It's the most wonderful time of the year!

I love Christmas. I love the lights and decorations. I love the fellowship and gatherings around wonderful meals. I love the songs. I love the cookies. And I really love watching my children during Christmas.

While Christmas is an amazing time of the year, it is easy to get into a danger zone before and during the holidays. We can find ourselves wishing we had more money to spend on gifts. We may envy a neighbor’s beautifully decorated house. Or when a friend is telling us about the fabulous trip to Mexico their family is taking over the Christmas break, we might find ourselves wishing we had their life instead of our own.

During Christmas, or any other day of the year, it is way too easy to see what others have and compare ourselves to them all-the-while creating a mental wishlist of wants. We must remember that those things are fleeting. They are lacking something - they lack eternity. If we are seeking things, or satisfaction from there, we will always come up empty.

If we are truly keeping our eyes on heaven and living with eternity in our view, we must look beyond the gifts, songs, and get-togethers. We must instead focus our gaze on the manger where our Creator took on flesh, and remember WHY He did so. Paul Tripp reminds us of the why saying:

“Because we were so lost, so enslaved, and so self-deceived that there simply was no other way.”

Isn’t it ironic that the Creator of all things came down from heaven to save us from being enslaved to creation? He knew all those things wouldn’t satisfy us so He became our true Gift in which we can find all of our hope and joy!

Friends, we can remember the true meaning of Christmas AND put up our lights, host gatherings, and bake. We just need to remember as we are participating in our holiday traditions to take time to point out to ourselves and others how easy it is to lose sight of the true Gift and fall into the trap of worshipping creations instead of the Creator.

2 Corinthians 9:15

Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable Gift.