This Christmas season has been different in many ways. To start, I’ve spent it in a remote Indian village with no family members, no Christmas tree, no Christmas lights, and no traditional Christmas meals. So, my physical circumstance wasn’t the same. The second difference was the spiritual purpose and celebration of Christmas. This year I experienced the purest form of praise for Christ our Savior’s birth!
Though Christmas was different (and at times very tough) I would not trade this experience for anything. Night after night my team and I went to other remote villages nearby to share the good news and gospel of Christ! Church here isn’t about the buildings, it’s about the community of people. We often taught under street lights in the middle of the streets, in believers’ homes or occasionally in actually cement brick buildings. I just wanted to paint an accurate picture for y’all. Anyhow, we teach with hope and trust that one day they’ll come to know Jesus as their ONE true God and Savior. Side note: the Hindu religion is very common in India and they worship many different gods known as idols.
It being Christmas, we sang traditional American songs such as O Come All Ye Faithful, Joy To The World, and Silent Night, etc. and preached the Christmas message in Luke 2. What a JOY! What a celebration! In India those who are Christians have a cake cutting ceremony after every service that reads “Happy Christians or Happy Christmas.” Before cutting the cake they all yell “Happy Happy Christmas, Merry Merry Christmas” x10. The children even preform their traditional dance… They literally have a party for Jesus and it was the purest form of Christmas celebration I’ve experienced.
The meaning of Christmas to them wasn’t about cookie decorating or the holiday movies or gift giving or the bright Christmas lights or even family gatherings, though those are very sweet things. Here, they don’t have those things to distract them. The meaning for them is solely about praising and worshiping Jesus our King who so humbly came as a baby so we could have salvation and an eternity in Heaven.
This Christmas I celebrated Jesus like never before and I feel the most fulfilled and satisfied in our Savior. “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him” – John Piper. I was stripped from all my Christmas traditions to experience the purest one, which is the celebration of Jesus’ birth and his faithful life to reconcile this weary world to himself! It opened my eyes to how distracted I had become during the Christmas season and it was a humble reminder that the purpose and celebration can fully be on Jesus alone. And that will be enough because Jesus is enough! Hallelujah and Amen!!
For the Sake of His Name,
Bailey
