The Small Things of Christmas

As I look at the decorations that make our house feel like Christmas, I can’t help but notice how many small things have been placed around our home. From small nativity sets, some of which come from places like Peru and Israel, to the little Santa globe sitting on the kitchen window sill, I find that it’s the little things that add to that feeling of Christmas when you come into our home. It’s not just the big tree standing in the living room, but the small ornaments that hang on it; it’s not just the stockings hung on the fireplace, but the many small things that get placed within them that add to the celebration of Christmas. 

On the other hand, I think we would all agree that we are just naturally attracted to big things. In spite of saying, “Good things come in small packages,” when given a choice, we tend towards the large package. We take trips to go and see the largest Christmas tree.  We want the big break, look for that big job, we like to hang out with the big shots. At times we even try to give the appearance that we are something big (especially on our social media platforms). What we fail to see, however,  is that more often than not, life is made of small things; the big things are far and few between. And such has been the case with Christmas from the very start.   

The prophet Micah wrote, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” (Micah 5:2 – NIV) That is, out of the smallest of towns, God was going to bring forth the Savior of his people; through that small town, God was going to do something very big. And, the same is true as we read the Christmas story in the gospels: a poor young woman is chosen to be the mother of the Messiah; a little baby laying in a manger is the One who would grow to be the Savior of all. Throughout the Christmas story we read of something big coming out of that which was very, very small. 

One of the things Christmas reminds us of is that, very often God uses small things to accomplish his big purposes. He didn’t use the rich, the powerful, nor even the “big city” to bring our Savior into the world. Rather, he used a small town, a lowly couple, and a little baby. And, in many ways God continues to do the same today; he most often uses ordinary—we might say, “small”—people to bring about his extraordinary work within our world. He uses people just like you and me to bring his message of hope, grace, love, and salvation to the people around us. And that is a pretty big deal! 

Let me encourage you today to know that, no matter how small you might feel, it is through people just like you and me—small people—that God is able to do some very big things!  

Have a great day! 

- Pastor Tim Harris