John Bytheway - Born This Happy Morning

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Art direction: Richard Erickson

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2020 John Bytheway

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher, Deseret Book Company, at permissions@deseretbook.com or PO Box 30178, Salt Lake City, Utah 84130. This work is not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The views expressed herein are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the position of the Church or of Deseret Book Company.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Bytheway, John, 1962 author.

Title: Born this happy morning / John Bytheway.

Description: Salt Lake City, Utah : Deseret Book, [2020] | Includes bibliographical references. | Summary: Best-selling Latter-day Saint author John Bytheway discusses the kinds of joy we can receive while celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ at ChristmastimeProvided by publisher.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020018712 | ISBN 9781629728056 (trade paperback) | eISBN 978-1-64933-005-5

Subjects: LCSH: Jesus ChristNativity. | The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day SaintsDoctrines. | GenerosityReligious aspectsChristianity. | GiftsReligious aspectsChristianity. | Christmas.

Classification: LCC BV4647.G45 B97 2020 | DDC 263/.915dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020018712

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Printed in the United States of America

PubLitho, Draper, UT

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Note: These chapters were composed under the influence of a fresh balsam firscented candle, chestnuts roasting on a screen saver, and yuletide carols being sung by the Tabernacle Choir. (Mama was in her kerchief, and I in my cap.)

For a more holly-jolly experience, readers are invited to reproduce similar sights, smells, and sounds while perusing these chapters.

And finally, no reindeer were harmed during this books production; however, several halls were decked.

Contents

Introduction

As a little boy, I began thinking about Christmas each year sometime in the fall, about the time the weather began to turn cold. I just couldnt wait. I counted the months and days and eagerly waited for the Sears Wishbook to arrive so I could gaze for hours at every single page in the toy section. The day that school got out for Christmas vacation, my siblings and I would run home giggling in delight. Wed spend evenings sitting beneath the tree, watching the lights twinkle and create patterns on the ceiling while carols played in the background.

Now, some decades later, as an adult, a provider, and a father, I dont have much time to think about Christmas until the Thanksgiving leftovers are gone. Amidst the adult concerns, budgets, and overall stress, I find myself trying to recapture the magic of Christmas as I remember it from my days as a child. I miss it. Almost every Christmas season, I say to my wife, Kim, I just havent quite caught the spirit.

Eventually, though, that Christmas feeling comesoften later than I would like, but it comes. It comes when I hear the Tabernacle Choir sing sacred carols, when I get home from work and smell the aroma of Christmas candles in the house, or when I watch Ebenezer Scrooge being born again on the TV. It comes when I watch my children shop for each other and find the perfect gift.

The conclusion Ive come to is that Christmas is a feeling . Above all else, what we want, what we hope for during the season, what we are craving, is a feeling. Thankfully, the feeling of Christmas has been captured in Christmas carols, Christmas stories, and Christmas movies. I assume people read Christmas books for the same reason. They want to feel something! They want to feel that spirit of Christmas again.

President Thomas S. Monson said:

The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul.... To catch the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the Spirit of Christ.

My friend and colleague Hank Smith pointed out a beautiful insight found in our Bible Dictionary under the heading Miracles. It describes miracles as the natural results of the Messiahs presence among men. Hank observed that as the holiday season approaches, the name of Christ, the first syllable of the word Christmas , appears on cards, banners, letters, even advertisements. Notice the natural result! People are nicer, they smile more, and a spirit of giving, excitement, and anticipation lies over the world like a warm, comforting blanket during a chilly season. It is truly miraculous.

The third verse of Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful begins, Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morning. Yes, what a happy morning! Jesus came. After thousands of years of prophecies promising that He would come, He came, and we are saved, we are rescued, we are redeemed.

That first Christmas Evethat late night and early morningis an important focal point in Christian history because of what the babe in the manger became and what He accomplished. As the hymn O Little Town of Bethlehem so accurately states, The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.

We receive priceless gifts from the Savior throughout our lives, but at Christmas we remember particularly that happy night and that happy morning. Because of that one special eve in history, and because of the impact of Jesus Christ on the world, mankind pushed the reset button on the calendar and started counting the years from that night forward. As a child, when I saw the year written down, I knew that BC meant before Christ, but I erroneously thought AD meant after death. I learned later that AD stood for the Latin phrase Anno Domini , or the year of our Lord. It hadnt occurred to me before, but every time we are mentioning what year it is, we are remembering Christmas. We are saying, Its been this many years since Christ was born.

How else can we remember Christmas? How else can we capture that Christmas feeling, that mixture of joy, hope, and anticipation that seems to be in the air on Christmas Eve? Can we make those wonderful feelings stay for a while? Is it possible to feel Christmas all year round? I sure hope so! Lets give it a try.

Through all of our various Christmas traditions, I hope that we are focused first upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Wise men still adore Him.

Russell M. Nelson

Chapter One

The Three Levels of Christmas Joy

Years ago, I came across an insightful editorial originally published in the Church News called The Three Levels of Christmas. The author, William B. Smart, former editor and general manager of the Deseret News , explained that the Christmas holiday can be experienced on three levels.