I can hear Elvis crooning the words: "I'll have a blue Christmas without you..." and the background singers are wailing: "ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo". But it's more than a song and more than a sentimentality. Blue Christmas is a reality for too many people. Just this week I have talked with two people facing their first Christmas without their spouse (one has a young child), one person facing his first Christmas without his mother, two different women going through a divorce who don't know if they will get to see their children over the holidays, and two people contemplating leaving their spouse. And those are people I have talked to in just the past four days--there are so many more out there who are feeling the lonely pangs of the holiday, of traditions that won't be celebrated this year, of the uncertainty of what lies ahead and the pain over the loss of what could have been.
For some people, this time of year simply sucks. It can't get over soon enough.
To those people, here is what I have to say: you aren't alone. There is a whole world of people going through painful times, too. And there is a whole world of people who will walk through your painful time with you. It almost sounds like a cliche but it's too true not to say: God is with you, too. Through everything, God is with you.
To the rest of the world, those who are celebrating and whooping it up this holiday season, here is what I have to say: you aren't alone, either. There is a whole world of people who not only want to celebrate with you, there is a whole world of people who would just like to be with you and know that you care. Life has it's ups and down--when we're up, we have a responsibility to be with those who aren't. And when we're down, we have a responsibility to be with those who aren't. It's a give and take, a push and shove, and push and pull. We balance each other out. We are God to and for one another.
May God break into your world, no matter who or where you are this holiday season. May you find God in yourself and in one another. Merry Christmas.
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