Questions of the Season…Do you see what I see?

With so much activity in our lives, it’s rare that at this time of the year, we would take time to stop and look up into the night sky. Our commercialized life style is too focused on office parties, secret Santa’s, last-minute shopping and the ‘hustle and bustle’ of this wonderful season. Nothing wrong with any of these activities, there is a lot of excitement around gifts and decorations. But are we missing the point when our life becomes so focused on things christmas joythat we fail to look heavenward? It’s true, in America, Christmas time is an intense and busy time of year. And our economy seems to depend upon the retail sales from all the shopping. Toys for children as well as adults are displayed and marketed as ‘must have items’ for Christmas morning.

But if you’re ever alone, all alone at this time of year, you may be able to hear some simple questions of the season. Questions like, “Do you see what I see?” Not the lights on the tree or the decorations on the mantle, but the beauty of the stars in the night sky. Or perhaps the question will be, “Do you hear what I hear?” Not the merriment of a Christmas party or the crunching of snow under foot, but the carols of praise and adoration that wafts on the airwaves. The scriptures tell us the magi saw a star in the east (Matthew 2:2), and yet the leaders of Israel and the king of Judea apparently didn’t see it. (At least they didn’t recognize it’s importance.) And certainly the shepherds heard the proclamation of Christ’s birth (Luke 2:14) as the heavenly choir echoed across the fields, “Glory to God in the highest…” Perhaps those shepherds asked their friends, “Did you hear the singing last night?” And reading the scripture we know that Mary took in all that was being said and done around her newborn baby (Luke 2:19), “…Mary treasured all these things, (what the shepherds had said) pondering them in her heart.” She might have asked another question for those who would stop long enough to listen. “Do you know what I know?”starry night

I remember a cold, Christmas Eve in 1975. It was a Wednesday night as my family drove back to the farm house from our mid-week Bible study. We had gone into town that evening, and as we drove home I recall the crystal, clear sky. The stars were shining in the night sky, and as I stood in the drive way looking up I thought of the words to a classic Christmas carol. “Do you see what I see, way up in the sky little lamb? A star, a star, high above the trees with a tail as big as a kite.”

Though it was almost 30 years ago, I still remember the stillness and solitude of the moment. Recalling the words of the song is one thing, but the memories from that night on Christmas Eve in 1975 continually echo through my mind.

Said the night wind to the little lamb, “Do you see what I see?
Way up in the sky, little lamb, do you see what I see?
A star, a star, dancing in the night with a tail as big as a kite.
With a tail as big as a kite.”

Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy, “Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy, do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song, high above the trees with a voice as big as the sea.
With a voice as big as the sea.”

Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king, “Do you know what I know?
In your palace warm, mighty king, do you know what I know?
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold let us bring Him silver and gold
Let us bring Him silver and gold

Said the king to the people everywhere, “Listen to what I say,
Pray for peace, people everywhere! Listen to what I say,
The Child, the Child, sleeping in the night,
He will bring us goodness and light!
He will bring us goodness and light!

December…1914

“By December 1914, the Great War had raged for almost five months and claimed nearly one million lives. Letters and diaries from the Western Front describe how the guns fell silent on Christmas Eve.”

There are moments in our life when we are impacted by a message spoken not by words, but by the actions of others. You’ve heard, a picture is worth a thousand words and the professional knows how to capture the message within the image. So it should not come as a surprise that in a commercialized society, we value times when the unspoken message is powerfully displayed with scenes of hope. A message that promotes not just a product, but an idea.

A company in the UK dedicated to selling grocery products is responsible for such an advertisement. For years, Sainsbury has produced professional quality commercials that not only ‘sell their products,’ but promote a message. Perhaps after seeing this commercial, you’ll be inspired to greater acts of compassion. How powerful would it be to hear ‘Silent Night’ being sung from a cold and dark fox hole. In a time of war would you have had the strength to step out and walk toward your enemy? There is power in song, and thanks to a grocery store for giving us a message from World War I