(no subject)
as i went to bed on Christmas eve, i thought about how Christmas has changed over the years. i used to be so excited to go to bed the night before Christmas, so much that i couldn't even fall asleep. and the next morning, i'd be up before my parents in anticipation of all the gifts i would receive. i realized this Christmas eve that i wasn't excited like that anymore. i had no real trouble falling asleep, nor was i bounding out of bed the next morning to eye up all the presents under the tree. don't get me wrong - i was still excited, just in a different way. and it occurred to me: Christmas doesn't change, we do. and even the Creator of the holiday, the God of it all, doesn't change (as much as we like to think He does). no, we're the ones that change, and we are always changing.
i view Christmas very differently than i did when i was a kid. years ago it was a selfish time to receive numerous toys and spend the rest of my vacation playing with them and comparing them to the neighbor kids' gifts. now, i have a much deeper joy. it comes with a change of perspective, the change when Christmas becomes more of a holiday to give than to get. and i was humbled this Christmas that there is no way any gift i could give could even compare to the gift of a Savior. whoa. talk about the greatest gift. EVER. but as much as we like to think that God is way up there in heaven and we are all the way down here on this lowly earth with nothing to give, that's not really true. for God asks for one thing of us, and that's to believe. how simple. to simply *believe* that Jesus was born on Christmas and that the reason He came was to die years later so that we could be perfect in God's sight, to take our place so that one day when we die, we wouldn't have to be separated from the one Being that truly, intimiately loves us no matter what. it's hard to think that's all God could want for Christmas, but its so true. (and let me clarify really quick: Jesus did *not* come to make the world perfect. He came so that all those crappy things we do, aka. sin, will not eternally separate us from a perfect God. and this gift is not just one to receive in the afterlife - that's the greatetst part! it's an invitation to a sweet, amazing relationship with your Creator in this world, and a reservation to the coolest party after death, aka. life in heaven.)
i have so much joy in this. my joy is not a cause of a newfound boyfriend or good grades or Christmas presents (although those things are nice). no, i have joy in the faithulness of my God. i know without a doubt that He never changes. the Christmas season never changes because God is a stable God. He created this season to be the way it is for a reason. and though the world may change it up and try to say that santa is the one who brings the greatest gifts, i beg to differ. toys and gadgets and money will all be gone some day. there is a greater gift that will *never* fade (and it can be taken into eternity, too). it's so simple, yet few people actually accept it. i have joy, but i want everyone to have it too. as you go through this season, even though Christmas may be officially over, remember that there is still a gift waiting to be opened. there's a gift that doesn't change, that you won't get tired of, and that will never fail.
merry *Christ*mas everyone - may you find what you are truly looking for...
i view Christmas very differently than i did when i was a kid. years ago it was a selfish time to receive numerous toys and spend the rest of my vacation playing with them and comparing them to the neighbor kids' gifts. now, i have a much deeper joy. it comes with a change of perspective, the change when Christmas becomes more of a holiday to give than to get. and i was humbled this Christmas that there is no way any gift i could give could even compare to the gift of a Savior. whoa. talk about the greatest gift. EVER. but as much as we like to think that God is way up there in heaven and we are all the way down here on this lowly earth with nothing to give, that's not really true. for God asks for one thing of us, and that's to believe. how simple. to simply *believe* that Jesus was born on Christmas and that the reason He came was to die years later so that we could be perfect in God's sight, to take our place so that one day when we die, we wouldn't have to be separated from the one Being that truly, intimiately loves us no matter what. it's hard to think that's all God could want for Christmas, but its so true. (and let me clarify really quick: Jesus did *not* come to make the world perfect. He came so that all those crappy things we do, aka. sin, will not eternally separate us from a perfect God. and this gift is not just one to receive in the afterlife - that's the greatetst part! it's an invitation to a sweet, amazing relationship with your Creator in this world, and a reservation to the coolest party after death, aka. life in heaven.)
i have so much joy in this. my joy is not a cause of a newfound boyfriend or good grades or Christmas presents (although those things are nice). no, i have joy in the faithulness of my God. i know without a doubt that He never changes. the Christmas season never changes because God is a stable God. He created this season to be the way it is for a reason. and though the world may change it up and try to say that santa is the one who brings the greatest gifts, i beg to differ. toys and gadgets and money will all be gone some day. there is a greater gift that will *never* fade (and it can be taken into eternity, too). it's so simple, yet few people actually accept it. i have joy, but i want everyone to have it too. as you go through this season, even though Christmas may be officially over, remember that there is still a gift waiting to be opened. there's a gift that doesn't change, that you won't get tired of, and that will never fail.
merry *Christ*mas everyone - may you find what you are truly looking for...