It’s December. Christmas is approaching.

Indulge me with an illustration.

Imagine an alien from another planet was sent on a mission to earth to learn about Christmas. And imagine that it came to your house to watch your celebrations and to collect data. And then imagine that it had to report back to its mothership about what it learned. 

If all of that happened, what would they learn and say?

Would they learn about the birth of Christ? Would they learn about God’s loving plan to save and heal his people? Would they learn about our hopes for peace on earth?

This isn’t meant to make you feel guilty. It’s simply to encourage you to ensure the true meaning of Christmas is at the heart of your celebrations. Perhaps you’re already on track. If not, perhaps you need to adjust some of what you already plan to do to bring the gold to the surface.

When you play Christmas music, be sure to include actual Christmas music. When you put up decorations or ornaments, be sure to talk about their significance. When you say your prayers, pray for the faith, hope, peace and goodwill which are so near and dear to the season. Look for opportunities to pay forward the blessings God has so richly lavished on you.

Matthew 1:21 says: “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Reflecting on the long line-ups in malls to see Santa, Becky Kelley has a song called “Where’s the line to see Jesus.” Well, my friends, it’s in your homes, churches and hearts. 

Read the story. Worship God. And be generous to others.

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Notes:

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.