I walked around our neighborhood last night and the night before. There are probably 8 to 10 sections overall in our subdivision. The reason I waited until night to walk was because I wanted to take my time looking at the Christmas lights and decorations. I could only cover parts of two sections.
The section we live in actually has three different areas. Two of these area are ranch homes and almost all of these houses are owned by senior adults like Sherri and me. The homes in the other area are two story houses. Younger couples with children occupy these homes. There is a distinct difference in the way these three areas are decorated. The homes where we older people live are mostly adorned with red bows, wreaths, white lights and lighted nativity scenes. The two story homes where parents with small children live are a bit louder. There are lots of colored lights strung all over the houses in Clark Grisdwold fashion. Lights are everywhere, on trees, on shrubs, if it’s not moving there are Christmas lights. Blow up Santa’s, blow up snow men, little short yellow blow up figures that I have no idea what they have to do with Christmas are in some yards. One house has a lighted blow up air plane with a propeller that turns. And of course there are those spot lights projecting moving images of Christmas presents, Santa in his sled being pulled by the reindeer, and those with snow falling.
I thought how the difference in the ways that the houses in our three areas are decorated for Christmas represent the cycle of man’s life. There is the energy, excitement and wonder of a child as he anticipates the night that Santa comes. The parents go all out to make sure their children are able to experience those wonderful happy emotions. As the children get older and move past the days of Santa, parents learn to bring the wonder of Christmas to their homes in a more age appropriate way. The days of child rearing move quickly and the children progress through high school, college, work, marriage with their own homes and children of their own. In a flash those parents are old and find themselves hoping that their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren can all get together for Christmas. Sherri and I realize that is not going to happen in our family anymore. We wish it could.
Life moves ahead whether we like it or not. Christmas is far more than lights, decorations, blow ups, Santa and even family gatherings. Christmas is a Hope that far exceeds anything that man can decorate, buy, or any feast prepared for the family unit. Every individual in those houses that I passed the last two nights regardless of how they were decorated need more than any of those things. They need the Hope of Christmas. Christmas is about Salvation, Jesus Christ. He is their only hope. There can be no Merry Christmas with out the Hope brought to us by the One who was born on Christmas Day.
