Thanksgiving and Christmas is upon us and this Holiday Season is my favorite time of the year. We have come through a time of testing, trial and uncertainty but all the while we are a blessed people. This season is one of thanksgiving and celebration. My heart is full of thanksgiving for the many blessings the Lord has given. May we always have a heart of thanksgiving. Martin Luther wrote: “The greater God’s gifts and works, the less they are regarded.” How true! A hungry man is more thankful for his small portion than a rich man for a full and bountiful table. A lonely person in a nursing home appreciates a visit more than a person who is popular and a party is thrown for them. One of the evidences of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives is a gradual reversal of that twisted pattern. God wants us to be a people who will have a heart full of thanksgiving.
How can we give thanks to God? Psalm 9 shares several ways in how we can give thanks.
We can live thankful by Witnessing. Psalm 9:1 says, “I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart: I will tell of all Your wonders.” Bill Bright said, ‘Witnessing is simply taking the initiative to share Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit and then leave the results to God.’
We can live thankful by Worshiping. Psalm 9:2 says, “I will be glad and exult You; I will sing praise to Your name.” Worship can take place everywhere and at any time, not just in a church building or just on Sunday morning. True worship will calm the pain and sorrow in our lives and will create a oneness with God and one another.
We can live thankful by Waiting. Psalm 9:3-10 tells us to trust the Lord. To lean on Him and take refuge in Him. He will not forsake those who seek Him. When we go through uncertain days let us trust the Lord for, He is our stronghold.
Christmas brings us to the real reason for worship and celebration, the birth of Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. This is a glorious time of year. Glorious for many reasons, and as we worship the birth of our Savior and Lord this season we are reminded of the true reason for celebration. Isaiah 40:5 reads, “The Glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all mankind shall see it.” Luke 2:10 tells us, “I give you news of great Joy, a Joy to be shared by all the people.” May we go and tell the wonderful news of Jesus to everyone we meet. Let us not forget that as we are decorating our trees and putting our gifts under our trees, remember that God put up His tree and put His Gift ON His tree.
As I think on the Gift of Jesus Christ in my life, I realize how much more Christmas means to me, and how much more I love Jesus who is the reason for the season.
Maybe this says it best:
The Older I Get…
The simpler my holiday preparations become…
The closer I feel to old friends as I write my Christmas cards…
The more I cherish the oldest ornaments…
The more fondly I remember Christmases past…
The longer I hold on to a holiday hug…
The more I realize Christmas is a matter of the heart…
The tighter my throat gets when I sing “Silent Night” …
The more I enjoy giving than receiving…
The more I try to see Christmas through the eyes of a child…
The more wondrously beautiful the Christmas story is…
The deeper my awe at God’s infinite love…
The MORE I LOVE CHRISTMAS AND THE CHRIST OF CHRISTMAS.
Christmas is not as much about opening our presents, as opening our hearts and he who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree. My prayer is that we will be able to see many find Jesus in their hearts this Christmas season. Thank you for all you do for the Kingdom and may the glory of the Lord be revealed in you. I love the beautiful chorus:
Emmanuel, Emmanuel,
His name is called Emmanuel.
God with us, revealed in us,
His name is called Emmanuel.
“Exceeding Great Joy”
This is the most wonderful time of the year. With thanksgiving in our hearts, we celebrate the birth of our Savior and King.
