The story is told of a woman finishing her Christmas shopping at a crowded mall and whose arms were full of bulky packages as she tried to fit into an already crowded elevator.  When she finally squeezed in with the doors barely closing behind her she blurted out in exasperation… “Whoever is responsible for this whole Christmas thing should be arrested, strung up, and shot!” Some of the others grunted in agreement or nodded their heads but then a small voice in the back of the elevator said, “Don’t worry . . . they already crucified Him.”

Friends, has the busyness of the season taken away from the angels song:

“Joy to the world, the Lord has come!”

Has our hurry to

         decorate and cook . . .

                           and spend and wrap . . .

                                             and fuss and hurry . . .

                                                               and attend the next event . . .

caused us to forget that:             

Jesus

         God

                  Messiah

                           Emmanuel

the Lord Almighty actually came to live among us?

“And He shall be called Wonderful Counselor,

Almighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace?

Yes . . . too often we do forget . . .

I think it has to do with us taking our eyes off of Jesus and letting the concerns of this world; the pressures of life, the tragedies we’ve faced, the disappointments, the distractions, the loneliness, the fears, the expectations, the broken relationships, the empty wallets, the diapers, the lost dreams, the weariness, the lost sleep, the constant pain, the frustrations, the bitterness, the rejection, and even letting our pride get in our way of seeing that . . .

JESUS CAME TO BRING LIGHT TO THE WORLD,

         TO BRING PEACE,

                  TO BRING HOPE,

                           TO BRING US FREEDOM,

                                    TO DIE . . .

“God so loved the world that He gave his only Son

that whoever believes on Him will not perish

but have eternal life.” John 3;16

One more quick story:

On December 17, 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright made their historic first flight of an airplane in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.  They telegraphed their sister Katherine and told her the news – and added that they’d be home for Christmas.  So she quickly went to the newspaper office and gave them the account of her brother’s new flying machine and that the editor could interview them as they would be home for Christmas.  Here is what appeared in the newspaper on the December 19^th page 6 headline:

         “WRIGHT BROTHERS HOME FOR CHRISTMAS”

The paper completely missed the most important story of the year!

Please, let us not miss the whole point of this season and trade it for something that that won’t satisfy or last . . . only Jesus will.

 

Steve 🙂

• at least once a week and read about the very first Christmas
• share these verses with your family.
  • • Matthew 1:18-25 and 2: 1-12
    • Luke 1:26-45
    • John 1:1-5 and 1: 14

2.  Enjoy Christmas music in your home                           

• while decorating, cooking, cleaning or wrapping gifts.

• this cartoon by Charles Schultz
• is one of the few Christmas TV shows
• to directly deliver the gospel message.

5.  Give a Christmas card

• with a message about Jesus Birth
• instead of a sill joke or anecdote

6.  Wish a “Merry Christmas” to every sales clerk you come into contact with.

• and the postman
• and your child’s teacher
• and your pastor

• give your family the gift of a sweet disposition.
• I know you can do it!!

8.  Finally, reflect on HIS Gift every day.

• Enjoy the season and the culture of generosity
• but focus more on the birth of Christ than on Santa Claus
• John 3:16  For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
• Ephesians 2:8,9  God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.