The Christmas rush is on! It’s barely December and some of us are already panicking. That perfect gift for our Aunt Mary or our youngest child is still not in our hands, and we’re determined to find it. Let me be honest, even my “Ho! Ho! Ho!” gets less enthusiastic as the march towards Christmas continues.

I can’t imagine a world without Jesus and yet, many times during the holidays I live my life as if He doesn’t even exist. Without a doubt, Christmas is to be a time of great joy. On that first Christmas night the angel announced to the shepherds ”good news of a great joy.” The Savior had come!! Those shepherds were so excited. They were filled with joy and wonder and praise.

Have you ever wished you were there on that first Christmas night? I do, but then the Lord reminds me that I have my own manger, my own holy moment when God became a reality to me, and I can worship Him just like the shepherds did.

Every year I am reminded of the very heart of Christmas—Emmanuel, God with us. God wants to be involved in the simple, ordinary happenings of daily life: where we go and what we do. He wants to be in the smile we give the strangers we see at Wal-Mart or in the patience we show in the check-out lane at the grocery store. And for hurting people, like most of us are, we need to hear this: “The message of Christmas is God will be with you. God will help you. God will strengthen you.”

Imagine, we have a Savior who is worthy of the celebration of Christmas. We short-change His honor when we fail to see Christmas the way it was intended. Celebrating is a gift of grace to us as we realize who we are in Christ. Christmas is a time to renew our hearts…to refresh our excitement…and to believe…not in magic or Santa, but believe in the truth of the gospel.

Jesus came, showed us the Father, taught us and then went to the cross for us. Christmas is all about grace and it is all about us and our journey. Maybe we need to fend off the Grinch even harder and not let him steal our Christmas!

“A thrill of hope: the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.” (From O Holy Night”) Hope is one of the coolest things about Christmas. Even the smallest increment of hope provides joy and purpose. Scripture tells us: “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

The big deal is that faith and hope are above our circumstances and aren’t dependent on everything being perfect around us—even at Christmas. Hope is available to us no matter what we see, hear, feel, or experience through any of our senses.

Christ came to this earth. God came near to us so that we could come near to Him—to give our lives purpose and meaning, to forgive us of our sins, and to give us the hope of heaven. Christmas is about the gift that was given on the tree when Christ died there for our sins and gave us the gift of eternal life.

My Christmas prayer for you is Romans 15:13: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Merry Christmas, friends. May this be your best one ever!

Making It Personal:

What’s your favorite part about Christmas? When the Christmas rush and chaos happens in your life, what do you do to return the hope and joy of Christmas back to your life?