“Are you into the spirit of Christmas?” someone asked me a few days ago. I’m not sure what “spirit of Christmas” means and I really get confused when asked if I have the “Christmas Spirit.” The “Christmas Spirit” question always reminds me of those “spirits” of Christmas that visited poor old Mr. Scrooge in A Christmas Carol.
There does seem to be a kind of spirit in the air at Christmas. Even the “Grinch” discovers that spirit, or at least a new insight, in Dr. Seuss’ tale, suggesting at the end of the story, “Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more!”
What if Christmas doesn’t come just once a year, what if Christmas means a little bit more? What if the “Spirit” of Christmas we talk about is around and in the air all year long? Brian Wren’s hymn, written in 1969, suggest that this could be so.
“There’s a Spirit in the air, telling Christians everywhere: Praise the love that Christ revealed, living, working, in our world.
Lose your shyness, find your tongue; tell the world what God has done. God in Christ has come to stay. Live tomorrow’s life today!
When believers break the bread, when a hungry child is fed, praise the love that Christ revealed, living, working, in our world.
Still the Spirit leads the fight, seeing wrong and setting right: God in Christ has come to stay. Live tomorrow’s life today.
When a stranger’s not alone, when the homeless find a home, praise the love that Christ revealed, living, working, in our world.
May the Spirit fill our praise, guide our thoughts and change our ways: God in Christ has come to stay. Live tomorrow’s life today!”
Yes, there is a Spirit in the air everywhere and at all times, “living, working, in our world.”
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