Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to each of you, my devoted readers. Christmas is almost over. All the gifts have been purchased and most of them opened. Our tummies are full and our children are very happy and extremely blessed by their gifts. We have been bombarded by more sale advertisements than our brains could handle and I am sure many of us braved the stores trying to catch a sale or score a bargain. We are all acutely aware that a New Year is coming along with a mailbox full of bills too. Now we are contemplating and pondering how the New Year will be different and all the changes that we are gonna make.

I hope as this day has come to a close we each have taken the time to reflect on the true gift of this season. I hope we have done this many times over the past month despite getting caught up in the rat race of holiday madness. God's gift of His Son, Jesus is the reason we celebrate. The best gifts are not those we place under the tree but those we give of ourselves. Our time, our service, or talents. Let each of aim to remember that as we make our resolutions for 2011. I continue to remind you that on our worst day, we really are extremely blessed. That said, we all have something to give. Sometimes it is a simple smile to a stranger on the street. Others, it may be the clothes we have sitting in our closet that we will not be wearing. It can be holding an infant in the hospital or reading to a class. The list goes on and on but trust me there are needs all around you, you only need to look in your own backyard.

None of us know what it cost to willingly sacrifice our child for the world, and we never will. We will suffer loss, we will face defeat, and some times we may even lose heart, but God has given us His Son to carry us through all of those things and then some.  I hope you know how special that gift really is for each of us. Every individual has an opportunity to have a relationship with Christ and all of our relationships will look different. It is called a personal relationship, you know? I trust that whatever your relationship with Him is, it will grow in the year to come.

Luke 2:10-11 states, "But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." That is the gift we as Christians celebrate(and a whole lot of non-Christians, too). Let your gifts shine forth all year not just in December. That would be the best gift we could give to the Greatest Gift of All! I certainly hope you found your Christmas merry and your holidays happy! I also hope you took time to really reflect on the true meaning of the season...Without Christ, there would be no Christmas. I hope you took time out of your busy celebrations to wish Jesus a very Happy Birthday!

Copyright December 25, 2010 by Pamela Cole Thorpe