The True Meaning of Christmas

Well, Christmas is nearly here. My, how the few weeks since Thanksgiving have flown by this year! But, I guess we are just about as ready for the holiday as we can get around here.

We have finished the shopping. There are only a few last gifts to wrap and place under the tree. I still have a bit of baking to do, but the fudge is made. (Are you reading this, Daddy?) And now I have a bit more time to be still and reflect on the true meaning of this most holy of holidays...

Christmas will be different for us this year. Eddie and I have had some pretty big changes come upon us this last couple of weeks. There are big, life-changing decisions to be made and, although Christmas is in some ways the worst time of the year to have this happen, it is also the time of year when perhaps we are most receptive to God's reminders to us about what is truly important in Life.

Amid all the hustle and bustle of what Christmas has come to mean to the secular world, it is too easy to get caught up in the commercialism of the season and forget about the most precious Gift of all.

"For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." - Luke 2:11



What a miracle the birth of Jesus was! God's only Son, come to Earth as a Man, to walk among us and pay the ultimate price for our sin. Imagine how wondrous must have been that humble birth in a stable; how bright the star leading the Way; how sweet the singing of the angels; and how precious the feel of a newborn baby in Mary's loving arms. Oh, don't you wish you could have been there?

My prayer for this season is two-fold:

* Deep Gratitude and Thanksgiving that God is teaching me so much more about the true meaning of Christmas, and

* Bountiful Blessings to all my Family and Friends, that they, too, will know the tremendous Gift bestowed upon them by a loving Father.

Take the time to savor the special moments of the Season! Enjoy time spent with those you love, the gifts, the lights, the traditions...but seek the stillness, the quiet, the joy...and listen for God to speak to your heart.

Warm Christmas Hugs,

Jane