Amid the hustle and bustle, going to the post office to drop off some packages that your eternal procrastinator had put off until the very last minute…I had to stop by a friend’s house, Ms. Shirley, who always pulls out the stops for Christmas. You know, the light display outside, the decorated 7-foot. spruce in the living room window, and the inside of her house looked like the elves from the North Pole had decorated it.

The oddity was that upon approaching the house, the lights weren’t on outside—and when walking into the house—that big decorated spruce was missing. There was simply an undecorated mini tree sitting atop the living room console.

Upon closer inspection, most of her Christmas decorations were inside the house. I said to her, “Ms. Shirley, are you trying to say it’s what’s on the inside that counts? ” In other words, you could have the most decorated house in the neighborhood, but what does the inside of your house look like?

Circumspectly, as children of God, we might look spiffy on the outside, but how do we look on the inside? What is our heart condition? Are the ornaments of love and mercy hanging on our hearts?

As we began talking, Ms. Shirley and I both agreed that this celebration of Christmas had definitely taken a wrong turn. It’s become far too commercial, taking people away from Jesus.

She told me this Christmas, when her family comes together, she is taking them back to the beginning and unwrapping her Christmas gift from a different perspective. She said the things she would be discussing about Christ might not be fashionable to some, but He must come first, no matter what. Can we have a real Christmas?

I told her about a scripture that came to my remembrance…Jeremiah 10:3-4: “For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not”. Although some theologians would argue this text is not referring to the Christmas tree—it is a pagan ritual nonetheless.

Also, I shared a poem I’d found on Facebook that went along with that sentiment. and an older post I did, entitled Is There Any Room At Your Inn? that ran in that same vein. She asked me if I wouldn’t mind emailing it to her because she’d planned on asking me over until she found out I was on my way out of town and wanted to use that material as part of her presentation.

On preparing to leave, she emphasized, like Jesus, we must be about our Father’s business, and when a door opens, remind others about the saving power unto the salvation of Jesus. She said, “If anybody asks you what you do — you tell them I work in my Father’s business.” And if they ask what your Father’s business is, take advantage of that open door to tell them about Jesus Christ.

So this Christmas, I am asking my loyal readers to be sure and pass forward the greatest gift of all this holiday season, which is the gift of Jesus Christ! Can we have a real Christmas?

Thank you for your continued readership and support. Until next week…Blessings and Peace!

© Rhema International 2024. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Rhema International.