December 11, 2023 | Dan Low
We all do something to get ready for Christmas. We decorate our homes. We shop for gifts and food. We get together with loved ones. We send cards to family and friends. We drive or walk through neighborhoods that are all beautifully lit up with the most spectacular displays. We care for and serve others in our community (through opportunities with Project Angel Tree, Community’s Child, and Sharing Love with Others).
There are so many good things that we do to prepare ourselves for Christmas.
In the midst of all the good that we do during an always-busy holiday season, let’s be sure that we are preparing room in our hearts for Jesus – the one whose birth we are remembering. Here are a few simple ways that we can do that.
First, tap into a devotional reading plan on the Bible app (e.g., Come, Let Us Adore Him by Paul David Tripp or Waiting Here For You by Louie Giglio). The daily readings and passages will refresh our own hearts with the wonder of Jesus’ incarnation.
Second, search for and listen to Christmas songs (like Hark the Herald Angels Sing, O Come All Ye Faithful, Joy to the World) that powerfully and concisely capture the significance of Jesus entering our world as the God-Man. Close our eyes, bow our heads, fold our hands, and adore our Savior as we take in these Christmas classics.
Third, chat with a neighbor, a good friend, or a family member about our faith in Jesus – and how personally knowing the one who came to save us from our sins changes everything for us in this life and the life to come. Whether it’s right now or later on, let’s be hopeful that God will speak through our words and actions so that they too will receive his gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
As we ready our hearts to celebrate what God has already done through the birth of his Son, let’s also prepare our minds to anticipate what God will do in the return of our Messiah. Being mindful of what the past represents and what the future promises gets us fully ready for Christmas in the present.
