★ Day 25 – Reason for the Season – Christmas Isn’t the Destination ★

This comic has no relevance to anything, but just was hysterical to me about what the down time activity that Santa and the reindeer may engage in.  Today we conclude our 25 Day series of posts, (a first ever!)  I pray you have been blessed and that a new or fresh connection with the Jesus has been established in your life!

“Our understanding of Christ molds and shapes our view of eternity, of hope, and of salvation.  If we have the wrong view of Christ, who He is, who He was, and what He came to do, then it shapes everything we see, it becomes the lens that we look through…How we view Jesus is extremely important.”  Marty Collier, The Church on Rush Creek 

So has your view of Christ changed over the past 25 days?  I hope so; I know it has for me!  Now that Christmas has come and gone, what’s next?  December 25 is not the end…The story continues…Matthew 2:12-18 (NLT) says,

“When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.  After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.  

“Get up!  Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said.  “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, and they stayed there until Herod’s death.  This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”

Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him.  He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance.  Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

“A cry was heard in Ramah—
    weeping and great mourning.
Rachel weeps for her children,
    refusing to be comforted,
    for they are dead.”

If you recall in the ★ Day 22 – Reason for the Season – Part of the Stable Few? ★ post, we discussed the previous 2 verses, that the Wise Men came in and worshiped Jesus.  It is interesting that after they honored God, by honoring His Son, The Wise Men were warned to go another way because of King Herod.  In ★ Day 21 – Reason for the Season – Neighborly Competition ★ post that the Wise Men’s interaction with Herod, stirred up the King’s envy which resulted in the heinous acts of verses 16-18.  And as a result, Mary and Joseph, with child Jesus in tow had to flee to Egypt.  Christmas is so much more than the birth of Christ; it’s about allowing God to change you!  Have you been changed?  Or another way to ask it…How can we incorporate Christmas into our lives the rest of the year?  The solution I believe is to MAKE ADVENT A LIFESTYLE!   

Let’s review the lessons we learned from the Advent Wreath:

• In the ★ Day 03 – Reason for the Season – Let Hope Arise ★ post we discussed the first purple candle that is lit on the Advent Wreath represents Hope. If you want to keep Christmas in your heart, then share the Hope that is within you with others…Don’t just keep it within you.
• In the ★ Day 10 – Reason for the Season – What is the Spirit of Christmas? ★ post we discussed the second purple candle that is lit on the Advent Wreath represents Peace. If you want to keep Christmas in your heart, then be a peacemaker and impart to everyone else that peace can happen even in the hardest season of life!
• In the ★Day 14 – Reason for the Season – Joy to the World ★ post we discussed the third candle that is lit on the Advent Wreath, which is the only pink candle, represents Joy.  If you want to keep Christmas in your heart, remember that the “Joy to the World” is not just one day a year but can be every day!  Spread it to all who you come into contact with.
• In the ★Day 20 – Reason for the Season – The Father’s Love ★ post we discussed the fourth candle that is lit on the Advent Wreath represents Love.  If you want to keep Christmas in your heart, follow the sacrificial example of God sending His Son and be willing to sacrifice for others.
• And finally in yesterday’s ★Day 24 – Reason for the Season – Best Christmas Gift Ever! ★ post we discussed the he last candle that is lit on the Advent Wreath that represents Jesus Christ, which is the only white candle.  If you want to keep Christmas in your heart, then endeavor to be more like Jesus and be ready to be His hands and feet everywhere you go.

Jesus was sent by God, to earth, to be the greatest gift of love one could ever receive.  Carry that giving spirit all through the year by volunteering and encouraging those around you who are hopeless.  Look for opportunities to give the love of Christ out to a world that is in desperate need of a Savior!  I love this quote from Lysa TerKeurst,

“Christmas doesn’t end December 25th…Its beautiful reality really should linger a little longer.”  

Amen!!  I will add to that to say Christmas should linger indefinitely!  Jesus gave His disciples, (and now us 2,000 years later,) this instruction in John 13:34-35,

“A new command I give you: Love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Love one another…Let your goodwill towards others be evident through your actions…Spread Hope, Peace, Joy, Love and Jesus to all those God has placed in your sphere of influence!  I will close with this from 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 (NLT),

“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to Himself through Christ.  And God has given us this task of reconciling people to Him.  For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them.  And He gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.”

And to piggyback that, Charles Spurgeon said, 

“Every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter.”

God has given each one of us the task to mark an impact on this world…Will you?

I pray that these “25 Days of Thankfulness” has given not only given you a new perspective on the Reason for the Season but a new connection and love for Jesus Christ!!

If you missed any of the series or just want to start from the beginning you can by ★ Clicking Here ★

★ Day 14 – Reason for the Season – Joy to the World ★

Two songs that always get me into the Christmas spirit are “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!” By Andy Williams (a classic,) and any version of “Joy to the World,” (most recently I have been enjoying David Crowder Band’s interpretation of the classic hymn.)  I think this picture of these kids crying,  as the possibility of the perfect Christmas card is becoming more and more remote, captures many people’s view of this season of chaotic schedules and never-ending lists of things to do.  You can hear the sarcasm of people as they make some comment like “oh yeah, it sure is the Most Wonderful Time of the Year as I am exhausted out of my mind and don’t know how I am going to get everything done in time!  The signage of this photo shoot gone badly is the focus of today’s “Reason for the Season.”

The third candle that is lit on the Advent Wreath, which also is the only pink candle, represents Joy.  Joy is such an interesting concept.

Yesterday my pastor was preaching on Joy as part of the Advent Sermon Series we are currently in and he discussed the difference between Joy and Happiness.  Often times the two are used interchangeably but they are radically different.  He said,

“You can have joy but not be happy about circumstances.  You can have happiness but not joy.”  Marty Collier

See HAPPINESS is based on circumstances, whereas JOY is based on our faith in God.  I read a devotional this morning called “The Definition of Joy” from Rick Warren based on Kay Warren’s new book, “Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn’t Enough.”

“My problem was my definition of joy.  I thought joy meant feeling good all the time.  That’s impossible!  Even for those who are naturally upbeat and optimistic, that’s impossible…

Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.

You’ll find nothing in that definition about happy feelings, because, as we all know, happiness is fleeting and temporary.

Happiness is fleeting, only Joy remains!  The second song that I mentioned that kindles the Christmas spirit in me is Joy to the World.  David Mathis said something very interesting about this song in the preface of John Piper’s “Good News of Great Joy | Daily Readings for Advent Devotional,”

“The advent primarily in view each December is the first coming of Jesus two millennia ago.  But Jesus’s second coming gets drawn in as well, as the popular Christmas carol “Joy to the World” makes plain:

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found.

I was shocked when I read that…I never realized that a song I sang at the top of my lungs during the Christmas season was actually a hymn glorifying Christ’s triumphant second return, rather than a song celebrating his first coming.  Published in 1719, the words by English hymn writer Isaac Watts and are based on the second half of Psalm 98 in the Bible. Take a look for yourself…Psalm 98:4-9 (NLT).  Powerful imaginary isn’t it?

And that is what I believe God would like us to grab hold of this Advent Season…Not just to look back at the first coming of Christ, (which is good to do no doubt,) but to also have joyful expectation of Jesus Christ’s second coming as the Book of Revelation speaks of!  Steven Furtick made this statement about Joy that I wanted to share…

“I love the scripture that says that weeping may endure for the night but joy comes in the morning.  You know what I found out though morning doesn’t happen when it says AM on the clock.  Morning happens when you wake up and throw the covers off and open your eyes to the goodness of God.  In other words the moment you decide to wake up and look, I bet you’ll see God in the middle of your circumstances. I bet you’ll see God in the middle of your difficulty.” 

In the ★ Day 08 – Reason for the Season – Christmas or X-mas? – Part 2 ★ post we talked about this year is the 50th anniversary of the classic TV special “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”  Today’s passage is one in the same with what Linus quoted the Gospel According to Luke, verses 8 through 14 of the Kings James Version so we will read it in that translation as well…

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

I am so thankful for Charles Schulz fighting to have those (6) verses included because there is so much power in them!  Can you imagine what that scene was like to be one o those shepherds?  Maybe it was a crisp cool night as the Shepheard’s sat around a campfire…all that could be heard was the sheep shuffling around grazing in the open pasture.  The shepherds probably had very little to do, but to gaze at the stars above when all of sudden “the glory of the Lord shone round them!” I have always thought it comical, that Luke writes in the next line, that the “were sore afraid.”   I bet they were, wouldn’t’ you be?!  But I love the reassurance they received from the Angel…“Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.”  Hundreds of years of waiting for this news, and the recipients of the greatest news event in history was not a King or nobles but lowly shepherds tending their flock in the countryside.  Tomorrow we will dig into “A Shepherd’s View of Christmas” so I will defer that aspect of this event until tomorrow.  Like we discussed in the ★ Day 11 – Reason for the Season – Following Jesus Will Cost You ★ post about the journey to Bethlehem for the census, we can gloss over familiar parts of the Christmas Narrative and miss the wonder like the next part…“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”  Wow can you imagine what that light show must have been like?  What an unbelievable experience to have that proclamation done in front of you!  I am sure all these images pale in comparison to what it must have been like.  I came across this image that I thought was fascinating in how it shows the events unfolding simultaneously…  As Mary lays the baby Jesus down in the manger, we can see the Angelic Heavenly Host declaring the arrival of the Savior of the World in the distance!  This painting is a great visual representation of the tapestry of events that God wove together the lives of many different people to bring about the fulfillment of His Salvation plan as revealed through the prophecies of Isaiah, Micah and Jeremiah, (to name a few…) right down to the very last detail.  Amazing!  I love this quote from Matt Chandler’s sermon called “Advent (Part 2) – Tell of His Coming: The Shepherds and Angels,”

“God is a God who keeps His promises, even the small ones that don’t seem maybe to matter that much…The fact that God keeps His promises to His people should move our hearts towards worship, move our hearts towards gladness and anchor us in confidence.”

I am thankful for a God who is not only a promise keeper but who is also my anchor!  Like the Angels, we need to BRING JOY EVERYWHERE YOU GO.

As an additional supplement to today’s “Reason for the Season”…I highly recommend you listen to “The Twelve Voices of Christmas” audio dramatization from Back to the Bible of “Angels – The Voice of Praise.”  This dramatization is designed to help the listener experience the story of Christ’s coming in a fresh way from the Angels’ perspective.

If you would like to see the next installment of our “25 Days of Thankfulness” series go here…★ Day 15 – Reason for the Season – A Shepherd’s View of Christmas ★

Or you can start from the beginning by ★ Clicking Here ★

★ Day 02 – Reason for the Season – Why I Say Merry Christmas ★

This comic really captures the atmosphere in America.

Everyone is so concerned about offending people that they have no problem trampling on the rights of those who want to celebrate the birth of Jesus.  It used to be that regardless of whether you believed in Jesus or not, the Christmas season was a time that everyone could come together and celebrate a time of peace and good will to all.  As I think about the upcoming Christmas season of decorating, shopping and everything else that come along with it, I would like to take a moment today and think about “The TRUE Reason for the Season” which is so beautifully conveyed in John 3:16-17 (NLT)…

“For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him.”

“God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son”…stop…You can read that and pass right over the significance of these two words, “He gave.”  When it says that He gave it means that He willingly sacrificed His beloved Son up to die in the most heinous way so that “everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life!”  Jesus was born of a virgin woman over 2,000 years ago to make a way for you and I to be saved.  He was sent “into the world not to judge the world,” as some many believe, “but to save the world through Him.”  Now that is something to celebrate!  John Piper made this powerful point in his “Good News of Great Joy | Daily Readings for Advent Devotional,” about the first thing we need to do as we enter the Advent Season,

“First, meditate on the fact that we need a Savior.  Christmas is an indictment before it becomes a delight.  It will not have its intended effect until we feel desperately the need for a Savior.”

“Christmas is an indictment before it becomes a delight.”  Wow that is powerful!  I never thought of Christmas in that way before that it that serves to illustrate that we are lost without Jesus and deserve to be condemned because of our Sin.  But John 3:16-17 is the path to acquittal where all formal charges can be dropped!  But we need to make that choice!  People are offended by Christmas because it puts a spotlight on the fact that they have no relationship with Jesus.  1 Corinthians 1:18 (ESV) says,

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

That was the case for me for sure!  It was not until I was 24 years old that I realized how lost I was and in need of a savior.  Though I had plenty of information about who Jesus was and the events of Christmas and Easter (when Jesus was raised from the dead after being crucified on the cross 3 days earlier,) there was no transformation in my heart.  I did not understand the significance of Jesus and how His birth over 2,000 years ago would change the course of human history and mine as well!!  Ultimately The Cross of Jesus and Christmas is and will remain folly to those perishing until we understand our need for a savior!  And until then this comic will continue to be the reality…

It really is astounding how Jesus has been “X-ed” out of Christmas in the largest Christian Nation.  I love what comedian Michael Jr. said about this,

“Some people are offended by the phrase ‘Merry Christmas’ So I just say ‘Merry Jesus Birthday.’”

“Merry Jesus Birthday” sure has a catchy tone!  Hahaha!  I say Merry Christmas because it is a miraculous time and one worthy of recognition, it is NOT intended to offend or make others feel bad but to celebrate the coming of Jesus.  Christmas is a time of miracles, a time to remember Jesus’ birth and a time for renewal in our hearts.  As we discussed in the last post, ★ Day 01 – Reason for the Season – Why Do We Celebrate? ★, the start of the Christmas story is in Luke 1:5-25 (NLT) that recalls the first miracle of the Christmas Season as the Angel Gabriel announced that Zechariah and Elizabeth would conceive a son even though they were well along in years and that he would “prepare the people for the coming of the Lord.” (Verse 17)  Zechariah’s son who would be named John the Baptist, was the forerunner to Jesus, the Messiah to be His herald and do just what the Advent Season that we celebrate each year is intended!  Unfortunately though Zachariah did not believe, verse 18 says,

“Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this?  I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

Circumstances clouded his vision and understanding of the miracle-working God that he was serving in the Temple that very day!  So Zachariah’s unbelief, resulted in Gabriel responding in verse 20,

“But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.”

But my favorite part of the story is that even though Zechariah had a moment of doubt, he did indeed believe as verses 23-24 proves,

“When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home.  Soon afterward his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months.”

Like Zachariah, you may have doubts, but I promise you if you open your heart to the truth pf John 3:16-17, you too can be thankful as I am to say Merry Christmas.  I read this quote somewhere that said,

“The most important part about Christmas is the first six letters.”

So I will close this Thought for the Day by saying…          

As an additional supplement to today’s “Reason for the Season”…I highly recommend you listen to “The Twelve Voices of Christmas” audio dramatization from Back to the Bible of “Gabriel – The Voice of Disclosure.”  This dramatization is designed to help the listener experience the story of Christ’s coming in a fresh way from the Gabriel’s perspective.

If you would like to see the next installment of our “25 Days of Thankfulness” series go here…★ Day 03 – Reason for the Season – Let Hope Arise ★

Or you can start from the beginning by ★ Clicking Here ★

★ Day 01 – Reason for the Season – Why Do We Celebrate? ★

John Maxwell once said,

“Reflection turns experience into insight.” 

This simple statement really motivated me to look at the Christmas Story with a new set of eyes and to earnestly seek to explore the “Reasons for Season,” and why I should be thankful.  The muse for this 25 Day Devotional was born from a conversation with y wife as I told her that I want this Christmas to be different from any other.  In her typical motivational nature, she challenged me to write a series of reasons what I am thankful during the Advent Season.  In our last post ★ Thought for the Day – Begging God For_____? ★, we discussed the importance for being thankful and introduced the series that we will be doing for the next 25 Days where we reflect and turn that experience into insight!  Each day we will post daily Reasons for Thankfulness for this Advent Season.  Psalm 136:1, 26 instructs us…

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good.  His love endures forever.  Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.” 

A thankful heart will change the bleakest of situations because when shift our focus from the circumstance to the Creator, anything is possible!  We just need to be patient and wait on the Lord which is what the Season of Advent is all about!  For those who may not be familiar with the term of “Advent,” Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines it as:

noun Ad·vent \ˈad-ˌvent

:  the period beginning four Sundays before Christmas and observed by some Christians as a season of prayer and fasting

Advent is a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas.  Traditionally this has been observed with an Advent Wreath with (5) candles that represents Hope, Joy, Peace, Love and Jesus which would be lit each Sunday.  Interestingly, my church just started a series based on Advent this past Sunday so it is awesome to see how God is spreading His message through different outlets!  Growing up my family celebrated with an Advent Calendar which had small numbered flaps, with a picture and scripture verse that taught a part of the Christmas story for the 25 days leading up to Christmas.  My brother and sister and I always fought to open the last day which had a double flap revealing the baby Jesus, a childhood memory I cherish to this day.  My Aunt has continued the tradition this year by getting my daughters a subscription to an online Advent Calendar which we will be starting today!

Much the same, each day we will look at the Christmas story to better understand the “Reason for the Season” in order to cultivate a true sense of Thankfulness for God sending His Son to be born in a manger.  Psalm 100 – A Psalm of Thanksgiving says,

“Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!  Worship the Lord with gladness.  Come before him, singing with joy.  Acknowledge that the Lord is God!  He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.  Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise.”

There are a lot of action Words – shout, worship and come singing with joy!  My prayer for you, and for me is that the next 25 days will not be a blur filled with “stuff” to check off the obligatory list, but that we would find a new sense of connection to Jesus!  Because to state the obvious,

Jesus the Reason for the Season! 

Come expectant for God to do something in you each day.  Someone who was expectant was the prophet Micah who foretold where Jesus the Messiah would be born over 700 years prior to His birth.

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”  Micah 5:2 (NIV1984)

To help along with that, I started reading the YouVersion Bible Reading plan called ‘121 Advent’ (Click here to view).  I highly recommend you do the same.  In today’s devotional content they gave this great description:

“The word “advent” is rooted in a Latin word simply meaning, “coming”.  Advent is a season of expectant waiting and preparation for the coming of Christ.  This side of the life, death and resurrection of Christ, we are able to celebrate this season of advent in two distinct ways.  We look back and identify with those that awaited and longed for the arrival of the Messiah foretold to them.  We do this from a perspective infused with knowing that God, in His faithfulness, provided that Messiah in Jesus, just as the Scriptures prophesied.  We also look ahead, in expectation and longing for the second coming of Christ.  Advent is not a biblical mandate, but a tradition implored among the Christian tradition to set our minds and hearts on the coming of Christ.”

For those who maybe have never read the Christmas Story in totality, here are the major stories:

• The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold – Luke 1:5-25
• The Birth of Jesus Foretold – Luke 1:26-38
• Mary Visits Elizabeth – Luke 1:39-56 (NLT)
• Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son – Matthew 1:18-25
• The Birth of John the Baptist – Luke 1:57-66
• Zechariah’s Prophecy – Luke 1:67-80
• The Birth of Jesus – Luke 2:1-7
• The Shepherds and Angels – Luke 2:8-20
• Jesus Is Presented in the Temple – Luke 2:21-24
• The Prophecy of Simeon – Luke 2:25-35
• The Prophecy of Anna – Luke 2:36-38
• Return to Nazareth – Luke 2:39-40
• Visitors from the East – Matthew 2:1-12
• The Escape to Egypt – Mathew 2:13-18
• The Return to Nazareth – Mathew 2:19-23

Or if you want to read it completely through – Luke 1:5-56, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:57 – 2:40, and Matthew 2:1-23.  Robert Morris has this great thought for you to reflect upon on why to celebrate this season…

“Christmas is about Jesus being conceived in YOU!  It’s about Jesus growing in you and you delivering Jesus to the world around you.”

I am thankful that I have a Savior to celebrate and earnestly desire to grow more and more like Jesus!  So as we enter the Season of “Advent,” let’s spend the next 25 days really focused on setting our minds on Christ and reflecting on all the “Reasons for the Season” to cultivate a thankful heart!

If you would like to see the next installment of our 25 Days of Thankfulness series go here…★ Day 02 – Reason for the Season – Why I Say Merry Christmas ★

Or you can start from the beginning by ★ Clicking Here ★