Advent 2012: Preparing for Christmas . . . when we don't feel like it

You and I are going to walk from here to Bethlehem?
That must be 70 miles as the crow flies – and the pathway is up and down, around and about.
No way!
And don’t give me any of that donkey stuff –
with this belly I couldn’t even get on one,
much less put up with his swaying and bouncing.

Because Mary made that trip (even when she didn’t feel like it) you and I experience a faith in this God who is with us - always.
This God who never abandons us.
This God who is a part of us – 
providing pulses of life in all kinds of situations.

The story of Christmas is our story.


So, this is the second Sunday of Advent 2012.
Advent is this time set aside for the church to prepare for Christmas.

Last week we looked for messages of hope and help preparing for Christmas when times are tough.
For most of, these are not ordinary times – the life we are experiencing is not what we signed up for.
Times are tough for a lot of us.
And we are reminded that times were particularly tough in the days of Herod and Joseph and Mary and their families and friends.
And that’s exactly when God chose to move into the neighborhood and become one of us.

And, today, I want to explore how it is hard for some of us to get into the Christmas spirit sometimes –
it is hard to prepare for Christmas when you don’t feel like it.

I was thinking this week specifically about the plight of little Mary.

Have you ever thought about how she must have gone through a roller coaster of emotions?

She was just a girl, really. 
From what we know, she was about 13 years old.
She had been told that a marriage had been arranged with the village carpenter’s apprentice – and she was pretty excited about that.
Not to have a husband was to continue to be burden on her mother and father –
and life was just better with a spouse.
And, one had been found for her.

We don’t know how much time had passed since her betrothal had been announced, but she and Joseph had been spending some time getting to know one another, and make specific plans about where to life and what they would need to set their new household, and such.

The future for Mary was promising.

And, then the angel came.
She didn’t understand that all.
She was fearful.
“But, how can that be?” was her response to the angel’s announcement.
Her future was up in the air now.
What about Joseph?
What about their plans?
What about her parents?
What about her friends?
What about the village?
What would her life be like raising a baby without a husband?
Her future looked bleak.

We don’t know just how long she harbored her 13-year-old feelings before she told Joseph about her situation.
But, apparently she did try to tell him.
And, apparently he wasn’t buying it.
Of course he couldn’t go through with the arrangement now.
Mary was damaged goods and carried unclaimed baggage.
That’s when the angel came to Joseph.
And, Joseph ended up doing the right thing and agreed to take Mary anyway.
Things were looking up for Mary.

No doubt, life was still hard for her – as well as for Joseph – in their village.
For sure no one else was convinced about their “immaculate conception” story.
They would have been shunned by their village, their families, their friends.
She had no one else at this point.
They had to turn to each other.
Times were tough for Mary and Joseph.

And, this ridiculous census was announced.
What was this about?
Why did Joseph have to travel so far?
Especially now.
She had been carrying this baby for a long time.
The time was surely at hand.
And, now he was to leave to town?
At this time?
Please!
Mary was stressed.

“Wait, wait!  And now you want me to do what?
Why do I have to go with you?
Look at me – heavy with child.
How am I supposed to get there?
We don’t have a car.
There is no bus, no taxi, no train.

You and I are going to walk from here to Bethlehem?
That must be 70 miles as the crow flies – and the pathway is up and down, around and about.
No way!
And don’t give me any of that donkey stuff –
with this belly I couldn’t even get on one,
much less put up with his swaying and bouncing.

To be sure, Mary didn’t feel like going.

Folks make that pilgrimage walk today.
Today, it takes folks 28 days to make that walk – walking at a pace presumably not too fast for an eight-month pregnant girl.

Do you think for one minute, Mary felt like doing that?

But, she did do it, didn’t she?

And, of course, the story goes on: after they finally arrived at Bethlehem, Mary suffered a double indignity - there was nowhere to stay.
Finally, after some wheeling and dealing, and a compassion-hearted inn-keeper, make-shift shelter was provided.
So, the young, frightened, country-girl, sheltered in a barn – presumably in the company with an assortment of farm animals.
Mary didn’t feel like making the trip in the first place, that’s for sure.
And she didn’t much feel like bedding down in the barn, either.

But she did.

Was she driven by her faith – bolstered by the encounters with the angel and her cousin, Elizabeth – or by her circumstance – having to accompany her betrothed because there were no other alternatives?
It really doesn’t matter much.

It is a wonder the baby didn’t come somewhere along the way.

When our first child was late, Suzanne received all kinds of advice:
go home and rearrange the furniture,
try to move the refrigerator,
go sit in a double feature movie.
(Just for the record, we did NOT have her try to move the refrigerator, but we did go to the circus for four hours one afternoon,
and watched a double feature movie showing of Oklahoma and South Pacific another afternoon.)
But, alas, there was no Laurie for Suzanne,
and no Jesus for Mary.

Mary did show a strong belief in her destiny as described by the angel Gabriel.
The song she sings after her visit with cousin Elizabeth demonstrates a familiarity with a radical restructuring of society that is about to be brought about.

For sure, Mary didn’t feel like making that trip.
But, she did.
And, that she did is a message of hope for all of us today.

Of course, we know how the story turns out.
The baby was born – healthy baby and healthy mom – without the help of a midwife or medical attention.
The baby was named Jesus –
and was recognized by all as Emmanuel!
God is now with us.

God chose to demonstrate this new reality through this unwed, homeless, teenage mother
in a hick-podunk town (mostly unheard of and ignored by the rest of the Roman Empire),
and in a barn at that.

Here in 2012, it may be hard to get in the Christmas spirit.  
We just may not feel like it – for a variety of reasons.
We may be grieving a loss,
we may be experiencing a debilitating illness,
we may just be tired,
we may be too busy or too distracted.
We may come up a very good excuse.

But, let’s remember Mary.
She surely did not feel like making that trip.
But, because she did step out and make the effort, look what happened.
The skies opened up.
The angels came out.
The heavenly chorus rang out.
The shepherds came in to town to see the new born.
Magi came from the East to pay homage.

And the powers of rule were scared spitless –
So much so that Herod sent out the order to kill all the baby boys in the land born near the suspected day.

Mary did not feel like making that trip.
But because stepped out and acted on her faith,
the world was changed.
Emmanuel was made known.
Societal structure was turned upside down.
The Kingdom of God was ushered in.

Because Mary made that trip (even when she didn’t feel like it) you and I experience a faith in this God who is with us - always.
This God who never abandons us.
This God who is a part of us – 
providing pulses of life in all kinds of situations.
This God who is manifest through acts of compassion, and justice.

Because Mary made that trip when she didn’t feel like it,
you and I – and everyone we meet –
literally everyone we meet –
can celebrate Christmas even if we may not feel like it.

Because, time and time again, our experience shows,
and clinical research confirms,
that when we make the effort to celebrate events like Christmas –
even if we don’t feel like it –
magic happens.
The heavens open up.
We start seeing angels.
We hear the music.
We smile.
We sing.
We might even dance.
We gift one another.
We acknowledge one another.
We actually converse with one another.
The spirit of Christmas overtakes us
and we actually become a part of the message.

The story of Christmas is our story.
It is the story of Mary, yes.
It is the story of Emmanuel, yes.
It is the story of God and the inauguration of God’s Kingdom, yes.
But, the story of Christmas is the story of us.

This week Anne Lamott relayed a comment Wendell Berry told her some thirty years ago:
“It gets darker, and darker, and darker,
and then Jesus is born.”

That’s what Mary found out.
That’s what millions of believers throughout the ages have found out.
That’s what many in this room have found out.
It is just when things seem to be getting darker and darker and darker that the light comes and illuminates the world around us.

For sure, Mary experienced a brightness in her soul after making the trip she didn’t feel like making.

And, the thing is, you and I can try it out.
We can test it out for ourselves.
If you just don’t feel the Christmas spirit,
remember Mary and take action:
go to the Christmas party at the pastor’s house,
buy a turkey for a neighbor,
buy a gift card at the Acme and hand it to a person coming into the store,
make a call to someone you haven’t spoken to in over a year,
write a note to someone who is not expecting it,
sing a song of Christmas,
do something for another,
offer a prayer for another’s wellbeing,
well, the list goes on.

Like Mary found out, it will make a difference.
Like Auntie Mame said:
especially when we don’t feel like it,
we need a little Christmas, right this very minute.
We need a little laughter,
we need a little singing,
we need a little Christmas –
even when we don’t feel like it –
especially when we don’t feel like.

Amen.




The congregation of The Maxlife Church: Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, experienced this sermon during a worship service the Second Sunday of Advent, December 9, 2012.