Is it ok to be sad at Christmas?

Inevitably at some point during the celebrations each year we'd take a few minutes to remember those who are feeling sad at Christmas; particularly those in broken families or the bereaved. Anyone on their own at Christmas was always welcome a place at our table.

Many are facing tragedy even in the last day or so, like the Glasgow incident, or have lived through the unimaginable slaughter of their children in Pakistan or abduction in Nigeria. We have no idea but God weeps with them.

For me, the run up to Christmas this year has been full of well-intentioned people - friends, neighbours, aunts and a solicitor - reminding me with sympathetic head tilts, that this Christmas is "going to be difficult and painful one". Well fair enough, it will be tinged with sadness as it’s my first Christmas without my parents - both of whom have now died of cancer in their late 50s. The house feels lonely and the family halved.

But you don’t have to look to the stories in the headlines or too far or deep to see others in pain. All around us are people trying to mask depression, anxiety, stress, sadness or loneliness with a fake smile, santa hat or Christmas glitter. What is it about ‘Christmas cheer’ that makes us feel under obligation to go through this? Is it ok to acknowledge sadness at Christmas? I think so. But the good news is that the story doesn’t stop here.

We know that life is not a perfect picture postcard, that the Bethlehem scene where all seems idyllic is not quite the truth – a stress birth, a manky stable, threat of death from Herod etc.  Jesus foreknew that his death was going to be a very painful thing and that he would face opposition from every side. Knowing he and others would face great pain didn’t mean he walked away. He embraced it, knowing that through the greatest pain comes the greatest forgiveness, love and indeed the hope of the whole world.

So, I’m not going to pretend that all is jolly just because Mariah, the Queen or a Christmas film is on and the tinsel is up. I know that true joy is only found in Emmanuel, God with us as a human, and it is available freely. Jesus came to a world in pain and into the mess of humanity and meets us in it. He truly feels our pain and will bring us true comfort and joy. The true wonder of Christmas.