Christmas Eve Poem

Christmas Eve

How Many times?

How many times have you heard
You MUST be happy
You Must celebrate
You must buy gifts
You must be grateful?

How many times have you heard
About Santa Claus
Rudolf, Frosty,

Listened to Bing Crosby or Clay Aiken or the Chipmunks Christmas albums?

And how many things do you have on your list to get done this time of the year?
Presents to buy
Events to attend
Travel plans to arrange
Gifts to ship
Cards to write
Cookies to bake
Pictures to take?

Whew! So much to get done
So much to prepare
So much on our minds
To show how we care!

Right now,
In this moment quiet
We do not have to rush
To buy it!
For in this silence
We can accept one gift true
Which makes our hearts glow
Even when we are blue

We can allow a bit of room in our soul
Our hearts can fill up like a bowl
With the glory, beauty and Peace
Given to us by God
Without hesitation in Grace
The Gift of a Lord
Who in one accord
Brings us all together
Right now, as we gather.
Hallelujah is the all the response
God requires
For us to experience
A renewal of faith fires

What a great gift
We have been given
Straight from God’s heart
Right from the residents of heaven

So no matter how many times we strike out on gifts,
Or when our family gatherings almost comes to fists
No matter how much we fail
In the holiday sales,
God loves us still,
Our minds, our hearts, our souls
Will find their fill
As we celebrate with one another
Singing songs of jubilation
Praying with one voice together
All of this helps us to prepare
To serve the needs of people everywhere
To bring the good news in our every action
Jesus’ gift brings true satisfaction

How many times can we care for a stranger?
To help a friend stay out of danger?
How many times can we pray for good health?
Share a bit of our wealth?
How many times can we take time to worship
To break bread, drink from a cup of joy with a sip?
How many times can we mend broken hearts
To restore fractured souls with caring arts?

How can we make a difference in the world so chaotic
To bring peace with justice even to the addict?
With the gift of Jesus, all this is mission possible
Because God’s love is unstoppable!
Halleluiah and Amen!

SPM 12-2009