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Christmas is upon us.  For most Americans, myself included, it is a busy time of rushing to find last minute gifts, preparing for parties, attending other parties, and finding time to sneak in that surprise present for the special someone in your life.

For many of those celebrating Christmas, it also means a trip to church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day to hear a message about the season, or maybe just to watch the grandkids cross the stage riding a “donkey” or following yonder star.

For some, it is a time of worship, a time to remember that a baby boy born 2000 years ago represents God, humbling himself, in preparation for the ultimate sacrifice, the life of his own Son.

For a few, it will be a hard time.  The first Christmas without a loved one.  Memories of wonderful times bringing fresh longing for the missing person who was always by their side.

And for someone, maybe someone you know, it will be a day of great and perfect hope.  They will realize that for many Christmases past there was a missing person, but that this Christmas will be their first to celebrate the birth of Christ – together with Him in their heart.

So as you go to celebrate Christmas this year, don’t forget that the most important gift you can bring with you is to share the work of Christ, which you carry in your heart, and not in a box.  In doing so, there may be one more person who can celebrate not just the birth of Christ, but their own rebirth in Christ.

Merry Christmas, God is With Us!