A Different Answer

Saturday night, I was swarmed by countless eager little faces, all being pushed forward by proud mothers to speak to the foreigner and show off their newly-acquired English skills.

That's right, I visited an English Corner downtown. It's rare that they have a "real foreigner" in the mix; they usually just practice English with each other. So I received tons of questions:

"Do you have an iPhone? an iPad?"
"Have you seen Transformers?" "...Why not?"
"Do you like to play sport? What is your favorite?"
"Do you like the food here?"
"Can I have your phone number?"
"What do you think of the protests on Wall Street?" (okay, I was a little taken aback by that one)

and finally...

"What is your favorite festival? Christmas, right, because you are a Christian?"
"What do you do on Christmas?"

Well, we open presents, eat, maybe drink hot chocolate, spend time with family....

"How do Christians celebrate Christmas?

Uhhh...the same, except we might go to church and pray before we eat our meal.


Right then, I wished I could give a different answer and still be honest.


[AC] Promo 2011 from Advent Conspiracy on Vimeo.

Christmas in the Room

I can't stop listening to this song. It's by a guy named Sufjan Stevens. These words aren't enough though; you really should listen to it. :)

No travel plans, no shopping malls
No candy canes or Santa Claus
For as the day of rest draws near,
It's just the two of us this year.

No silver bells or mistletoe
We'll kiss and watch our TV shows.

I'll come to you
I'll sing to you
Like it's Christmas in the room.

I'll dance with you
I'll laugh with you
'Til it's Christmas in the room.

No traffic jams, no ice and storm
For in the house, the fire is warm
No Christmas tree, no great parade
It's just an ordinary day.

No parties planned, no place to go.
It's just the two of us alone.
and in the house, we see a light
that comes from what we feel inside.

I'll come to you
I'll sing to you
Like it's Christmas in the room.

I'll dance with you, I'll laugh with you
'Til it's Christmas in the room, 'til it's Christmas in the room.

Oh, I can see the day when we'll die,
But I don't care to think of silence.
For now, I hear you laughing -
the greatest joy is like the sunrise.

No gifts to give; they're all right here,
inside our hearts the glorious cheer
And in the house we see a light
that comes from what we know inside.

I'll come to you
I'll sing to you
Like it's Christmas in the room.

I'll dance with you, I'll laugh with you
'Til it's Christmas in the room.

I'll come to you

I'll sing to you

Like it's Christmas in the room.

Like it's Christmas in the room.

It means a lot to me that Jesus was born among animals. No fanfare, decorations, or even visitors until the shepherds came...for a while, it was just Joseph, the exhausted Mary, and their newborn baby. And perhaps a sheep, a donkey, and a cow. One scene among many in which God honors the low and humble. 

So, to have "Christmas in the room" means, in one word, intimacy. That's what I love about this song - creating "Christmas" means creating deep, deep connection. What was Christmas, after all, but God being intimate with us? He longs for oneness - first between Him and us, then between us and each other. That's why the Nativity is so popular. It draws us in because it is a perfect picture of intimacy. 

I wonder what was going through the heads of those new teenage parents. They didn't have much. All they had was each other and the promises God had given them. And yet that moment they shared, humble as it was, has been recreated millions of times by artists and sculptors...because we "rich" people long for what they had more than anything. Oneness with God and with each other.