I remember the happiness I felt when each of my children were born. As I held those little, wrinkled, bundles of joy, it felt like my birthday, Christmas, and New Years all wrapped up in one. The love I felt, and still feel, for each one is beyond description. My children are some of the most precious gifts I’ve ever been given.
Yet there is a gift even more precious, a Gift which made all other blessings possible. Today we gather together all over the world to thank God for that Gift – His one and only Son. He is the reason for the season, the reason why we sing.
The birth of a child is always a reason to celebrate, but this Gift, this child, makes all other gifts pale in comparison. In this world which is so often dark and filled with despair, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:2). That light, which first shone so long ago, continues to light our way and, if we let it, will lead us safely home.
This Christmas, as you celebrate with family and friends, I pray your heart will once again overflow with joy, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.” (Isaiah 9:6) As you kneel once again before the manger, may you be overcome with awe that “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16).
This morning, as you gather with friends and family, thank God again for Jesus. Accept Him today as your Savior, God’s Gift to you, His precious child. And may the light which first shone from the manger so long ago continue to light your way and the memory of God’s precious gift bring you hope and joy throughout the coming year!
God bless and have a very Merry Christmas!