Redeemed to be a servant

In a way that I've never experienced before, I'm feeling stressed out by Christmas. Don't get me wrong. I love shopping for presents, love the crowds that come with that, love all the parties and the crazy schedule, love the music playing everywhere. No, I'm not stressed out by the traditionally "stressful" aspects of Christmas at all.

So what's going on?

I want everyone to love Christmas as much as I do. Or at least to like that I like it as much as I do. But they don't. And I, the hopeless people-pleaser, hate that I am unintentionally stressing out the people around me. I don't care if other people buy me presents; I don't care if I get Christmas cards from everyone I know. I don't want people to come to my Christmas party because they feel obligated; and I don't care if other people don't want to get their own Christmas trees. I mean, I might judge them a little for that, but that's beside the point. Kidding.

I know that I get caught up in the externals of it-- I can be like the pre-conversion Grinch who thought that Christmas would only come with ribbons, tags, packages, boxes, and bags. I love the romantic feel of this holiday season; I love the lights and the music and everything about it. But why? I keep asking myself. Why do you care so much about Christmas?

I decided to do my own sort of Advent devotional series this year. I'm reading New Testament Christmas passages in the morning and Old Testament Christmas prophecies in the evenings. I've only been doing it for a couple days now, but I'd encourage everyone to try it. Did you know that Christmas has been part of God's plan all along? I think I forget that. Not the presents and trees part, but the coming-of-Jesus part. The whole reason we use this season to show others we love them: we love because he first loved us. And he loved us so much that he sent his Son. To a manger in Bethlehem. And that is what we celebrate.

Anyway.... that was a rather long-winded introduction to what I really wanted to blog about today. Since I'm early on in this Advent devotional series, I just read Luke 1. Zechariah's prophecy has been one of my favorite passages for a while now-- I feel like it's a condensed systematic theology based on Christmas, and that's a pretty great thing! Here's the part I've been meditating on today:

"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us. . .
to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant, . . .
to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days" (from Luke 1:68-75).

I have been redeemed. But not without reason. I have been delivered so that I might serve God. And not serve him because I'm afraid of him-- serve him because I'm thankful for all that he has done for me.

So this is what I've been thinking about: if I truly serve God without fear, what does that look like in my daily life? If I believe and act like my life is not my own, how different would things look? God redeemed me to serve him, but that also looks like serving other people. Serving isn't always glamorous. Sometimes it means doing the dishes or cleaning the bathroom when you don't want to (and let's be honest, does anyone ever really want to?? I sure don't....). For me at Alice's, it means doing my sidework cheerfully and helping others whenever and however I can. Because I love these people, yes; but even more-so because that's why God redeemed me. He didn't just save me so I could be selfish and do whatever I want; he has claimed my life and my energy and my time.

Serve him without fear. Well now, that shoots my whole "cosmic killjoy" thing right out of the water, doesn't it? I have nothing to be afraid of, because my God is good. And it's not scary to serve him, because he loves me. He is a God of mercy who keeps his promises, and he has promised good things to his children.

It kind of changes the whole Christmas scene. I mean, I still love walking around New York with my iPod listening to "Silver Bells" and other Christmas songs. But today I was walking around looking at the lights and the Christmas decorations and thinking Jesus was born so he could die and I could be redeemed. Redeemed to be a servant! A servant who has nothing to fear, and everything to gain.

And that's worth celebrating!