For a child has been born – for us! the gift of a son – for us! He’ll take over the running of the world. His names will be Amazing Counselor, Strong God, Eternal Father, Prince of wholeness. His ruling authority will grow, and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness He brings. (Isaiah 9:6 The Message)
Category Archives: Christmas
THE CHRIST OF CHRISTMAS
Today is Christmas Eve! Tomorrow, Christmas day 2011!
Christmas is the celebration of Christ’s birth. Forget all the hype the world has brought into it. Without the Christ in your Christmas, your celebration is empty. I mean, what meaning do you ascribe to celebrating someone’s birthday without him? Or what do you think?
Christ is the center of Christmas. Christ’s-mass, that is what it is. Period!
Christ!
He was born that I might be born again.
He died that I may not die again.
He lives so I might live forever!
That God became a man at Christmas.
That man could live like God because of Christmas.
The Word became flesh and dwelt amongst us.
We beheld His glory.
The glory as of the Only begotten of the Father.
What a mystery!
What a love!
What a God!
May the Christ of Christmas fill your heart and home with the love, joy and peace that He brings this season and all year round. MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Now, that is it! I’m done. Celebration mode activated!
If this has blessed you, you might also enjoy this: What Really Is Christmas?
THE TOP 10 BLOG POSTS OF 2011
I want to appreciate you for hanging out with me on this platform. It’s been a wonderful time. It’s a joy knowing that you’re reading what I’m writing. For that privilege I’m most grateful.
2011 is almost at a close, and it’s that time of year when most of us reflect on the year gone by. At this blog that means taking stock of blog posts from the year to find out what topics and issues ministered most to you.
My end of the year assessment takes me to revisit the favorite posts of the year. Web analytics have helped me to arrive at this, but I also take into account your feedback and my own sense of what was really relevant.
So, here we go… The Top Ten Blog Posts of the year 2011:
7 Keys for Maximizing 2012
5 Tips for Getting Much More Out of Your Reading
I Married the Pastor’s Wife!
What Really Is Christmas (How to Celebrate Christmas)
15 Sure Things to Do To Fail!
Step Inside That Jordan!
Why I Do What I Do
Cranky Husband Learns an Attitude of Gratitude
20 Questions You Must Answer About 2012
Leaders are Learners
Now, if this blog has blessed you, why not ask your friends to visit and subscribe. I love you and believe in you. YOU WILL SUCCEED!
WHAT REALLY IS CHRISTMAS? (How To Celebrate Christmas)
Christmas is here again! Oh! How I love Christmas! Are you in the mood already? Is your Christmas tree up yet? Are the hampers packed? What’s more – the Carols, Santa coming to town, the shopping sprees, the chicken and the turkeys? I just love it! (Don’t hate me for this!)
But what really is Christmas? Have you bothered to ask yourself? What does it mean? Is it about the shopping, the fanfare and the glitz?
Christmas is celebrated worldwide on December 25 annually to commemorate the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, it’s Jesus’ birthday! But was Jesus born on December 25, you may ask me? What does it matter? All that matters is that Jesus was born. And that is worth celebrating!
I will like to submit to you here, that the essence of Christmas is not in the shopping, neither is it in the hampers nor in the turkey and chicken dinners. For me I find it in the ‘first Christmas’ when wise men from the east came celebrating the birth of the baby Jesus. (See Matthew 1:18-25; 2:1-11)
“…There came wise men…to worship him.” There you see the real meaning of Christmas – WORSHIPPING JESUS! The ‘first Christmas’ was an occasion to worship Jesus – the Christ of Christmas.
What does it mean to worship? The word ‘worship’ means to “ascribe worth to something or someone”. Worship is ‘worth-ship’! We do not worship God except we ascribe worth to Him. And, how do ‘wise men’ do this?
Wise men worship by giving gifts! “And fell down, and worshipped him, and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.” [Matthew 2:11]
What do I mean? Wise men worship (and celebrate Christmas) by giving gifts to Jesus.
Now, you need to understand that God is not in need. We are! He is the All-Sufficient One – EL-SHADDAI. This is the nature of God’s love – He loved us first! Any act of our love therefore is only a response to His love for us. Even when we didn’t deserve it He loved us. And when He LOVED us, He GAVE! (1 John 4:9-10, 19; Romans 5:8; John 3:16). And that is fundamental. Love always results in giving. Where no giving is, there is no commitment, no love!
God gave His only Son, Jesus, as a gift at Christmas (Isaiah 9:6). He was and still is a gift to the world. The spirit of Christmas therefore, is the spirit of giving, not the consumerism that we see on display today. THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS IS THE SPIRIT OF GIVING.
Wise men worship and celebrate Christmas by giving gifts – as it was at the ‘first Christmas’. Give a gift this season, that’s how to celebrate.
First, give your life back as a gift to God. (As if you own it in the first place!) “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your reasonable act of worship.” [Romans 12:1, NIV] If you’ve not given your life to Jesus, this is a good time to do so; and for the rest of us, a time to rededicate ourselves.
Secondly, this Christmas give your time and talents in serving in the church and in your community. Be a contributor, not a consumer. Jesus is a gift that still keeps on giving (Romans 8:32). And as He is, so are you (John 20:21). YOU’RE A GIFT TO THE WORLD! Your mandate is to bless your world (the society you live in.) This season, look around you, find a need and meet it. Be a blessing to someone in need. Put a smile on someone’s face.
And last but not least, open your treasure box and give out of your material and monetary resources. Your Service To God Without The Commitment Of Your Financial Resources Is A Mockery Of Your Dedication. Giving Your Money Is A Proof Of Giving Your Life. This season, I challenge you, give big. Instead of splurging on yourself alone, cut back a little; as you eat the turkey and exchange the gifts, remember the kingdom of God. What will be your investment – your own gift to the King of kings?
This way you would have caught on to the true meaning of Christmas. And you would know that your life really counts for something. Do have a merry Christmas and a blessed 2012 in Jesus’ name.
Related post: The Christ of Christmas
Yomi Olufiade 