What’s the Message of Christmas?

What is the message of Christmas?  Is it gifts and giving, shopping and spending?  Is it love and joy, eating and spending time with family and friends?  Is it Santas and sleighs, trees and garland?  Is it a time of sacrifice and serving others who aren’t as fortunate as us, or is it just another Holiday to be enjoyed?  Is that all it is or is it the outgrowth of something deeper?

To remember what Christmas is really all about we need to go back to the basics for a few minutes and think about how the Christmas came to be in the first place.

(1)   Christmas is about the ultimate gift – a Savior.  God sent His Son to save us from our sin.  Birthed in the heart of God before the world was ever created God the Father planned Christmas.  His best gift for those who needed it the most.  Born of a virgin without a sin nature so that He could redeem us from our sin.

(2)   Christmas is about the greatest love ever shown.  He loved us before we breathed our first breath.  I think the greatest desire in the heart of any person is to be loved.  Not for what they might do or could do, but because of who they are.  Jesus came to lay down His life for us that we might know God’s love for us.  And when our hearts overflow with His love then we can’t help but love and bring joy to those around us.

(3)   Christmas is about enjoying the most blessed fellowship that we can know.  We enjoy the times of food and fellowship with our families and friends during the holiday season, but to be adopted into His family is the ultimate fellowship.  Our fellowship with family and friends here is a temporary thing, but to be a part of His family is a fellowship that will last for all eternity.  And because we are accepted into His fellowship and family we can and should accept others.

(4)   Christmas is about the life giving sacrifice of Jesus.  We are free to celebrate not presents or pageants, parties or programs, but the forgiveness we have in Jesus Christ.  And because of His sacrifice we are free to serve others in whatever way we can to make a difference in their lives.

We need to see the bigger picture of Christmas.  Christmas is not all about us, it’s all about Him!  Let’s celebrate it this year for its true meaning.

Thanksgiving, Are We Thankful?

Around November of each year you probably, like me, try to focus on those things we should be thankful for.  We talk of faith, family, friends, our churches, and our country (as off track as it is right now), among a host of things. 

I was reading a American Family Association publication this afternoon and saw a list of things that we either aren’t aware of, or do not normally think of.  I thought it would be good to share it.  It comes from J. Lee Grady’s column “10 basic blessings you should be thankful for.” 

1.       Clean water:  88.4 million people lack access to clean water.

2.       A Bathroom:  40% of the world does not have a toilet.

3.       Electricity:  1.6 billion people live without electricity.

4.       Shelter:  2.5 million in America are homeless and 640 million children worldwide do not have shelter.

5.       Food:  28% of children in developing countries are estimated to be under weight or have stunted growth.

6.       Your Stove:  2.5 billion people use fuelwood, charcoal or animal dung to meet their energy needs.

7.       Regular Income:  Most of humanity lives on less than $10 a day.

8.       Education:  Nearly 1 billion people cannot read a book or write their names.

9.       Health:  2.2 million children die each year because they are not immunized.  Annually there are 300-500 million cases of malaria including 1 million fatalities.

10.   Freedom to worship God:  More than 400 Christians die for their faith every day across the world.

Makes you think doesn’t it?  Should help us to thank God for His blessings, but also to pray for those who don’t have what we do.

It’s That Time of Year

Fall.  It’s that time of year when the leaves begin to fall, the first frost hits, and the days fluctuate between beautiful sunny times and damp, drizzly days.  There are so many holidays to prepare for in the fall.  Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas just around the corner, not to mention football games, cheerleading games and events, band competitions, and a host of other fall related activities.  Makes us want to set some boundaries on our time.  What we will do and what will we forgo.

 

Throw in a Chili Supper, Trunk or Treat, Thanksgiving Meal, Christmas Dinner, Revival, Christmas program preparations, and a host of other Church related activities and it’s enough to make us all want to go and hide for a while.  All these things are good in themselves, but obviously we all can’t do them all. What are the priorities?  What should you and I do?  Which things should we be most concerned about?

This is a story I have seen on the internet for years.  I’ve adapted it a little for our church family, but it’s truth always reminds me of life’s priorities.

A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of him.  When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, rocks about 2" in diameter.  He then asked the students if the jar was full? They agreed that it was. 

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks.  He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.  He then asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous - yes.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The rocks are the important things - your faith, your family, your children, your health - Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house, and your car.

The sand is everything else. The small stuff."

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are really important. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your life. Spend time with God, make family and friends a priority, worship with fellow believers.

"Take care of the rocks first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."