LUKE 2:1-20

For some people it’s their worst Christmas nightmare.  It’s worse than being late with your Christmas cards.  It’s worse than burning the Christmas cookies. It’s worse than the needles falling off the Christmas tree.  It’s even worse than the embarrassing moment that took place right here in this sanctuary several years ago on Christmas Eve. It was midnight and we’d just finished singing “Silent Night.”  The ringers in the bell choir were standing around the edges of the sanctuary.

“Jesus Lord at thy birth.  Jesus Lord at thy birth.”

There was a hushed silence and the light from our flickering candles filled the sanctuary with a heavenly glow. Just then one of the bell ringers looked at the bell ringer who was standing on the other side of the sanctuary. Her eyes got wide and she silently mouthed the words, “Your blouse is open.”   Clang!!!! 

As embarrassing as that moment was I can think of something even more embarrassing.  So what is this terrible Christmas fear?   It happens when someone opens one of your Christmas gifts and says, “Isn’t that a coincidence?  This sweater looks just like the one I gave you three years ago.”

It’s the sin of regifting. That’s when you take a gift that someone gives you and you give it to someone else.  Guess what though? According to Emily Post, the world renounced expert when it comes to manners, regifting is now acceptable under certain circumstances.  Regifting is acceptable as long as you follow a simple rules.  First of all the gift must be unused and you should only regift if you think the recipient will actually appreciate and use the gift.   You should also only regift outside your immediate circle of family and friends.  That way you don’t have to worry about the gift making its way back to the original giver.   The last think you have to remember when it comes to regifting is not to delay.  After all if you wait too long you may forget who originally gave you the gift.

So, there you have it. I don’t know though.  With all due respect to Emily Post it just doesn’t seem like it’s something you should do except…

Except, there is one gift that you should always regift and that’s the gift that the angel proclaimed to the shepherds who keeping watch over their flocks by night.

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord and suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God singing ‘Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased.’”

You’re here tonight because you’ve heard about that gift.

You’ve here because you’ve heard about the gift of God’s love in Christ. 

You’re here because you believe that the gift of God’s love in Christ is real. 

You’re here because you want your  heart to be filled with the gift of God’s love in Christ.

And tomorrow God wants you to take that love and regift it and over and over and over again.  God wants you to regift it to those who are near and those who are far.  God wants you to regift it to people you know and people you don’t know.  God wants you to regift it to people who fill your days with joy and to people who push your buttons and try your patience.

You can regift the love in a way that is simple and maybe, just maybe, you’ll regift it in a way that is down right spectacular.  A few weeks ago I came across a story about a woman who did it in a way that was spectacular.   The woman’s name is Lola Gonzalez and a few months ago she had to make an agonizing decision.  The company she owned was struggling and she had to lay someone off.  So she called a meeting and gathered her nine employees together.  She began the meeting by saying, “I want you all to know I have to lay somebody off and it’s been a very difficult decision.” Her employees froze with fear and then they started to laugh when she said,  “And that person is me.”  They laughed until they realized she was serious.  Lola Gonzales had a very good explanation for her decision.  In an interview she said that her employees were the ones who were doing the heavy lifting in the company.  She also figured that it would be easier for her to find another job than it would be for them. Sure enough. After Lola fired herself she walked across the street to the courthouse and got a job as a social worker.   She also made sure that her nine employees got their Christmas bonuses this year.  As she said, “It is a token of my appreciation for all the struggles we’ve gone through.”

Isn’t that an amazing story?  The question tonight isn’t whether you want the gift of God’s love in Christ to be a part of your life.  The question is when and where and how you’re going to regift that in the days and weeks and months to come.  Amen.

Rev. Dr. Richard A. Hughes

December 24, 2010 – Christmas Eve