Christmas Isn’t Over

My husband wrote a letter to our church about how Christmas isn’t over.  It made me think and I wanted to share it with you.  I hope it encourages you as it did me.

Dear Brother’s and Sister’s in Christ,

As far as our church-year goes, January 5^th is the second and last Sunday in Christmas; and for too many in our world (and maybe some of us too), Christmas was considered over and done with on December 26^th. But we know that Christmas – the celebration - is not over!

Luke 2: 17-18, ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told to them about this child, ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

We, all of us, are the shepherds of today! Do we not all know people in our daily lives that would be amazed if you shared the news of Christmas with them? Believe me, I know the feelings of timidity, or lack of confidence, or even fear that can arise when considering sharing our faith with others. We know too well that this world is ever hostile towards the truth of God and His Word. But this is all the more reason to overcome that self-doubt and fear!

Not to steal thunder from the Pastors, but Epiphany is Monday, January 6 (for 2013.) If it has been awhile, even if it has just been the past year, take a moment (sooner rather than later) to brush-up on what we celebrate at Epiphany. The WELS website has a very good summary:

http://www.wels.net/what-we-believe/questions-answers/church-and-ministry?page=1

Scroll down to the section “What is Epiphany?”

After reading this my heart was simply filled with joy, awe, and a very real need to tell someone, “Hey, did you know this?” And being a shepherd is really that simple.

“Hey, did you know that it’s still Christmas?”

“So, do you know what happened after that night in the stable?”

If we don’t ask them; if we don’t tell them - who will?