MERRY CHRISTMAS! I enjoy the Christmas season with all its decorations and beautiful music. I have quite a few memories of Christmases from my childhood with my parents who made the season a special time. My parents taught me that Christmas is more than gifts and decorations.
Most of all, I am very thankful for the Birth of Jesus Christ, for His saving me from my sins, and for the Promise of eternal life in heaven when I die. The Christmas season to me is a celebration of His Birth, especially Christmas Day! The greatest Christmas Gift ever was God sending His Son Jesus as a Baby to be born on earth and live among people. At the early age of 36, Jesus was crucified on a rugged cross for our sins. It’s hard for me to believe that God or Jesus would care enough for me and where I spend eternity to do that for me. BUT, He did.
A great resource to learn more about God’s Plan of Salvation for man is Peace With God.
“Glory to God in the Highest … the Nativity” Photo by David Beale on Unsplash
Christmas is such an amazing time of year, a time when people smile at each other no matter how long the line is to make their purchase. A time when people look for the perfect tree or the perfect gift. A time when delicious smells waft through kitchens all around the world.
Now I hear that Christmas might be canceled. I find that hard to believe. However, with our government closing stores, restaurants, not allowing large gatherings for birthday parties, funerals, etc., Christmas most certainly seems like it will be next.
We look forward to hearing that one special song that, for each one of us, says…”Christ is coming.” Christmas carolers, Christmas pies, Christmas stockings, and Christmas lights, will this be the year they disappear?
Trees, wreaths, cookies, stars, presents, what says Christmas to you? When you see a bright star in the sky does that make you think of our Savior’s birth? Do you ever tire of hearing the story of Jesus’ birth with Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, and the Maji?
Shepherds, now there was a motley crew. Working with sheep is a smelly dirty job. And dressing for work would not have to do with putting on your best duds. Then one night as the shepherds bedded down the sheep and were sitting around a fire, something amazing happened. An angel appeared and the previously dark sky was alive with light. They cowered in fear, but then the angel said, “fear not” and the fear left them and they became still and listened. And what a story the angel would tell these shepherds, not the people in town, not the merchants, not even the rabbi, God chose shepherds to hear the glorious message of the Birth of His Son. How appropriate as His Son would come to be known as the Great Shepherd.
Cancel Christmas…I don’t think so, for the spirit of Christmas lives in you.
Let’s share the joy, the hope, and the love of Christmas with everyone we meet.
To learn about Jesus Birth and the Christian life, please visit Peace With God.
About the author: Kim Kirby is a writer and lives in Virginia. Her writing reflects her belief and faith in Jesus. She enjoys spending time in the outdoors, especially the mountains.
When I was younger, many decades ago now, I enjoyed going shopping to find the perfect Christmas presents for friends and family. In later years, especially for my wife. However, each year it became more challenging for me to go to the malls and shop. As most people with Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) know, the disease is progressive and always changing adding a new challenge.
In the early years of life, I didn’t understand that these changes were happening nor did I realize that they would cause everyday tasks or stuff like Christmas shopping to become so challenging. Of course, this was back in the day when there wasn’t as much information about CMT as we only had what the doctors knew. I remember looking it up in the encyclopedia to find a short paragraph.
My type of CMT causes issues with the nerves. Yes, most of CMT does that, but some types have more nerve-based problems. Now that I understand that, I am understanding why finding a parking place and going shopping at the malls or stores have become so challenging. It literally is an exhaustingly tiring task which is a chore to do. Make sense? At first, I thought it was that I was getting lazy or even apathetic.
So what to do? Back decades ago, I would plan to get my Christmas shopping done early with the goal of having it all done by December 1 at the latest. This worked great! I didn’t have the crowds to maneuver nor was finding a parking place a challenge. I could easily go to the stores or mall and shop and leave.
However, over the years my health progressively got worse and it became more of a challenge to go to the malls or other stores too. Of course, I was hugely blessed by being able to go with someone else. I needed to begin finding a much easier way to purchase gifts.
For a few years, as physical challenges became a problem, I bought many friends gift cards to their favorite stores. That worked for most people, but there were always a few who were insulted because they didn’t understand my issues about shopping. And, I have always kept my health issues personal. Cash can work too.
A few years ago, I began to realize that shopping online was a great resource for people like me who find going to the stores very challenging. I can usually pick out what I want without too much hassle. I like that I can view the product, read the descriptions, and in some cases read reviews from others who purchased. Of course, you have to be careful with that because some people complain about everything and give bad reviews or comments just to do so. I use the comments when I am not sure if a product is what I want. Sometimes it helps. For a few people, I will ask them if they show me what they would like online. I like that I can order it and have it delivered to my home. These days, in most cases, you can save the shipping and handling charges and pick it up in the parking lot of the store. Picking up at the store keeps you from having to walk through the store and there are usually plenty of parking spaces reserved for online orders.
“Merry Christmas” (C) Isaiah Jacobs, All Rights Reserved
I pray that you will have a blessed and very Merry Christmas!
I will be spending the day sharing a few presents with my wife and taking my father-in-law to lunch somewhere. After the loss of my parents, brother, and mother-in-law, Christmas has been a challenge because it brings back so many wonderful memories. Now, the celebration feels like it’s always missing something. However, we celebrate and enjoy our time together.
And, after lunch with my father-in-law, my wife and I will head home and probably enjoy a nap!
