I absolutely love the Christmas season. There is just something about this time of
year that brings a smile to my face.
I look forward to:
Christmas movies (Elf & Christmas Story & Christmas Vacation!)
Christmas food (Turkey & monster cookies!!!)
Time with family (No School or work for a few days!!! For a
moment things slow down.)
Elf on a shelf (It is fun to see all the crazy places that
elf shows up.)
Getting and giving presents!!!
Who are we kidding? We love to get presents! I still find
myself sneaking around the house trying to find my presents. This is why Amanda has stopped hiding my
presents at our house and moved them to her parent’s house. Yes, I admit I do have a problem. I can’t
handle surprises.
As much as I like getting presents over the years I have
enjoyed the process of surprising people with gifts, especially for Amanda and
the girls. There is something special
when you give the perfect present and it really shocks the person receiving the
gift. Their facial expression says everything. You can show the person truly how much they
mean to you by giving a present. That is
what makes gift giving so much fun. I am
sure that you have heard the expression “It’s the thought that counts”. It is difficult to show someone how much you
love them with a gift but for a moment, you can show a person that you truly do
care about them.
Think with me for a moment of how much Christmas shows how
much God loves mankind.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we
were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
There are a lot of fun things to enjoy about Christmas but
this truth is the reason to celebrate Christmas. When I read this passage I am reminded of how
much God has given us the perfect gift in His son. God showed us how much he loved us in sending
His Son to die for us so that we would have the opportunity to know God. He did this in spite of our sin and inability
to do anything to deserve his love.
This Christmas spend some time thinking about how much God
demonstrated (showed) (expressed) His love for you.
Have you lost sight of how much God truly loves you?
Another question to spend some time reflecting on is to
think about how much in your normal everyday life do you demonstrate your love
for Christ?
I hope you and your family have a Merry Christmas!
Brent Metcalf
High School Student Pastor
