God's Truth Still Shines This Christmas Eve

This ornament has hung on our Christmas tree for years and years. From the front, it's just a green evergreen tree decorated in gold ornaments and garland. Very pretty, but very plain and very simple.

This is how many people see Christmas. There's a tree to decorate, presents to shop for, meals to make and people to greet. Some of them will go to the Christmas Eve service tonight, not for a blessing or to worship the newborn King with their church family, but because it's what they do every year before they drive around and look at Christmas lights. It's just one more item on their holiday bucket list, something to take a picture of and post online.

At the bottom of the tree, it reads: For over 2000 years, Christmas has come and gone. The sparkle and the razzle-dazzle keep us enthralled for a few weeks, but then we're back to the everyday grind come January. The celebration gets this huge build up, but it's very short-lived.

But turn the ornament around, and you'll find the power of the Lord's birth.

Yet God's real truth still shines through.

What a powerful statement when it's underlining the bare-bones cross, with the branches lying at its base. The only ornament now is the crown of Christ. This isn't the sparkle and razzle-dazzle the world wants to see. This goes back to Jesus coming to earth as a baby in the manger, but we can't leave Him there. He didn't come to start a religion or to have a day set aside every year to praise Him and give each other presents.

Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son came to earth to die for the sins of the world. That's not a popular idea, even at Christmas, but God's word says that was Jesus' business while He was here. Everything God gave Jesus to do was pointing Him toward Calvary.

I pray that you celebrate Christmas this weekend, reflecting the love and compassion of Jesus Christ on everyone you meet. But I also pray that we'll all turn the ornament around and give praise to the Lord that it didn't stop with the miracle of His birth. After December 25, we ow have to live with the truth that we have a Savior who loved us so much that He would sacrifice Himself so we could have a relationship with God and spend eternity with Him.

That's the truth of God's word, and it still shines through more than 2,000 years later. Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Recovering An Old Card Table And Making It Usable Again

Image
This card table recover project has been on my to-do list for months. I've been using it as my workspace in the craft room for quite some time, and it sees a lot of abuse. Here it is now, with a neutral cover on it so I can take better pictures for my tutorials. There were dents and dings in the old blue covering from metal tools. And yes, I've used my embossing heat tool on it several times, leaving pretty good scars. The padding underneath the blue cover also made it difficult to keep paper crafts flat when adhering them together, so it was time for something new. That's where a simple vinyl tablecloth comes in handy. The process to recover the table is pretty simple, but I learned a couple of lessons the hard way. I share them with you now. First, don't do this on any surface but a carpet. I tried it on the deck int he sunshine to get better pictures, but all it did was tear up the cover. Second, get a second pair of hands to help you kee
Read more

Simple DIY Beaded Keychains

Image
We're having so much fun putting together goodie bags and door prizes for our upcoming ladies retreat at the church. So many of our ladies have donated craft supplies, decorations, time and energy to treat our visitors to an amazing time. These keychains are just one of the gifts some of the attendees will find in their bags. All you need to make them are a variety of beads, some fairly thin yet sturdy cord and a jump ring. Cut a length of cord, fold it in half and string it through the jump ring. String matching beads on both sides. And tie it off with a double knot. So simple, yet so pretty. Here's another variation: Cut a length of cord, fold it in half and thread it through a jump ring. Tie one or two beads on one side and tie it off with a knot. Make the other side longer with additional letters and beads before tying it off. Make a variety of lengths, colors, patterns and phrases so no two are alike.
Read more

Debilitating Disappontment

The things of this life tend to disappoint us. People aren't who we'd like them to be, events we'd hoped for never occur and things we'd expected to happen in a certain way never come to pass. I've tried relying on everything else in this life - relationships, career, better finances. When we look to mankind for answers or for hope, we will surely be disappointed. Our own misconceptions of life's circumstances leads us down a long, dreary path. What we plan and see inside our head doesn't always match what others see, or what may actually be reality. Looking into ourselves for "clarity" directs us straight to depression and failure. Have you ever heard yourself say, "I couldn't care less" and truly meant it? Having confidence in our own power to change our outlook means that we care more about the circumstances themselves rather than how to grow as Christian women. God is the only unchanging factor in our uncertain world. Focusing on
Read more