The Christmas season is winding up, although judging by retailers it has been winding up since the day after Halloween. My December women's magazines are filled with an oxymoronic combination of how to make the perfect Christmas and how to handle the stress of Christmas. I am remarkably ahead of schedule this year; the gifts are bought, wrapped and delivered, Christmas cards mailed, tree is up, house decorated. I am glad to have those tasks completed, but any stress I felt about getting them done would be self imposed. I think a lot of the stress of Christmas comes from unrealistic expectations we place on ourselves. American life is busy, but our stress is the stress of abundance.
Stress is not having your daughter's ballet recital and son's school program on the same night, stress is having two children and only enough food for one, or being unable to send your children to school because their small income is needed to support the family. Stress is not looking for a parking place at the mall, it is having no transportation to take a sick spouse to the doctor. Stress is not giving the perfect gift, it is living in unremitting poverty.
In American culture stress is blamed for most health and emotional problems, and there is certainly validity to the harm that comes to both body and mind from never having, or taking, opportunity to rest and renew.
But Americans are stressed because we are blessed--with opportunities and choices unimaginable in most parts of the world. I do not claim to be exempt from busyness, God usually uses busy people, but if Jesus made time to be quiet and alone, I certainly can. I can think of better things to give myself for Christmas than self inflicted stress.
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