As I have said on numerous occasions, Christmas is my favorite time of the year. Despite the snow (this year in Cleveland we have been lucky with almost none), the mood is light and upbeat and people seem to be generally nicer to one another. (Except of course when shopping for the hot new toy of the year - in which case everyone loses their mind). Families reunite, kids look in anticipation towards the presents for them under the Christmas tree. We all have the memories of Christmas. early Christmas morning, attacking the tree, to see all the presents one received. Parents didn't get much sleep on Christmas Eve night.
Gifts. I enjoy receiving them as well as giving them. Getting someone something unique that they wouldn't get for themselves and would really like is a joy. To be able to put a smile on another person's face is a wonderful feeling. Especially, if it is something that person has always wanted (at least for that year). It is very satisfying to bring joy into someone's life.
Especially at Christmas. All the lights, the decorated trees, the ornate wrapping paper, and the music all lend to the atmosphere. Just knowing that all across the world, the same things are mostly happening. There is that sense of oneness. Be that families and/or community.
Yet, it is searching for the right gift for those in your lives that I especially enjoy. Looking for something that symbolizes that relationship in a unique way. Getting them a gift that no one else might think of getting them. Granted, searching when there are mobs of people doing the same thing can be taxing. But, I find the rewards to be worth it. Doesn't matter the status of the relationship either, you may get a gift because it just feels right to do. Even cost doesn't matter to the giver.
In the same way, as we celebrate Christmas, we should reflect on the gifts we have received from God. For each of us has been blessed in some ways during the course of this year. Life, healing, peace, and joy may have been given to you. It could be the releasing of new gifting in your life. Or, a change of scenery, or vocation in the past year. For others, it may have been His comfort during times of trial.
As I look back on this past year, it has been filled with many joys and sorrows. Good days and bad days. But, God was the constant throughout every day. He placed the right people in my life and led me to places I never expected to go. So many gifts, too numerous to even remember them all as I look back. Some you don't remember, because you didn't see them as gifts at that moment.
At Christmas, we celebrate one major gift from God, in the form of His Son. This was the continuation of God's plan to reconcile mankind to Him because of our sin. We had no way to bridge that gap. Our efforts wouldn't avail us. We were always doomed to fail in that venture. God needed to fix the problem. And it happened in a stable in Bethlehem and culminated at the cross on Good Friday and the Resurrection on Easter. Which, at the end of the day, is the greatest gift of all. Forgiveness of sins and eternal life spent with God. Nothing better than that.
Funny that the best present came wrapped in human flesh, in the form of a baby. Not a royal birth, which was justified, but in a lowly manger filled with animals. His first crib was probably a feeding trough. Not the most sanitary, or quiet of locations. Kind of like receiving a present in tattered or worn wrapping, with tape everywhere - maybe not even completely wrapped. Yet, inside was the most wonderful gift and you completely forget everything else but that gift. Kind of like looking at the lowly stable. Looking past it and seeing what was inside.
Jesus humbled himself into the form of a man. His entire ministry was one of servanthood and humility. He took the punishment, which we deserved, and humbled himself into death. He then overcame death and won for us our salvation. To those of us who are his followers, Jesus was and still remains the greatest Christmas gift we have ever received.
Merry Christmas!!!
Gifts. I enjoy receiving them as well as giving them. Getting someone something unique that they wouldn't get for themselves and would really like is a joy. To be able to put a smile on another person's face is a wonderful feeling. Especially, if it is something that person has always wanted (at least for that year). It is very satisfying to bring joy into someone's life.
Especially at Christmas. All the lights, the decorated trees, the ornate wrapping paper, and the music all lend to the atmosphere. Just knowing that all across the world, the same things are mostly happening. There is that sense of oneness. Be that families and/or community.
Yet, it is searching for the right gift for those in your lives that I especially enjoy. Looking for something that symbolizes that relationship in a unique way. Getting them a gift that no one else might think of getting them. Granted, searching when there are mobs of people doing the same thing can be taxing. But, I find the rewards to be worth it. Doesn't matter the status of the relationship either, you may get a gift because it just feels right to do. Even cost doesn't matter to the giver.
In the same way, as we celebrate Christmas, we should reflect on the gifts we have received from God. For each of us has been blessed in some ways during the course of this year. Life, healing, peace, and joy may have been given to you. It could be the releasing of new gifting in your life. Or, a change of scenery, or vocation in the past year. For others, it may have been His comfort during times of trial.
As I look back on this past year, it has been filled with many joys and sorrows. Good days and bad days. But, God was the constant throughout every day. He placed the right people in my life and led me to places I never expected to go. So many gifts, too numerous to even remember them all as I look back. Some you don't remember, because you didn't see them as gifts at that moment.
At Christmas, we celebrate one major gift from God, in the form of His Son. This was the continuation of God's plan to reconcile mankind to Him because of our sin. We had no way to bridge that gap. Our efforts wouldn't avail us. We were always doomed to fail in that venture. God needed to fix the problem. And it happened in a stable in Bethlehem and culminated at the cross on Good Friday and the Resurrection on Easter. Which, at the end of the day, is the greatest gift of all. Forgiveness of sins and eternal life spent with God. Nothing better than that.
Funny that the best present came wrapped in human flesh, in the form of a baby. Not a royal birth, which was justified, but in a lowly manger filled with animals. His first crib was probably a feeding trough. Not the most sanitary, or quiet of locations. Kind of like receiving a present in tattered or worn wrapping, with tape everywhere - maybe not even completely wrapped. Yet, inside was the most wonderful gift and you completely forget everything else but that gift. Kind of like looking at the lowly stable. Looking past it and seeing what was inside.
Jesus humbled himself into the form of a man. His entire ministry was one of servanthood and humility. He took the punishment, which we deserved, and humbled himself into death. He then overcame death and won for us our salvation. To those of us who are his followers, Jesus was and still remains the greatest Christmas gift we have ever received.
Merry Christmas!!!
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