So, on a more serious note, spending Christmas and the Christmas season in Cambodia is an experience that I would not trade for any other.
Being so removed from any sort ‘of life as we know it’ during this holiday season has given me the opportunity to really stay focused on why we actually celebrate Christmas. I realized this year, how distracted I get by the hussle and bussle of American Christmas. More than once, we all sat back and thought about what we would be doing if we were at home and the common idea, is that we would be busy. Busy with good, fun things, but busy nonetheless.
One of the things we did this month, was travel (again via Tuk Tuk and motor bike) to surrounding villages and sing some Christmas songs and Katie would read the Christmas story as the rest of us acted it out. We performed this skit at least seven times (which is funny, because it was only supposed to be performed twice, but people kept hearing about how awesome the white people were, so we just kept getting more bookings…) and each one of us could probably telling the story verbatim now: but as the story was being read and we were acting it out all over Cambodia, we realized how much of the Christmas story took place in an environment just like this.
I feel like America (or at least the Western World) has taken over Christmas, but as we were reading this story we were realizing that Jesus was born in a barn that probably looked just like the one we were performing in. And His birth was surrounded by cows and chickens…just like we were. And the shepherds that came to visit the baby Jesus, probably looked just like the shepherds we’ve met around here and they probably had really dirty, dusty feet…just like I have right now.
It was a strange feeling being so far away from home during Christmas, but at the same time, feeling so close to actual Christmas story.
And yes, I realize that Jesus was not, in fact, born in Cambodia, but it was something that really made me reflect on how I celebrate this holiday.
Christmas. It marks the day when God put His secret rescue plan into action. It represents the day that the God who created the universe, made Himself small and came to earth in the form of a baby; born inside of a dirty, dusty barn, next to cows and chickens and sheep. It marks the day that everything changed.
Thank you Papa God. Thank you for being so awesome. For being so creative and humble and
working in ways that are so different from the ways my mind works. I love you so much Jesus. Thank you for coming here. Thank you for thinking this mission was worth it. Thank you for everything you gave up to save our lives. Forgive me Lord. Forgive me for making this holiday about everything expect for you. Forgive me for falling so often into the trap of the American Christmas. Forgive me for not remembering how awesome your gift to us is. You are incredible.
Merry Christmas again!
(forgive me…i have never like the Christmas morning pictures…apparently that didn’t change in Camboida.–but please note our decorations, they are lovely.)
