A Christmas Story

John Nelson was burdened down under pressure in every area of his life: job, finances, health, marriage, and even at church. After four months of searching, in desperation he had taken a job with a salary significantly less than what he was used to making. But he couldn’t find anything else. He was chairman of a church committee in charge of renovating the downstairs of the church. He already was spending virtually no time preparing for his Sunday School class. The money he was making just wasn’t enough to make ends meet, and their debt was increasing month after month. He had no time for a second job. He had no idea where any money for Christmas was going to come from. And now the stress was wreaking havoc on his marriage and family life. His p rayers were just worrying about his problems with his eyes closed. Occasionally he would open his Bible to see if there was some message for him, but it just seemed like it was dead and dry and that God was silent. Then, he got the bad news: the company he had just gone to work for was folding. He was out of work again . The depression of the last unemployment flooded back upon a man who was already drowning in anxiety. He went out to his car in the middle of the day because he was so upset, he didn’t want anyone to see him. “God, what are You doing? God, where are You? God, what is going on? I haven't been selfish. I haven't sought after my own pleasures. I've given so much of myself for my family and for my church. God, I feel so empty. Help me, Lord.” Once again, he flipped his Bible open randomly. Luke chapter two. The heading read “Jesus is born.” Just reading the heading made him roll his eyes. He’d read that story so many times. He’d taught his Sunday school class that story every Christmas for years and years! It seemed so distant from his problems today. He flipped the Bible shut again. He began to think back over his life. He remembered other times of hardship, he remembered times of joy. He remembered his wedding day. He remembered the day the twins were born. He remembered the Christmas service where he became a Christian when he was a teenager. He remembered the sudden realization that Jesus was not just an important person in the history books. He remembered how at that time Jesus seemed to make all the difference in the world. Nothing else seemed to matter. He remembered singing Christmas carols and paying attention to what they were saying for the first time in his life. He remembered his tears when they turned down the lights and everyone sang "Silent Night." He remembered feeling filled up and overflowing for the first time in his life. And suddenly he realized what he was now missing. It wasn't a stable job, it wasn't more money, it wasn't more time or more energy, it was Jesus! He had forgotten about the good news of Jesus. He quickly flipped back in his Bible to Luke 2 and started reading. And as he read, all of his fear and anxieties, all of his stresses and pressures, all of his heavy burdens cleared out of his heart and Jesus flooded in again. He realized that he had allowed Jesus to be crowded out of his life by all of his responsibilities and problems. He remembered his favorite verse while he was in college, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” “No wonder I have felt so defeated," he said right out loud in the car.

Eventually John found a job and things worked out as they always do. But that day he committed himself to never forgetting this lesson: Don't leave Jesus out of the picture or it always turns black. And that next Sunday he taught his Sunday School class from the parable of the sower: on the danger of letting the thorns and the weeds slowly overtake you and squeeze the joy of Christ out of your heart. And all the kids said it was the best class he had taught all year.