A Blue Christmas (2 of 4)
Series: The Colors of Christmas
Jeff Strite
Luke 2:25-35
OPEN: John Simmons tells about a grade school class that was putting on a Christmas play which included the story of Mary and Joseph coming to the inn. In that class was one little boy who wanted so very much to be Joseph. But when the parts were handed out, his biggest rival was given that part, and he was assigned to be the inn keeper instead.
He was really bitter about this, so during all the rehearsals he began to plot how to get even with his rival.
Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the inn-keeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted.
Joseph answered, ''We'd like to have a room for the night.''
Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door wide open and said, ''Great, come on in and I'll give you the best room in the house.''
Now, that wasn't in the script and for a few seconds poor little kid didn't know what to do.
But finally the young Joseph had an idea. He stepped up to the innkeeper, and looked beyond him through the door that represented the inn. He made a big production of looking right and left. He stepped back out beside his ''wife'' and said, ''No wife of mine is going to stay in dump like this. Come on, Mary, let's go to the barn.''
APPLY: There are times when Christmas doesn't go according to plan.
There are times when you know what the script ought to be but somebody or something changes the lines on us.
There are times when Christmas doesn't seem as cheerful and upbeat as we had hoped it would be:
1. A loved one dies
2. Friends/family move away
3. We struggle with divorce
4. We lose our jobs
5. We may face cancer or some other overwhelming disease.
What had promised to be a Christmas filled with fun and pleasure suddenly becomes a ''Blue Christmas''. It's the emotion reflected in the old Elvis hit:
''I'll have a bl ...
Series: The Colors of Christmas
Jeff Strite
Luke 2:25-35
OPEN: John Simmons tells about a grade school class that was putting on a Christmas play which included the story of Mary and Joseph coming to the inn. In that class was one little boy who wanted so very much to be Joseph. But when the parts were handed out, his biggest rival was given that part, and he was assigned to be the inn keeper instead.
He was really bitter about this, so during all the rehearsals he began to plot how to get even with his rival.
Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the inn-keeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted.
Joseph answered, ''We'd like to have a room for the night.''
Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door wide open and said, ''Great, come on in and I'll give you the best room in the house.''
Now, that wasn't in the script and for a few seconds poor little kid didn't know what to do.
But finally the young Joseph had an idea. He stepped up to the innkeeper, and looked beyond him through the door that represented the inn. He made a big production of looking right and left. He stepped back out beside his ''wife'' and said, ''No wife of mine is going to stay in dump like this. Come on, Mary, let's go to the barn.''
APPLY: There are times when Christmas doesn't go according to plan.
There are times when you know what the script ought to be but somebody or something changes the lines on us.
There are times when Christmas doesn't seem as cheerful and upbeat as we had hoped it would be:
1. A loved one dies
2. Friends/family move away
3. We struggle with divorce
4. We lose our jobs
5. We may face cancer or some other overwhelming disease.
What had promised to be a Christmas filled with fun and pleasure suddenly becomes a ''Blue Christmas''. It's the emotion reflected in the old Elvis hit:
''I'll have a bl ...
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