This past week, someone accused me of not having the Christmas spirit. Can you imagine that? Me, Rev. Dr. Grinchly McConnell not have the Christmas spirit? The comment got me to thinking: What exactly is the Christmas spirit?
Is it about loving to go shopping? If so, I don’t have the Christmas spirit. I don’t like shopping in general. I hate shopping for clothes and going to the grocery store is a special kind of hell for me. My favorite shopping is buying for others, especially my wife, but I still don’t enjoy it. Going out and buying cheap/expensive plastic crap for the kids is not something I enjoy.
Is it about decorating the house? If so, I don’t have the Christmas spirit. If you had come into my office before my wife got ahold of it, you would understand that I have an aversion for decorating. While in Memphis, a friend, Mike Taylor, an interior decorator, visited my office often. Finally, when he could no longer take it, asked for permission do “fix” my office. It looked great. Everyone who visited mentioned how nice it looked. Several years ago, while decorating the Christmas tree, my wife expressed her unhappiness that I was not participating. I told her I didn’t like decorating and thought it was a waste of time since in just a few days you had to turn around and take it all down. She remained unhappy and told me I should help her (And like it!). Later that afternoon I told her I was going out to the garage to change the oil in my car and she should join me. When she told me she didn’t enjoy changing the oil in a car, I just smiled at her. She is a very smart lady… she got it. She does a marvelous job of decorating the house without my help.
Is it about sending notes and cards to friends? If so, I don’t have the Christmas spirit. I have never liked writing anything. That may have something to do with being left handed, but I’m not sure. I didn’t like taking notes in class. I didn’t like writing thank you notes. My mother and I had more than one battle about that. When the high school graduation gifts started rolling in, I prayed they would stop because I knew every gift required a thank you note. And that was torture. My wife has simplified the Christmas card pain for me by just having me sign them. She writes notes in them. It’s not that I don’t like people, I would just rather call them. And I don’t really like to call people. Did I mention that I’m an introvert?
Is it about going to a bunch of parties? If so. I don’t have the Christmas spirit. Did I mention that I’m an introvert? Going to any social event just tears at my spirit and drains me of energy. As an introvert, small talk just drives me crazy. If you want to talk of something of merit and significance, I will chat with you for hours. I’m pretty good with a room full of friends but when surrounded by strangers, I freak out. Did I mention that I’m an introvert?
Is it about celebrating the birth of the Savior of this world? If so, I’m all over it. The story is called the Gospel because it is the best good news ever.
Is it about being thankful that God loves us enough to send His Son to live with us, teach us a better way of life, pay the price for our sins and repair our broken relationship with God and rise from the dead to promise us eternal life? If so, then I do have the Christmas spirit.
So, I believe I have the Christmas spirit. Unfortunately, it is not the Christmas spirit most people are thinking about.
Copyright © 2017, William T. McConnell, All Rights Reserved
Bill McConnell is the Interim Minister at Norwood Christian Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, and is a Church Transformation consultant and a Christian Leadership Coach. He is a frequent speaker at Church Transformation events. His latest book on church transformation is DEVELOPING A SIGNIFICANT CHURCH and is available at Westbow Press.
He can be contacted @ bill45053@gmail.com. Connect with him on Facebook @ William T. McConnell or on Twitter @billmc45053 or visit his Amazon Author Page @ Amazon
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