“Are you ready for Christmas?” I hear this question many, many times each year working in retail. It seems to be a question that customers will ask to prompt conversation. Maybe you are like me and you don’t know quite how to respond. For me, I don’t know how to respond, because I don’t know what they are really asking.
For example, do they mean, do I have all my shopping completed or am I prepared to worship Jesus on the day we set aside to celebrate His birth? Do they mean am I ready for it to be over or do they mean am I ready to take time with my family and focus on who Jesus is, what He did in his time on earth and what His birth means to a child of God?
How about you, are you ready for Christmas? Are you ready to worship Jesus? This is a GREAT year, because Christmas is next Sunday! What better day of the week to have Christmas on than Sunday? Are you ready, that is prepared, to demonstrate to your family and friends why we give gifts on Christmas? Would you consider saying a few short words before presenting your gifts this year? Consider saying, “Just as God gave His Son, Jesus, out of love for His children, to live, die and rise again, so I too give you this gift out of love for you.” Are you ready to teach your family and friends about the true account of Jesus?
For many in this body, the past few months have been a difficult and sorrow-filled time, but through Jesus Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit we can have joy unspeakable! We can reflect on the time when Jesus was born in a humble manger, to lowly parents and announced to some smelly shepherds. There is Good News of Great Joy which shall be to ALL people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior which is Christ the Lord!
I pray that you will have a very, Merry Christmas. I also pray that you will look for opportunities to worship Jesus and focus the attention on Him. Not the baby in the manager, but the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!"
