Home for Christmas
Who hasn’t heard Bing Crosby croon, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”? Even if you don’t call it up from your music source, you will inevitably hear it in a store or on the radio. It’s virtually unavoidable this time of year.
And while some may find it sappy, it’s actually quite poignant. The song was recorded in 1943 during World War II. The song was popular because it expressed the sentiments of soldiers stationed overseas during the war. They wanted to come home for Christmas but for most it would only be in their dreams. The song made the top 10.
In this song, home is described as the place where the “love light gleams.” When we think of home in this way, we realize that Christmas is about the love light of God gleaming on earth for everyone. Welcoming everyone. Inviting everyone home not only for the holidays but always. Jesus shows us what it means to make our home in God’s love. We are invited to live and grow and find our highest good in the unconditional, universal love of God.
Yes, we may experience that kind of love in our actual physical homes. And we ideally share that kind of love with our families. But that kind of home, that love, is what the church is about. Or it should be anyway. Church should always a place where the love light gleams; welcoming and accepting everyone. That is the message of Christmas. Divine love at home in humanity and made manifest in community, especially the community of the church.
So, I hope that church is on your agenda for the Christmas season. Home is waiting for you. And not just at Christmas. Whatever battles you are facing – in your daily life, in these challenging times, with your health, in your relationships, with your finances, with addiction – you can always come home to church where the love light is gleaming.
Prayer
We spend our lives looking for home. We want to be at home. A place of love and comfort, acceptance and growth. May we find home wherever we live as well as in the faith community. May we see the love light gleaming. And may we shine that light for others. Amen.
Lakewood United Church of Christ 