It's the early morning of the day before Christmas, or as my children call it, regardless of the time, Christmas Eve. My granddaughter spent the night and around 6am she was ready for some attention. Thankfully she fell back asleep after I gave her a bottle, but I've been up ever since...mainly thinking about Christmas.
There was a time in my marriage where my husband and I prayed about even celebrating Christmas. Believe it or not there are many "Christians" who for various reasons do not observe this holiday. And that's o.k. if you have those convictions. But after praying about this I remember a thought I had, which I believe was from the Lord and it was....why do you celebrate this day? My response was...we celebrate this day to celebrate YOU!!
"For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to be its judge, but to be its savior." John 3:16-17
For God loved the world....[that's me and you]....that He gave His only Son....[that's Jesus]....so that whoever believes in Him shall not die but have everlasting life.
When you break it all down....God loved/He Gave.
Christmas is about loving and giving. Even those who do not celebrate Christ still give to those they love. Loving and giving is a Biblical principle. The beauty of a Biblical principle is that it does NOT matter if you follow Christ or not... it still applies...just like a universal law such as gravity....everyone is affected by it.
One of the things I love about Christmas is the "loving spirit" that comes with it. People are so generous this time of year...not only with those they love....but even for those in less fortunate situations. People dig deeper in their pockets this time of year. People take a moment to look outside their own lives and invest something in someone elses life. And it doesn't always mean giving them a monetary gift. Maybe it's a smile or something as simple of telling someone to have a great day. Maybe it's a service like holding the door open or helping a disabled stranger onto a bus or driving your child around to different stores so they can find the "perfect" gift. Maybe it's baking goodies for neighbors that you barely talk to the rest of the year, or just doing a good deed because it's Christmas.
The way we act at Christmas is how we should act ALL the time. Loving and giving!
" The greatest love you can have for your friends is to give your life for them". There's that principle of loving and giving again. Just imagine what this world would be like if we would practice this on a daily basis.
This is why I chose to celebrate Christmas....Christmas is a reminder that to love others means we have to give of ourselves. And the greatest example is God loving us so much He gave His Son.....and His Son Jesus loving us and God that he gave His own life.
So even if people take Christ out of Christmas they will never truly take Him out as long as they continue to show love to one another.
Merry Christmas!!
