Are you ready for Christmas? Ready or not, it’s here once again and this year I want you to dig deeper than ever before to recognize what type of gift this baby boy offers each of us.
As you know, I have a new grand baby, and I can’t help but think of Mary the mother of baby Jesus.
Can you imagine how much she stared at him?
Can you imagine the weight she carried to keep him safe as an infant since there was a king who wanted to literally kill him?
The angel that announced his birth never mentioned the immediate threat they would face. Nor did the angels when they announced His birth.
Now in her staring-moments, you know she was found praying a lot harder than she had ever prayed before.
Imagine what her prayers sounded like.
I bet she never took her relationship with God for granted – the father of Jesus in His humanity lived in her heart and his son lived in her home.
So, today, my topic is familiarity. Mary was obviously chosen because she was not a casual Christian. She had a deep relationship with the God of ancestors. She knew him. This Christmas I am asking myself this question, and I will share it with you:
Are we too familiar with God, and yet we hardly know Him?
Think about those words. We know that relationships change once someone begins to take one person for granted. The Bible tells us the familiarity breeds contempt.
Contempt is a strong word. Webster’s gives us two definitions and this Christmas I want to ask you to Ask God if he sees this in your life:
1. the feeling that a person or a thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn.
Okay, maybe we aren’t doing this but let me read the second definition that applies to the word contempt.
2. disregard for something that should be taken into account.
I bet a lot of us fall into this category.
So, I am going to ask you to reconsider your Christmas routine this year.
Focus on the true meaning and pace yourself with all the other stuff the world has made Christmas to be.
He is the reason for the season. And he is coming back.
Let’s remember what Ps 46:10 says:
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
Let’s add to that scripture: And you will be exalted through my life.
Merry Christmas my friends.
I plan on saying that a lot this month. We all could use a little more merry in our hearts.
