Why Do They Put Christmas Decorations Up So Early?

It's Christmas! The decorations have started going up around town and, although it seems a bit odd to see them against a backdrop of fall foliage colors, I don't really mind at all. I enjoy seeing them. It makes me think about the coming season and enjoy it a while longer.

I know, I know. The season is way over commercialized and the early arrival of the decorations and displays just reinforces that idea. But, really! How many times in any given year are we encouraged to turn our attention toward Bethlehem and a precious baby bearing the gift of eternal life? I am aware of all the efforts on behalf of the liberal and anti-Christian lobby that would like to remove any reference to Christ from our holidays. Let me ask you how successful these folks have been. Why? Because they have been around since the Pharoah decided to kill off all the Christians by taking the lives of the youngest Jewish boys.

God's Word nor His will will be neither thwarted nor extinguished from this Earth. Just read the end of the Bible! No lobbying group, no anti-God crusaders, no pro we-are-the-world people (everyone hold hands and sway back and forth) are going to be successful in making mankind ignore or forget God and His gift of redemption in Jesus Christ, His Son.

Now, none of this means we stick our heads in the sand and hope all the bad folks go away. What we do is vote responsibly and keep our eyes open. Meanwhile we pray for the souls of those who stand against God....they need it! After lifting those unfortunates up to the Father, we then allow Him to take care of those folks and resist the urge to mount our own crusade to rescue God from those nasty people who don't believe in Him.

Then we look around us and watch him work. Watch Him guide and lead His people and see the evidence that He is still on the throne. Those Christmas decorations are his fingerprints on this holiday, His reminder that this is a special day. They notify us that sometime soon on the evening of Dec 24, the world will go strangely silent. We will look at each other with some unexplained love. We will think about those who are close to us even though they are far away. We will exchange gifts with each other because something deep inside us tells us it is a time for gifts. Then we will look up into the sky (even the skeptics do but they won't admit it) and remember a little baby born in a desolate country way out in the middle of nowhere over 2,000 years age. Some of us will give thanks and some will wonder if it's all true. Either way, we will all know the truth one day. But on this day, on this Christmas eve, God will make His presence known in the world and it will not be denied this year or in any year to come.

These decorations are a reminder of that quickly approaching day. l just wish they would put them up sooner.