this world and if it is not available now, they’ll just have to get through it until it changes. It is especially troubling to me that this attitude is used to describe Christmas. The world lives with the attitude of hopelessness, depending on the circumstances to brighten their day. They hope that it will come and possibly stay for a little while. It reminds me of the verse I Corinthians 15:32 where Paul is preaching to the Corinthians about the resurrection of the dead. “If after the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantaged it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we die.” Those Paul was speaking to had the view of life the author wrote about in the song. Times past were good, now grab what you can and hang on because this is all there is. Paul tells them if their view of life is accurate then go ahead eat, drink, and be merry, and then die because without the resurrection there is no hope.
Paul’s confidence was strong in the Lord and the hope of life after death. He teaches them in II Corinthians 1:8-10 that he and his companions had suffered much, to the brink of death. However, they were not trusting in themselves for their lives, they trusted God. Their hope did not wavier, their joy was in the life to come and the serving of the one who died and rose again, to make his eternal life in Heaven possible.
II Corinthians 1:8-10 For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raised the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us.”
We too should have Paul’s attitude that he noted in Philippians 1:21 “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Every day was a celebration in his heart to the Lord. He never got over what Christ had done for him. His purpose each day was to live to know Christ better, to imitate Him, to gain comfort from Him, to spend time with Him, ( I can’t imagine anyone having to remind Paul to read the scriptures and pray) to tell others about Him, and to please Christ in all that he did. He never felt his life was without purpose. Neither did he have regrets that he missed something in this world. Yes, we too should live this way and stop loving the world more than we love Christ. This Christmas remind yourself whatever your circumstances are that they will not dictate how much you will enjoy Christmas. Living for Jesus is not about who I am and what I have. It is about who He is and what He gave. It is the best gift of all that He offers us. He paid the price in full and offered it to us freely.
Philippians 3:10 “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death”
Today I chose to have a big merry Christmas, and tomorrow, and the next day, and every day going forward. Circumstances will try to interfere, but I want to keep my focus on the one who is Christmas, and live with a grateful heart. Having a melancholy heart comes from looking inward and allowing circumstances to control our attitude. We wallow in them and seek sympathy, but a merry heart looks upward to the future and all that we have in Christ. When we do this, no matter where we are we can have the merriest of Christmas’s today and every day. You choose.
