It’s that time of year again. The Thanksgiving feast is in our rearview mirror and a hypothetical white Christmas is on the horizon. With the shift in weather comes the acceleration of our pace. Out too late and up too early. Our destinations become laser-focused as we hop from Christmas play to holiday meal and back home again only to do it all over again.
The gifts pile high under a twinkling tree, the mail overflows with “Seasons Greetings!”, and the aroma of cinnamon and spice floats through the air. You’ve made your list and checked it twice. Before you settle down to watch that Christmas movie or hit play on your Spotify Christmas playlist, might I suggest something?
Slow. Down.
Turn the music off. Pause the movie.
Listen.
In your hurry, don’t miss the gift of Jesus.
If you ask my husband, he’ll tell you Christmas is the first day of Easter. He has a point. Jesus Christ was born to die. Let’s not miss that. Don’t miss the significance of a Savior so wonderful, so holy and yet so merciful that he laid down his life—for us.
A friend of mine has a toy nativity that her children have spent hours playing with through the years. Sadly, baby Jesus went missing a few years back. They’ve looked everywhere but they just can’t find him.
This Christmas, don’t look for Jesus in a manger of hay. He’s not there. Don’t look for him on the cross. He’s not there, either. Search for him in the pages of the Bible. Listen for his voice when you sing of his birth. When you pray, thank him for the significance of his life—and his death and resurrection. Thank him for the gift of salvation that is yours for the taking. Thank him for the opportunity to share this great news with all who will listen.
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. —John 1:14