K.I.S.S.

Dawn was breaking with the sun not quite peaking through the window yet. I feel a light tap on the side of the bed and peel my eyes open to see Squirts’ fully-opened eyes and huge grin.

“Come on Daddy! Get Mommy! It’s time to get up! It’s time to GET UUPPPP!!”

Only Christmas morning could bring that much enthusiasm at this hour of the day. The excitement of the unknown. The long-awaited anticipation of Santa’s visit finally realized. The weeks of preparation coming to fruition. It’s almost too much to bear!

But here’s the rub:  it’s not Christmas morning. It’s the morning after Christmas. In addition to the big smile, Squirts has in his hand his favorite gift from the morning before. It appears that Squirts is still on some sort of Christmas high. He’s clearly still feeling the Christmas love. For Squirts, the excitement of Christmas day has spilled over into the day after.

Wow! After a day of cooking, eating, gift giving, eating, gift receiving, eating, playing with Squirts and his cousins, and eating some more, all I’m feeling is a Christmas hangover. If Squirts wants me to get up and play, he may have to climb into bed and roll me out.

Wouldn’t it be awesome if the excitement of Christmas day spilled over into the day after for all of us? And the day after that? And the day after that?

I’m never really sure why it doesn’t. Squirts’ Mom and I talked during the Christmas season about how Christmas brings out the best in people. We care for each other more. We focus on the blessings of giving. We’re generally kinder to one another.

(Yes, I did make a visit or two to Wal-Marts during the holiday shopping frenzy. I’m giving the benefit of the doubt to the lady who ripped the last remaining Darth Vader full motion action figure from my hands. I’m sure she was just having a bad day.)

It’s hard not to get excited when you remember the unbelievable gift God gave us in that little baby born in a stable. It’s almost impossible not to be filled with love and thanksgiving when we realize that baby was born for me and you. As we move through the days that get closer and closer to Christmas Day, how can we not be kinder to one another knowing how blessed we are by God’s love?

The message of Christmas is a simple one: Love. God loved us so much that he sent his son to be born for us.

So, why is it so easy to forget that message as soon as Christmas Day passes?

I think it’s because we have difficulty remembering the simplicity of the Christmas message. We Christians have a tendency to make things a lot more complicated. We’ve all got differing points of view. We get bogged down in the minutia of what it means to be Christian.

Am I going to hell because I pulled the one-armed-bandit at the casino barge? Would Jesus carry a concealed weapon? Does God prefer lethal injection or the electric chair?

I’m not saying those questions aren’t important (well, maybe not those exact questions, but their underlying issues), but finding an answer to those questions that appeals to everyone’s understanding of Christianity is almost impossible. Most of the time, we can’t even read the same passage from God’s little instruction book and come to an agreement on an individual meaning.

Sometimes, it seems like we argue so much with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ about these kinds of issues, that we miss the basic message of our faith. The message delivered on Christmas Day: Love.

If there’s one lesson I remember from my college writing courses, it was the K.I.S.S. method of writing: Keep It Simple Stupid. No, it’s not very nice. But it gets the point across. The simpler you keep the message, the easier it is going to be to understand and remember.

If Jesus hadn’t been Jesus – you know a guy who treated everyone kindly and was concerned for their feelings – I think that’s how he would have responded when asked by one of the Pharisess to identify the greatest commandment of the law. I think he would have said, “Look, keep it simple stupid. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.”

What could be simpler? Love God. Love your neighbor.

If we could remember to keep it that simple every day of our lives, we would be able to keep the joy of Christmas alive. If we could remember to keep it that simple every day of our lives, a lot of those other more complicated questions would be a lot easier to deal with.

Before Christmas our family went to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra, a rock-inspired Christmas concert. During the show, one lyric from the song “Old City Bar” stuck in my mind as it was sung by a character dressed as a homeless man:

If you want to arrange it
This world you can change it
If we could somehow make this
Christmas thing last

By helpin’ a neighbour
Even a stranger
To know who needs help
You need only just ask

Even a bunch of rockers from New York know it doesn’t have to be complicated.

Love God.

Love your neighbor.