Elmo and Diego

So many of my fellow bloggers are terrific writers! Monica at Small Things is no exception. I asked her permission to link to this post...but...just in case you would hesitate (because of time) and not click the link....I've just done a copy and paste for you. The post is called "Christmas saved me". This is excellent!!!!! Enjoy!!!

A couple weeks ago Simeon came home with a DVD bought by grandma called "Diego saves Christmas" a few days later i found another video at the library called "Elmo saves Christmas" at the time i was also reading the book many friends have raved about Eat, Pray, Love which, to sum it up, is the journey of one woman's healing and self-actualization while traveling the world. These things coming together caused me to think again about what the Incarnation means for us. Not to break many little hearts out there, but Diego and Elmo can't save Christmas because it isn't in peril of being lost. Christmas means God becoming man, the Infinite becoming finite and the Word becoming flesh. The reason this happened is because we humans are in danger and Christ comes for us. While i really enjoyed reading Eat, Pray, Love, and I know it has inspired many people, i think the authors starting point, the center of all she did was ultimately herself. This doesn't distinguish her from most of my generation. We (and i am definitely in this "we") put ourselves first in most of our decisions. And all her ascetic practices and transcendental meditation really served to help her find her true self and revolve all her decisions around that. I do believe it is important to live in the truth of who we really are. But where the author and i differ is that i see each humans true identity as intimately dependent on Christ. Many people can say see our connection with God or an ultimate being or higher power. But when we pull out the tinsel and candles and nativity scenes, we are recognizing the historical and eternal event that makes true life possible for us. Christ, the son of God, came to live as one of us. Its really a line drawn in the sand and changes forever the way we live. In Him, we live, move and have our being. He was not an abstract deity or life force, he came as a flesh and blood baby boy, cooing and crying in a Bethlehem stable.So sorry to Elizabeth Gilbert, Elmo and Diego. We cannot save Christmas, we cannot even save ourselves. We are the ones in need of a savior. And we have one. He came. He is here. He is Emmanuel.