The Words of Christmas

Have you ever thought about words? What they are, where they come from, and how they convey an idea or thought? I’m sure somewhere in our past we had thoughts about this. Maybe when we were grappling with an idea and how to put words to thoughts so we could do something.

Of course, I’m not sure if any of us know what it’s like to think without words, but infants do it all the time! Without knowing words they express their situation, and with mounting determination they reach, kick, crawl, stand, and run. All the while, for the most part, their brain is absorbing everything it hears, processing it, and then learning to put sound through their mouth and form the words.

“Da da”, “Moma”, “Ball”…

Then their chattering never stops!

When we begin to learn concepts of speech, and utilizing words to express ideas, we are reaching the possibility tomorrow. Our words take us from what we know, to what we are learning, and then to the future!

Consider This

Everything we involve ourselves in is most probably explained with words that fit the need. They come from somewhere and describe what we accept as our foundation. But the words we know can mean something else from a differing perspective.

I was listening to a football game on the radio and if you had never been around the game you would have no idea what the announcer was saying. When we hear and see, we gain more understanding. It’s when we ask questions to garner understanding, well, that’s from the power of our words!

“Teach me, I’ll forget…
Show me, I’ll remember…
Involve me, I’ll understand.”
~Benjamin Franklin

Get involved, convert that knowledge into words, and you may be the next announcer! If that’s what you choose to do with your life, of course!

I’ve written a dozen posts on the power of our words, where they come from, their digital format, and even the 10 most important 1 syllable 2 letter words… Just to name a few. I guess you could say I find words to be most important.

So. What are the most important Christmas Words you should know? And use them properly? Well, most of us know them from the songs of Christmas.

Important Words At Christmas

There are many words we could use to describe Christmas. Most of them are regional, fixed in a time period, or perhaps language-driven. Some words do not fit. Snow flocked trees work in part of the world, and not others. Santa Claus with his winter clothes on flying through the sky pulled by reindeer doesn’t make sense in the southern hemisphere.

Why do we say “Merry” Christmas? Why even Christmas? Again, words that are steeped in our language, but not necessarily used in others. Do we need snow? A tree? Icicles?

Now, if we relate certain words to Christmas during the season, then we probably never use them any other time of the year. This is my thought today. True Christmas words are used all the time. Not just during the holiday season!

So, to keep the focus of Christ this season, why not use the original stories found in the Bible to define the most important words. Now. These stories are adapted to English from other languages, so your bible will insert words not found in the original just to make the thought or sentence clear.

Perhaps the most important word will be the name of Jesus.

Jesus

Simply put, Jesus is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word used for Joshua, or Jehousa. It was given to Mary (Luke 1:32), and later Joseph (Matthew 1:21), to be the name to call the child. Some translations make the word sound more like a Hebrew word.

Torah was given through Moses;
grace and truth came through Yeshua the Messiah.
John 1:17 (TLV)

But Jesus came with other “words”. He was Christ (anointed, Messiah) the Lord and Savior (Luke 2:11), Emmanuel (Matthew 1:23) which is interpreted as “God With Us”. He was the “light to lighten the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32). In other words, he was the Light! (John 1:8), but he was also the Word made Flesh! (John 1:14) He was called King of the Jews (Matthew 2:2) by the Wise Men. Governor! (Matthew 2:6).

Catch the drift? It’s his name that is most important, but for us to understand all there is to know about him, then we are given other words to describe him and his birth. Words we sing with, tell stories with, or even wish we understood them better!

Angel, Shepherds (Luke 2:8), Wise Men (Magi) (Matthew 2:1), Joy (Luke 2:10), Peace, Good Will, Glory to God, King of the Jews, Light to the Gentiles, Star, etc.

I hope you understand what I’m talking about. True words of Christmas are words we use year-round. All the time. In fact, every day. Christmas is not about Santa, Reindeers, Elves or the North Pole. These words are held off for the seasonal time. But Jesus?