Sharing Christmas

It was another Christmas that did not feel like Christmas. It was getting tedious. During the week I had listened, while men smiled, as they credited their wives with all the gift shopping, wives saying they were depressed, because they had been left with all the work. I saw very few shops with decorations in place. To cap off the whole week, members of my own family wanted plans changed at the last minute to suit themselves. “God, why is Christmas such a chore?” I prayed.

Then, I saw the most common picture associated with Christmas. It was Joseph walking all the way to Bethlehem, leading a donkey, which was carrying a very pregnant Mary. They shared the workload! 

If we are to believe the romantic stories of Christmas’ past, all the members of the family worked together, to make sure everyone else in the family was cared for. I thought back to the many Christmas experiences I had as a child. The memories included all the adults working together.  The men helped each other get the outside chores done, the women chatted, while they prepared the meals, as the children played together outside. 

The birth of Jesus would not have happened, without the “Trinity” working together. “’For 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). Christmas presents the greatest opportunity to tell the politically correct world about the love of Jesus. Yet, it seems to me, that we could easily let the opportunity slip through our fingers.  

Yes, if God allows it, we will get another opportunity next year. Let’s start planning now to share the greatest story ever by working together.

Greatness

A great lady, known for her charity, hard work and love for her country, died. At the same time, in another country, a mass killing took place. It appeared this young man wanted to be remembered in history. Lady Dianna Spencer, Lady Murdock, will both be remembered for their works of charity. History remembers those people who give their lives for the good of mankind.
 
There is one other person who sacrificed His life, so that others would be able to live. Jesus Christ did just that. He lived His life, carrying out every day, many acts of charity, as we are told in John 21:25. “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” He then gave up His life on the cross so that all men could be given a way out of eternal death. “For 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. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17) 

As I watched the media report on both these people, I found myself wondering why people feel the need to be remembered, if at all, for evil rather than good. Why more people did not take up the banner of charity! Yes I know that evil dominates our world, but God is stronger and we should aim, in the strength of Christ, to be remembered for the good we do. The only way for that to happen is for all of us to roll up our sleeves and start.

Life's Storybook

A particular chapter of my life had come to an end. It was finished! As I waited to find out what was in store for me next, I got to thinking about how life is just like a story. It is sometimes said that our lives are made up of various chapters. That made me think about how a book has many chapters but the last one is the one that finishes the story. I then realised that, yes, while our lives might be like a story in a book there is one very big difference. Our last chapter will go on for eternity!

Revelation 21 and 22:1-5 tells us something of what that chapter will be like for those of us that have faith in Jesus and have had our sins forgiven.  On the other hand we read in Matthew 8:12, Matthew 22:13 and Revelation 20: 11-15 of the consequences for those who do not have their names written in the Book of Life.

Every person will have a different story written about them but there will only be one of two last chapters for all of us. One chapter will be our lives spent eternally in Heaven and the other will be eternity in Hell. All of us still have unfinished stories, chapters that are still to be written. It depends on how we write those chapters as to which closing chapter will be the last in our story.

If you are reading this, you are still living and still have time. The pages of your book are still clean, waiting to be written on. How your story continues determines the final chapter for your life. Choose Jesus and Heaven will be the final destination, Ignore Him and Hell is inevitable. Which final chapter will be yours?