Is It Just Black Friday?

I recently took part in Black Friday for the first time - it was an experience. As soon as the excitement of 50-60% off wore off (about after an hour of standing in line), it became a lot of cranky soccer moms, thrifty college students, and early Christmas shoppers all trying to navigate the early morning hours.

In what can only be described as an ironic twist, these people who hours earlier had sat down at a table and told everyone (truthfully) that they were thankful for the little things in life - sunshine on a cloudy day, the smell of fresh baked bread, spending time with family and friends - are now putting all of that satisfaction behind them and placing it in material objects and are no longer satisfied by sunshine. This irony has been identified on the internet by meme makers.

Now before you, like a high schooler looking to pick a fight after an intro class, declare me to be a hypocrite since I too went Black Friday shopping I want to state that this is not what my post is about and that I am including myself in this observation.

As ironic as it is, I find it even more interesting that we believe that it only lasts on Friday (or the weekend, as most store now have their sales lasting that long). This "me-centric" ideology continues for the next month - Black Friday is like the pep rally to the big game of Christmas. We spend one day (Thanksgiving) being thankful for the many blessings that we have been given, then a month thinking about material things that would make us happy until on Christmas we are once again shown that it isn't the things that come wrapped in string but the people who gave them to us that matter most.

So here is my challenge, during this next month that leads up to Christmas don't lose sight of what truly matters. There is nothing wrong with wanting to enjoy that latest design, or toy, or gadget - but don't let that distract you from the things that you should truly be thankful for. It will be difficult - if you need proof just look at the people who fought outside the local mall until being pepper sprayed just hours after telling their family that if they had nothing it would be ok because they had each other - but don't let that discourage you.

As a Christian, I believe that "Jesus is the reason for the season" so let's not commit treason this season by giving glory to someone other than the one who came to earth as a man and died so that we might have life. That is the greatest gift of all, and you are not going to find that in a brochure or advertisement. It's not going to go on sale at midnight (b/c it's free!) nor is it going to be in a buy one get one sale (b/c it is all you need!). Let's not forget this amidst the snow and lights and festive music, but let us enjoy these things through Jesus for it is by doing this that we shall truly be thankful.