by Royal Alexander
We are likely in the crush of the Christmas season. Perhaps things are just as, if not more, busy and hectic than they've been all year. We feel pressed into a dizzying pace to address the countless things to be done for work, for our families, and the additional requirement of gifts and activities for Christmas Day itself. It is easy to become wrapped up in the commercial side of Christmas. On the heels of what may have already been a demanding year, it is easy to feel stressed out and maxed out.
Here's to hoping we won't! Here's to hoping that we find a sense of peace, even if it's only in our own hearts and minds.
We are all aware of the profound reason for Christmas—the celebration of the birth of Christ. Billions across the world cling to the belief that the birth of Christ marked the introduction into the world of forgiveness, salvation, love, and hope. And, while there are many traditions attached to Christmas, at its core it is about Christ's birth—the promised Messiah, born to redeem humanity from sin, with the promise of everlasting life. As President Trump declared, 'the birth of Jesus turned human history from night to day.”
For this reason, Christianity at large traditionally observes the Christmas season with spiritual reflection, great gratitude, charity, and the intentional spreading of kindness. All of this is critically important and necessary in a fallen world.
But I think there is another equally important aspect of His birth. The peace of Christ. His message of peace was and remains one of the foundational aspects of His ministry on this earth.
Christ defined peace not just as the absence of civil or military conflict but as a deep sense of calm, wholeness, and renewal that can only derive from a real relationship with Him. It is this relationship that deeply restores us because we know that flowing from the right relationship with Him are reconciliation and eternal life. That is the knowledge that produces in us the calm and sense of peace we so fervently seek. His promise to His disciples of the "peace I leave you" is one of the clearest examples of the renewal He intended his personal suffering and sacrifice on earth to provide us.
Philippians speaks of a peace that surpasses all understanding—"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." This is interpreted as a deep, supernatural calm found in faith, even during chaos, which shields us from worry and anxiety. It's a divine peace, beyond logic or human comprehension, offering spiritual protection through a relationship with Jesus.
However, this requires some introspection, prayer, and meditation on our part. That requires a bit of quiet, undistracted time which is often hard for us to find. When we do, though, I think we can unload our greatest stresses and burdens because we, through our prayer and reflection, are acknowledging that we, in fact, are not ultimately in control of most aspects of our lives and neither are we supposed to individually bear all of its difficulties. I find that thought powerfully encouraging and reassuring.
Let me close with this.
There are many hardships that we face in our lives and in our country and I don’t know what will be necessary for us to begin to heal, but I am certain that it is going to require a power much greater than our own. I hope that for a time we can all slow our hectic paces and reflect on the most profound birth, and gift, the world has ever known. From there may we, relying on what Lincoln referred to as the “better angels” of our nature, prayerfully and hopefully find a way to that peace that surpasses all understanding.
Merry Christmas!
