You've noticed that we haven't packed up Christmas for another year here at church. Take a few moments to just take in what you see in these lighted trees, especially the Chrismon Trees, along with the garland and the entire decor. It's still beautiful, isn't it? It still strikes you with awe, doesn't it? I'm not going to ask you to confess, but I do have an inkling that some of you haven't packed up Christmas either. If it will help, ourfamily hasn't. It will probably happen sometime this week. This Worship Center will be "undecorated" later this week by the Flower Committee and our maintenance staff. I know that "undecorated" really isn't a word. Somewhere, maybe in the Bible, it says preachers can make up words when appropriate. The "un" seems appropriate.

Now I realize some people think all of this Christmas stuff should have been boxed up the day after Christmas. I pastored such a person years ago. She was responsible for decorating the church at Christmas and always did a splendid job. A good woman, yet rather peculiar (who isn't), she had this thing about "undecorating" Christmas. As sure as there was a Baby Jesus placed in a manger, she and her family would, on Christmas afternoon every year, go to the church house and "undecorate" it. From her vantage point, Christmas was over on December 25. She told me once, "It is time to get on with life. No more carols and décor. No more Christmas until the Friday after Thanksgiving."

Her action of undecorating the church house begs a question. When is Christmas over? I mean when is the appropriate time to pack it up for another year? From the commercial standpoint I suppose it was over on December 24. But from the spiritual standpoint it's never over. From the Christian calendar point of view Christmas actually begins on Christmas Day, which is The First Day of Christmas, and doesn't end until tomorrow, January 5, which is The Twelfth Day of Christmas. Yes, Virginia, there really are Twelve Days of Christmas.

I know this all gets confusing since we Christians operate — or we are supposed to operate — with two calendars since we are citizens of two kingdoms. We operate by the Civic Calendar, and rightly so, because we are citizens of this world. We also operate, or we should, by the Christian or Church Calendar because we are citizens of a Kingdom that is not of this world. The Christian Calendar binds us to other believers worldwide and it has nothing to be with being Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Disciples of Christ, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Roman Catholic, or whatever. It has to do with being a believer in Jesus Christ. So we talk about and celebrate Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost. This is why I'm still focused on Christmas. It's still Christmas!

A week before Christmas Day I purchased John Grisham's novel, Skipping Christmas, and read it. This year they made it into a movie, though with a different name. If you've not read it, I encourage you to get it and read it just after Thanksgiving. Don't read it now. Wait until December. It will mean more to you.

It is funny and drives home a powerful point. While it is tempting to skip all the festivities and decorating and buying that is associated with Christmas, you can't skip it since Christmas is about relationships with neighbors and family all year long. One thing that struck me in reading this short story is how we tend to forsake the spiritual for the secular. I think we do that partly by packing up Christmas too soon. Most of us are so tired of all the advertising and rushing around that we can't wait until December 26. With all the commercialization today is it any wonder? Sadly, even we in the church may have been tempted to forget and have already forgotten. Forget or forgotten what?