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Merry Christmas everyone!!!

          Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year by far. Having the opportunity to spend quality time with my family, eating some amazing food, and getting to open presents in front of the fire are just a few of the things that make this season so special. Despite all of these activities making the Christmas season so enjoyable, we must not forget the real reason for Christmas is celebrating the birth of Jesus.

          In the Bible, the birth of Christ was celebrated and a huge deal. Angels were rejoicing, shepherds were running with excitement, wise men were traveling to see the newborn king, all while Mary pondered these things in her heart. Little did she know what her baby boy would go on to do and the lives He would change. This baby boy would go on to be the Savior of the world, providing the ultimate sacrifice to make a way for all of us to be made right in the eyes of the Father. Without all of this, there would be no Christmas.

          If it was your birthday and you had a birthday party, and everyone bought gifts for each other, but no one bought any for you how would you feel? If that happened to me, I would probably be confused and a little heartbroken. It would feel as if everyone forgot about my birthday, or they were just using my special day for their own personal gain. How often do we do this to Jesus? Christmas was designed to celebrate the birth of Jesus, but how much time do we really spend celebrating that aspect of Christmas?

          I want to challenge all of us, me included, what can we give to Jesus for Christmas? You may be thinking, how do I get Jesus a present if He is God and already has everything? God has almost everything, but He does not have your heart unless you give it to Him. He does not have your love or your worship unless you give it to Him. He does not have your time unless you give it to Him. So, again I ask, what can we give Jesus for Christmas? Maybe we can make more time to spend in prayer or reading His Word. Maybe we can give Him more of our worship and adoration during this season. Don’t hear me wrong, I don’t believe everything we celebrate about Christmas is wrong, I just believe we need to refocus our attention on the true meaning of Christmas. That being that the Son of God took on flesh to be born in a manger where one day He would become the ultimate sacrifice so we could have an opportunity to spend eternity with the Father.

          For us as believers this should give us hope and a joy unlike anything else. This Christmas season gives us a great opportunity to be a light to the outside world. Go spread Christmas cheer, even if that means just saying “Merry Christmas.” Most importantly, remember the true meaning of Christmas is Jesus, and that is why we celebrate during this season.