Why December 26th is Underrated
The day after Christmas can feel like such a letdown, but today's devotional reminds us that the love we've received from Christ doesn't end with the feel-good emotions of Christmas Day, but is meant to be shared with others every day of the year.
Who looks forward to the day after Christmas? The anticipation of Advent has passed. People return to work, unsure what to do with themselves in the awkward space between the holidays and the new year. And somewhere in the back of my mind, the dread of knowing I’ll soon need to get back on the roof—this time to take down the Christmas lights—takes root.
I suppose there are some redeeming qualities of December 26th. It’s Boxing Day, or so my calendar tells me every year (I spend careful attention to the calendar on the day after Christmas, starting the countdown to the next Christmas Day). Other than that, though?
The day after Christmas feels like an ending. But Christmas was never meant to be the end of the story. John reminds us of that in his first letter:
“This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” — 1 John 4:9–10
In this, John explains both why Christ came and how God loves. God’s love here isn’t a response. He doesn’t wait to see how we’ll act, or whether we’ll clean ourselves up, or if we’ll love Him back at all. He moves first, sending His son before we prove ourselves worthy or even express any interest.
God’s Love Isn’t Transactional
Isn’t that strange? In my corner of the world, it seems like everything is transactional. My whole job is essentially to keep a record of transactions (I’m an accountant). We work to make a living. We exercise for better health. We sleep so we’re not miserable the next day. Input and output. It can be easy for our relationships to fall into that same tempo:
I’ll reach out if they reach back.
I’ll invest if I know it’s worth it for me.
I’ll love as long as it’s mutual.
Even if we don’t say it out loud, we notice who shows up and who disappears. It’s easy to keep score of who gives and who only receives.
But God’s love doesn’t work like that. His action isn’t dependent on our response. He built the bridge, whether we ever choose to cross it or not. His love, exemplified through His sending of Christ, was costly and deeply countercultural. Which, you know, is great for God. He is God, after all. He can speak things into being, perform miracles, and give without any guarantee of return. What an incredible example I could never hope to live up to!
And then the next verse comes along.
The Love We’re Called to Live
“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”
— 1 John 4:11
It’s one thing to admire God’s love in theory. It’s another to realize what it asks of us in practice. God’s love isn’t transactional, and ours shouldn’t be either. Loving others without a guarantee of return feels risky. It opens us up to disappointment and rejection.
For me, this becomes especially challenging in a season of life where I already feel stretched thin (kids will do that to you). It’s easy, in a time of strength, to admire Christ’s life and commit to living the same way. But when you’re already giving everything you have and others still let you down, that resolve can feel unwarranted.
It’s much easier to love when there’s a payoff. Christmas reminds us that the promise of payoff doesn’t rest in others, but in Christ. It’s the day God entered our story in the most costly way possible. He stepped into the unfinished narrative of humanity and initiated the fulfillment of a promise made way back in Genesis. He loved to the point of death.
The day after Christmas is the moment the story asks something of us. It’s a call to action, to love as God loved us. Loving without the promise of return means we may never see the fruit of our efforts. It means choosing patience when it’s unnoticed and grace when it’s unappreciated. We can’t control how others will respond to our love, but neither does God choose to control how we respond to him.
Since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. Because Christmas isn’t the end of the story. It’s the start of a revolution.
