Christmas With Its Traditions Is the Perfect Time to Remember and Ponder
On Christmas Day this year, I was struck by how important remembering is. Christmas is a time when families and individuals repeat long used traditions. It is a time when we remember the times we were young, or when our children were young. We remember good Christmases and bad ones. There may be pain and sadness as well as joy and laughter in those memories. Remembering is such an important part of the holiday. The pictures attached throughout this post come from our Christmas tree in 2023. Below, I describe why they are so important to us, and the connection to remembering.
One of our antique ornaments hung in our Christmas tree.
This time of year is a time to remember the birth of Jesus. It is a time to remember our efforts to follow Him. We remember to be gentle and loving to all around us and we vow to keep that up all year. It is a time to remember all that He has done for us. It is also a time to remember our family, friends and loved ones. My wife reminded us this year that our waffles and "breakfast for dinner" tradition we have for Christmas eve started with her grandparents during the depression 89 years ago. Next year it will be nine decades of the same tradition. There are literally hundreds of people around the planet, who through family connections, follow this exact tradition with the same history and background. We remember her grandparents, we remember our past waffles failures, we marvel that other families and friends have picked this up and made it their tradition as well over the years, and we make new memories each year. We should ponder our memories more often.
Remembering And The Scriptures
President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) said that perhaps the most important word is "remember." In his address “Circles of Exaltation,” he gave to religious educators at Brigham Young University, June 28, 1968, He said "our greatest need is to remember." There are many scriptures that tell us to remember.
Isaiah said, "Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me," (Isaiah 46:9)
While Jesus was trying to teach the Pharisees about the Kingdom of God and not turning back to old ways, he asked them to "Remember Lot’s wife." (Luke 17:32)
Peter in his second letter lists of ways to improve your life and make your calling and election sure with God. He also said this, "Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth." (2 Peter 1:12)
There are so many more.
Mary's Example
I have had many wonderful spiritual experiences in my life. Some I have shared with others many times. Some I share very rarely because they are so sacred to me. And some I have never shared and are closely held as part of my personal relationship with the Lord. As I read Luke 2 this Christmas season, I was touched by Mary and one part of her miraculous experience specifically.
No one would have then, or could now, know the reality, the joys, and the troubles of the Messiah being born into our world more than Mary. It is hard to imagine how the glory, joy, fear, and worry that her pregnancy, His birth, and the early life with the baby Jesus, our Savior, would have been filled. Her faith and her hope in our Father’s plan, as well as the miracles unfolding in front of her may have been overwhelming to most of us, but her example is something we should remember and ponder, just as she did at the time "in her heart".
She showed us the importance of pondering the sacred things in our life and in our heart in two specific examples in Luke 2.
The first happened when the shepherds came to see and to worship the newly born Lord. They told Mary and Joseph what the angel had told them in the fields, and the shepherds would have also shared, I assume, what it then felt like as they saw the Messiah. Luke tells us they also “made known abroad” the things they were told and learned that evening. I can imagine both the wonder and the comfort Mary felt as these unexpected visitors confirmed to her the things the Angel had told her months ago. She must have felt such joy with the message sent from above. Mary did not just listen, but she “pondered them in her heart.” Do I ponder my experiences in my heart? Can I do more to understand and feel the Holy Ghost confirm to me truths from my experience as I ponder them? I need to remember more, and ponder those thoughts and experiences.
The second example happened when Jesus was 12 years old. The family had returned to Jerusalem for the Passover. They must have traveled with a group of friends or family members because it wasn't until they were maybe half way though their multi-day return trip that they realized that Jesus was not with them. They must have assumed he was traveling with the group, maybe with friends or other family members, or they would not have accidently left without him. They immediately returned to find the young boy. Their worry must have been almost more then they could bare, as any parent who has lost a child can attest. They found Him in the temple conversing with leaders and priests. They were amazed with the knowledge, sayings, and spirit of this young boy. Even knowing who he was, this moment amazed Mary. When Joseph and Mary finally were able to speak with him, Mary said “why hast thou thus dealt with us? . . . thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing.” I can hear her saying this in a mix of anger and worry as the emotions of losing her son overwhelmed her. Jesus answers in a way that Mary may not have understood at first, but as she listened, it became a great lesson for her. The twelve year old Jesus shows her love by reminding her of His calling. He said, “wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” I can imagine she may have needed to calm down to fully understand what he meant at the time, but I’m sure the spirit touched her with what he said. She again “kept all these sayings in her heart.”
In the first example Mary had a faith building experience that she remembered through her life and pondered. In the second she may not have fully understood at first, or had to process her learning and feelings, but she did so again as she pondered it in her heart. Rather then wanting fast answers, she “kept the sayings in her heart.”
Ponder, let the sprit work. Take time to see what the Lord wants us to learn, and remember your touching and spirit filled experiences often.
Moroni Teaches Us to Use Remembering As A Spiritual Tool
Moroni, who wondered for decades totally alone, completing the work of his father Mormon, finally came to the end of the abridged plates. Running out of space and time, he puts his finally testimony in writing in this great book. I'm sure he knew more about his mission at this point then decades earlier when he began. I'm also sure he understood the importance of the message that was being prepared by himself and his Father - let alone the thousand years of writing that they were abridging. How would he end it?
One of the items he ends with is a challenge to all who have read the book. While he teaches us how to use the spirit to learn the truth of all things, he begins by speaking to those who have read the book. He instructs us all how to pray for truth, how to ask, and then how to discern the truth. For right now I only want to focus on step two of his process. In step one he asks his readers to have sincere desire to seek the truth. It is step two that is sometimes overlooked and is vitally important.
Step two - get on your knees in prayer. But BEFORE you start to speak or ask, he tells us to "remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts." (Moroni 10:3) Spend some time connecting with the Love that God has for you. Remember the things that have happened in your life, and those that you have learned from family, scriptures or other sources. Ponder on all that has been done throughout time. This is a way to tune into what God has to tell you and be in the right place to hear Him.
If you do this and his other steps written in Moroni Chapter 10, Moroni gives you the promise that through your faith in Jesus Christ, Jesus will "manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."
A Few Memories from Our Christmas Tree
As mentioned above, I have attached a few ornaments from our Christmas tree. They are all memories. My wife and I decided decades ago, when were were first married, that we were not going to just buy a box of pretty things and put on our tree. We would buy a few things each year that had meaning to us that year, and over time build up our tree to be a family memory post. These pictures are a tiny example of what is there. They no longer all fit on our tree each year, and we need to edit which of our memories are important each year. All of our children and both of us have added ornaments each year. Some are representative of things we loved that year. Some are memories of those who left us that year. At least one is stolen from a grandparent because of the memory it meant to a current unnamed member or our family. Some signify a favorite movie. Others are hobbies that we picked up that year. You can learn where we have lived, what we do, and how much fun we have just by looking at our tree.
If our goal is to keep the Christmas Spirit throughout the year, there may be no better way then to spend more time remembering.
Read More Like This . . .
As children learn to speak, they may babble as the desire hits them, even at seemingly the wrong times. As children grow, they speak out as thoughts hit them. We should think of our prayers that way. When the thought hits you, pray about it. You don't need formality to speak with God.