Today Is Christmas.....The 2nd Day of Christmas.....The Birth of the Joy of All the Earth!

Today, Today Is Christmas!

Today is Christmas . . . Today . . . That's right . . . December 25 . . . The 2nd day of the Church's Christmas & Epiphany season . . . The [hopeful] end of the mad rush that characterizes the time between Black Friday--not to be confused with Good Friday--& last night or this morning's opening of presents.

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DIGRESSION #1:  Did you get what you hoped for? Did those who received your gifts thank you profusely? I'm writing this on SUN 12/24, so it's not official yet, but I'm reasonably sure that I will NOT be receiving the Top 3 Items on my wish list. Those would be (1) A chainsaw. (2) An axe. (3) A Glock pistol. [I desire the first two in order to keep up better w/my yardwork, which includes 4 majestic pines. The 3rd one? I just wanna be like my heroes on NCIS. Plus target practice would inevitably help me cope w/my anxiety.
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DIGRESSION #2:  Today is also the 2nd day of the 12 days of Christmas. "On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me two turtle doves . . . " There's an excellent chance that when Mary & Joseph took their infant Son to the Temple in Jerusalem in order to name Him Jesus ["One who saves"], to have Him circumcised, which was proscribed for all Jewish male children on the 8th day after their birth, & to ransom Him, because He was their firstborn, with the sacrifice of two doves. [I'm 99% positive that it was 2 doves. They were too poor to afford a lamb. I'm 79% certain that this is an overly long & convoluted sentence. English majors? Please excuse me for writing like this is MY blog.]
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In today's cult of celebrity, the birth of a Messiah--one "anointed" by His Father to save His people from their sins--might kick into gear the 24/7 news cycle. Reporters from major networks would rush to the manger, each hoping to get an exclusive interview. Tabloids would rush to the scene in order to be the first to publicize His birth & publish exclusive pictures. We'd declare Dec. 25 to be a holiday! [Actually, Christmas Day is a federal holiday, so "Merry Christmas," which sounds to much better & rings of integrity than "Happy Holidays."]

Read the account of Jesus' birth in Luke Chapter 2, & you will remember or discover that the birth of the Savior of humankind was anything BUT the spectacle that today's culture would expect. 

• He was born in a backwater town, not in the royal capital. 
• He was born to a teenage mother. 
• An unwed mother. 
• He was born in an animal shelter & placed in a feeding trough on straw. 
• He was born into a human family of peasants. 
• His birth was announced to shepherds--not exactly the cream of the cultural crop in those days--who also became the first after Joseph & Mary to view the Messiah who was born--BORN!--a human baby.

What does it mean to be a human infant? It means you dirty your "swaddling cloths." It means you cry when your diaper is wet & dirty. You cry when you're hungry. You shiver in the cold. You learn to talk by listening to your earthly parents babble baby-talk to you. You learn to walk. And you take your share of tumbles, just like we all did.

And yet . . . AND YET . . . 

Prayers & Praise from Some of My Favorite Christmas Hymns

""'To you this night is born a Child Of Mary, chosen virgin mild;
This little child of lowly birth Shall Be the Joy of All the Earth.'" *

"How silently, how silently The wondrous gift is giv'n!
So God imparts to human hearts The blessings of His heav'n.
No ear may hear His coming; But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive Him still The dear Christ enters in." **

"Silent night, holy night! All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and child. Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace." ***

"Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, 
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.
The stars in the sky look down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay." ****

"Gentle Mary laid her child Lowly in a manger;
There He lay, the Undefiled To the world a stranger.
Such a babe in such a place, Can He be the Savior?
Ask the saved of all the race Who have found His favor.

"Gentle Mary laid her child Lowly in a manger;
He is still the Undefiled But no more a stranger.
Son of God of humble birth, Beautiful the story;
Praise His name in all the earth; Hail the King of glory!" *****

* Sources:  "From Heaven Above to Earth I Come," St. 2, Lutheran Service Book #358.  ** "O Little Town of Bethlehem," St. 3, LSB #361.  *** "Silent Night, Holy Night," St. 1, LSB #363.  **** "Away in a Manger," St. 1, LSB #364.  ***** "Gentle Mary Laid Her Child," St. 1 & 3, LSB #374.