That Time. Again. 11.5.2026

    I nearly put on a Christmas sweatshirt this morning. It was a basic gray sweatshirt with our local zip code and tribute to our community on the front. I pulled it out for really, a single reason—it was gray. My wife and I had gotten the matching shirts a year or so ago. I thought we each had one and I mentioned it to Mrs. Beckman and she said she thought hers was hanging with her collection of cute sweatshirts. She was right. So, I affirmed my desire to wear mine, unfolded it and prepared to pull it over my head. She then said, “You’re going to wear that Christmas shirt?” I looked at the front and lo and behold the numbers of the zip code emblazoned on the front were, in fact Christmas ornaments. I paused for a moment, thinking to myself “Well, it is nearly that time again”, then, thinking better of it, I refolded it, put it back in the drawer, and found an Oil-Belt Christian Service Camp sweatshirt, also gray, and pulled it over my head.

    But the fact remains that it is That Time…Again. The October Church calendar was crowded. November and December are crammed full. Announcements and preparations are ongoing for service projects, shared meals, and even decorating our facilities for the coming Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons. The leaves are falling as well as the temperatures. Mrs. Beckman and I were ready to make note of and begin counting the Christmas commercials displayed during Wheel of Fortune and football games. Now they are wall to wall. One of my ongoing day-to-day projects is getting a full month of Christmas-focused preaching put in order. It is that time—again. 

    Or getting close. One of the phenomena of aging is that time flies. Our Church began a yearly Christmas in July emphasis a few years back. It is a neat way to focus on Jesus during the dog-days of summer. We gave away holiday candy and other reminders that Jesus is the Reason for Every Season. We began it as a simple way to remind everyone of what the autumn and winter would bring and to keep our minds focused on Jesus. In my mid-sixties, I find it less necessary than it may be for youngsters. Last Christmas feels like it just finished! Soon we will be wheeling around the Nativity to the front of the Church and putting up the tree and greenery in the auditorium. All to celebrate the incarnation of our Lord Jesus. 

    Some snicker, snipe—or both at the preparation and festive nature of the season. I do not. We need celebrations. We need fellowship. We need one another. What a great way to generate enthusiasm for the work we are called to! God sent His Son! Jesus didn’t resent the gesture, nor did He flinch from His appointed task. 

    Throughout the year we have many ministry opportunities. We work and serve. We express the lordship of Christ in word and deed, message and action. And a couple of times during the shifting seasons we have the chance to celebrate the central, foundational facts of His finished work. Why not have a party? Why not celebrate? 

    We’ve shared other meals during the year. We contributed to our community’s Feed The Children initiative during the long Summer. It wasn’t exactly a celebration but the work of our local Churches and other community groups insured that no Child need go hungry in Grayville just because they could not eat breakfast and lunch at the beginning of the school day. 

    We served funeral dinners. Again, not exactly a party, but a good and necessary oasis of peace for a family going through a desert of despair and grief. We fed kids at VBS, passed around coffee during Sunday School, and occasionally shared a table at a local restaurant after worship. 

    The Church is the body of Christ and every once in a while, we need to be reminded of the great salvation we share and the central events that made it all possible. The twin poles of Thanksgiving and Christmas give us ample opportunity not only to express our gratitude toward God but to also share our joy with one another. 

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, Galatians to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5 ESV)

Christmas reminds us to respond with thanks, knowing that the fullness of time is “that time” and now, it is "that time" once again.