O Holy Night, the stars are brightly shining…
I love the song. Hearing it this morning got me wondering about “Holy.”
On the FREEDOM TOUR we gather at the conclusion around a pile of stones, a sort of makeshift altar. Each stone represents a burden carried by a team member and a commitment to stop carrying that burden, to give it to God.
Each time we repeat this tradition, I think, “This is holy ground.”
It’s one of those words we toss around kind of casually. Holy means set apart and sacred. I’m not sure what’s holy about a “holy cow.”
Set apart and sacred. That works for a time and place where folks talk to God about dropping burdens they were never meant to carry. And of course it works for the night God stepped into the body of a baby.
Got me wondering, though, about how I treat Christmas. Is some part of it set apart and sacred, or is it simply another cultural holiday, an excuse for food and unneeded gifts?
On that night, God inhabited a barn. Mary and Joseph gazed into the face of God. That night, that space, was indeed holy, set apart and sacred in a way different from any other in history.
I hope my Christmas is more than a reason to consume pie. I hope you and I celebrate in a way that’s holy.
Truly He taught us to love one another
His law is love and His gospel is peace
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name