My favorite Christmas song is "Grown Up Christmas List" as performed by Amy Grant. While there are a lot of Christmas songs that I really enjoy, there is something about the message of this song that gets to the heart of the One for whom the season is named. Here is a section of the song that means a lot to me:
So here's my lifelong wish,
My grown-up Christmas list.
Not for myself,
But for a world in need.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,(and wars would never start)
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end.
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
This is still my list. In a world where we are inundated by TV commercials telling us what we need to be happy, this song gets to the heart of what will bring true joy.
You and I are created to be beings that give and are sent. The Father sent to Son to set us free. He sent the Spirit to empower us to be free. And we are sent to extend this freedom to those around us. Our Christmas list should, in the words of the song, be "not for myself, but for a world in need."
While I will still give presents to loved ones and I will enjoy receiving gifts from those I love, this day and season is about much more than presents under a tree. Christmas is ultimately about the Gift from God that hung on a tree and set you and me free to give ourselves for the benefit of God's Creation.
What's on your Christmas list? At the top of my list is to be more open to the leading of the Holy Spirit and to give myself to benefit those around me. May my life be an extension of the Christ who was sent for me.
shine!
Jason
Friday, December 24, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Jesus is my friend?
In the midst of the Christmas season I was thinking about how people view the Christ. I hear a lot of people say that Jesus is their friend. As I started thinking about that, a few questions came to mind.
What if people treated their other friends the way they treat their friend Jesus? What if they only visited him once or twice a week, texted throughout the conversation, paid little attention to what he might be trying to say to them, and gossipped about some of their common friends?
If we are honest, many of us are friends with Jesus because of what's in it for us. Think about how life would be if we treated our other friends like that. What if you only talked to your friends when they were going to do something for you? What if you ignored your friends until you were in trouble and then you got mad when your friend didn't do everything you wanted them to when times get rough? What if your friend tried to give you advice but you ignored the advice because it wasn't what you wanted to do?
Abraham was called a friend of God because he was following God. He wasn't perfect and made plenty of mistakes, but he followed God to an unknown land.
God knows that we will make mistakes. He extends grace and mercy. And he is more faithful than any other friend.
The next time you or someone you know says, "Jesus is my friend," think about the implications in that statement. A friend listens. A friend makes time. A friend respects. If Jesus is really our friend, shouldn't we listen to him, make time for him, and respect him?
shine!
Jason
What if people treated their other friends the way they treat their friend Jesus? What if they only visited him once or twice a week, texted throughout the conversation, paid little attention to what he might be trying to say to them, and gossipped about some of their common friends?
If we are honest, many of us are friends with Jesus because of what's in it for us. Think about how life would be if we treated our other friends like that. What if you only talked to your friends when they were going to do something for you? What if you ignored your friends until you were in trouble and then you got mad when your friend didn't do everything you wanted them to when times get rough? What if your friend tried to give you advice but you ignored the advice because it wasn't what you wanted to do?
Abraham was called a friend of God because he was following God. He wasn't perfect and made plenty of mistakes, but he followed God to an unknown land.
God knows that we will make mistakes. He extends grace and mercy. And he is more faithful than any other friend.
The next time you or someone you know says, "Jesus is my friend," think about the implications in that statement. A friend listens. A friend makes time. A friend respects. If Jesus is really our friend, shouldn't we listen to him, make time for him, and respect him?
shine!
Jason
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