My New Life: Dig A Little Deeper!

Kutless "O Holy Night"

This is a great time of the year! I love hearing Christmas music like the song above. I enjoy planning family meals...But I kept thinking, what am I missing?

My tree is decorated, my house is decorated. I even took a small Christmas tree to work to decorate our office...But I still said to myself, what am I missing?

I asked for Christmas lists, completed almost all of my shopping (done mostly online of course!) and have even thought of stocking stuffers...But what am I missing?

I know the true meaning of Christmas is celebrating the birth of my Saviour, Jesus Christ. I've read the Bible story and I know the words...But I thought what am I missing?

This week I began to realize what I was missing...I was missing a deeper joy of Christmas! For me the joy of Christmas is found in many things, but I wanted to dig a little deeper...

I have some ideas that will make the joy of Christmas even more meaningful in my own heart. I am going to do some things that will help others. Not just for my family...my family has everything we need. I'm going to go out of my way to help others. Having Interstitial Cystitis, Fibromyalgia, IBS, etc, etc has slowed me waaay down, but there are still things that I can do!

I am going to invite friends to Christmas dinner who are living far away from their families. I'm gonna dig a little deeper and give the waiter or waitress at the restaurant a little extra tip. I'm going to help a family who is having a hard time this year. I'm gonna dig a little deeper and put some money in that little, red kettle every time I hear those bells ring. I'm going to try to cheer up a friend who doesn't have any Christmas joy. I'm gonna show my love to everyone I see this year. I'm going to say "Merry Christmas" and not "Happy Holidays!!"

"What have we done with the true meaning of Christmas?" my Pastor asked our congregation this morning. I thought it was a brilliant way to get our attention and to take it to a personal level. The birth of Jesus is a joyful and wonderful gift from our Creator. God showed us His amazing love for us by sending His Son. We all are so wrapped up (pun intended) in the activities of the season, that we forget to share the joy of Christmas with others.

If we cannot find joy in our own celebration of Christmas, then how can others see Jesus in our lives? If we don't have love in our own hearts then we cannot share the message of Jesus with others. Jesus wants our heart ♥ This year I challenge you to stop and take the time to dig a little deeper and find out how God wants you to show His love to others this Christmas!