“Come in, and know me better, man (or woman)!”

 

I am an unashamed sucker for almost all things Christmassy, so by the time you read this I will have been playing carols for a couple of weeks and will have been back from South Africa for a couple of days.  Christmas there is a whole other story of sunshine, beaches and braais; here, I’m looking forward to a ‘proper’ Christmas.

For me, that includes unpacking a selection of seasonal devotionals, anthologies and stories.  While I am not a fan of anything in the ‘Saccharine coated-Christmas’ category including anything purporting to be, ‘Cosy Candles and Cupcakes at the Christmas Café’ (I made that up; please tell me that’s not an actual title), I am very much in favour of getting ‘in the mood’.  Of all the paraphernalia that can include, for me it is mandatory to watch It’s A Wonderful Life, probably Home Alone, and to read A Christmas Carol.  Charles Dickens classic has endured like no other and is an old friend with probably the best Christmas story outside the gospels.

The morality tale of Ebenezer Scrooge who turns from bitter skinflint to jolly benefactor (no spoilers there, I hope) is as relevant now as it ever was.  The lessons Dickens’ protagonist learns from a selection of ghosts is powerful.  A friend of mine summed it up: ‘Love redeemed his past. Joy redeemed his present. Hope redeemed his future.’

The ghost of Christmas past engenders regret and remorse; the ghost of Christmas yet to come, fear and trembling, but it’s the ghost of Christmas present who, I think, is the most appealing.  His jolly demeanour and room full of treats comes with the invitation to, ‘Come in, and know me better, man!’

And that, right there, is the message of Christmas.  Of all the people in the world to celebrate Christmas it should be those of us who have embraced the Bethlehem baby, the carpenter’s son and the crucified, risen and ascended Jesus.

In all our writing, be it poetry or prose, fiction or non-fiction, we are expressing the heavenly and redemptive invitation from the God of the universe to, ‘Come in and know Me better.’

We can all respond to that inclusive invitation and pray that in the coming year we are empowered and inspired to express it wherever our writing takes us. 

Happy Christmas and, 'God bless us, every one!'

Jenny Sanders has spent the last eleven years living between the UK and South Africa. She writes faith-inspired non-fiction: Spiritual Feasting (2020) asks how we can ‘feast’ when life serves unpalatable menus; Polished Arrows is available now, exploring the allegory of  God shaping us to be fired effectively into our culture and contexts.       

          

Jenny also has two published collections of humorous short stories for Key Stage 2 children. She is available for author visits in primary schools, taking creative writing sessions.  She loves walking in nature, preferably by a river, and has a visceral loathing for offal, pineapple and incorrect use of car indicators on roundabouts.