The Best Get Together

I don't really have a favorite Christmas decoration. They're cool and everything, but to me, that doesn't make or break my Christmas. I love the get togethers and parties that happen up until the actual day. Hanging out with friends and family as well as my church family really makes this holiday so amazing for me.

So, instead of doing a favorite decoration, I'll do a favorite event. Every year, the Sunday before Christmas my church has this Christmas program. Anyone is allowed to do whatever they want, as long as they are serious and it pertains to Christmas. For as long as I can remember, I've been in this program either singing or doing a drama with my youth group. The exhilaration of being on stage in front of practically every person I know is almost overwhelming. Hundreds of eyes watch me as a complete this move or sing that note, and sometimes, it can be more than a a little difficult to continue under such scrutiny. But every time I'm on that stage, I realize that I'm not performing so that everyone will say how good I am, but how good God is by blessing me with the talent as well as the confidence to perform. Then, I shoo all the butterflies out of my stomach and continue to dance like never before. Once the final beat of the song is played, I look out into the crowd and see the entire congregation on their feet shouting praises to God. I feel honored that I could be one chosen to usher in His presence and happily join in.

But, no matter how much I love actually performing myself, there is one part of the program that holds a special place in my heart. See, my pastor is like my second dad/granddad. When I was young, both of my grandfathers lived at least five hours out of town, so there was no "grandparent-ly spoiling" for my family. But, we did have our pastors, and they acted as step-in grandparents though they're little more than 10 years older than my parents. Anyways, every year, after every other act is finished, he will walk up with his microphone as if he's going to dismiss, but then this beat gets started. To the unexperienced ear, it sounds exactly like "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," but it's not; in reality, it is "Jesus Christ is Coming Again." Using the same tune, he changes the words to make a more "religious" per say meaning to the song. Ever since I was a little(r) girl, I have loved listening to that song and can't wait until the 364 are over so I can hear it again. I'm not sure if he knows how important that song is to me, but one year he forgot to sing it, and I got mad. He hasn't forgotten since :)

Here's the words
You'd better watch out, you'd better not lie, you'd better not pout I'm telling you why, Jesus Christ is coming again.
He sees you when you're cheating, He knows when you're a fake, He knows if you're beneath his blood so be saved for goodness sake
Oh, you'd better watch out, you'd better not lie, you'd better get right or be left behind,
Jesus is coming again, Jesus is coming again, Jesus Christ is coming again!