I Hate Christmas Music, But I Love Jesus
Finding the spirit that moves me
I think I’ve spent an hour listening to Christmas music this season.
I worked in a store just over a decade ago. We piped in the local adult contemporary station. Their playlist was about 40 songs, deemed safe enough to play at work and not offend anyone.
Listen to the same 40 songs over and over and trust me, it’s offensive.
Silence is a welcome alternative. Or maybe you turn down the volume so you don’t have to spend so much energy ignoring it.
Christmas music is a lot like hit radio. It’s the same two dozen songs played over and over and over. Sure, they’ll spin different artists, but it doesn’t matter. It’s still the same two dozen songs no matter how you dress it.
Wise stores still play it
You know what the top selling song of all time is?
Bing Crosby’s White Christmas.
That song outsold every other song ever. Not just Christmas songs.
Wow.
I think I read somewhere that Bing was on the radio 80% of the time in the 1940s. He was also a pioneer of prerecorded programming. Why work at 10 PM when you can record your show at 9 AM?
Silent Night is the most recorded Christmas song. One article I read said it’s been recorded 733 times. Why? It’s in the public domain. You only have to ask yourself if you want to record it.
Stores hope that playing popular Christmas tunes will move people to spend more. When you feel good, you feel more generous.
And when there are more presents under the tree, everyone is happier.
My year without a Santa Claus
A few years ago, we built a house. My wife was there every day to oversee the construction and get her hands dirty. We spent a fortune on materials, labor, and a host of other things.
Then we realized we were in over our heads.
We sold the project to my brother-in-law so he could finish and sell the house.
That year we didn’t set up a tree. We didn’t decorate anything. And Christmas music was the worst sound around. We bought the kids some gifts and went back to our everyday lives.
The house sat on the market for 5 months. Whenever my wife drove by she prayed, ”God, don’t let anyone buy that house.”
One day that summer, everything changed.
God provided and we now live in the house we dreamed about for so long.
That Christmas we decorated more than ever.
It’s not the music that matters
Every Christmas at church I hear about how Jesus is the greatest gift ever.
The story is pretty amazing. God came down as a baby. He took on a body like ours. And he lived the life we can’t live, died the death we deserve, and rose so we could live forever.
My house, as great as it is, can’t give me that.
Even the most life transforming book can’t do that.
And yes, even Christmas music can’t.
Whatever you believe, you’ll probably agree with this. You feel better when you know everything is right with your life. Sure, we all have plenty we can feel guilty about. We’ve all screwed up. Being forgiven lifts the 10,000-pound elephant of guilt off your chest so you can breathe.
And maybe listen to some Christmas music.
A little won’t hurt.
And if you want to listen to it all year round, you have my blessing.
I hope you find joy this season that makes every day feel like the best version of Christmas ever.
