NBC Sports has been running a special feature this year during the halftime show for Sunday Night Football that they call “Great Moments in Tailgating History.” Three observers go “back in time” each week to a game from the past and “record” a tailgating event that results in the beginning of a football tradition. They have “recorded” such “great” moments as the first use of a cowbell ringer (1922), the inspiration for the seat cushion (1959), and the accidental invention of the rain poncho (1958).
The most recent discovery was shown last Sunday night. It dates to a 1935 game in Pittsburgh when a tailgater accidentally splattered a substantial amount of mustard on his friend’s face. Though clearly a blunder, surrounding fans embraced the yellow-faced man as a symbol of support for the Pittsburgh team. Cheers ensued and a movement was born.
Who comes up with these things? I don’t know, although it is a nice diversion from the football game. It got me thinking this week, though: What are the really great moments in Christmas history? What have been the great Christmas moments in your family?
In the US, the great moments of Christmas come down to whether the shopping, decorating, and busyness of the season dominate our time or are we moved once again by the greatest Christmas moment of all, the birth of the Savior.
Christine and I have had many wonderful family Christmases through the years. Often we and others of our family have traveled to be with each other. Sometimes, we have been at home, often with family traveling to visit us. Since those in our extended family are followers of Christ, the memories we make each year include wonderful Christmas worship services that we have attended with each other wherever we are.
My greatest moment of Christmas still comes from my memories of our family Christmases growing up. We were always at home: Mom, Dad, four of us kids, and one Grandmother. We opened presents on Christmas Eve, and then concluded the evening as Dad read the Christmas story from Luke’s Gospel. Those simple family Christmases are why the Christmas story of the Gospels still resonates with me.
I continue to cherish the many family memories of Christmas — both the cultural practice of gift-giving and the re-hearing of the story of Bethlehem. That story is the greatest Christmas moment of all. Be sure to let it touch your life again this Christmas.
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