There are, without doubt, all kinds of attractions that the world offers us, yet none equals the value and emotional involvement that most of us experience within our families.
At this time of the year, when family members are out shopping and purchasing gifts for one another here in North America, I can’t help but look at the various faces that surround me in the crowds that swirl by and ponder the emotions that are experienced by all these “different” families. The families come in all sizes and colors, they speak many different languages, and many have originated from cultures that are different from our own.
Yet regardless of the country of origin, regardless of the language spoken, regardless the color of their skin, all of them, without exception, value to varying degrees, the family. These are the people that we grew up with, these are the people that we hold in esteem to varying degrees, and in some cases, these are the people who we keep ourselves either close to or separate from.
And when I look at their faces, I don’t see the famous faces or the exceptional; what I see are the faces that mirror myself, the “normal” run-of-the-mill men and women, young and old, moving through the motions of life. Every face has a story, every face has values, and every face has known both victory and defeat.
This “life” we have all been given is a gift, and the life that we have been given is not always equal. Some receive what we consider “more” and some receive “less,” yet whether we receive the “more” or the “less,” in varying degrees, it is still a gift. Here in North America, both with those of us who believe in Jesus Christ and celebrate His birth and those who do not believe and celebrate the “festive season,” or whatever persuasion they might adhere to; there is a general sentiment to share with the less fortunate and to come together as a family.
The family unit is important, it can bring us together, or it can separate us apart. It can foster love, or it can foster disdain. It can bond, or it can break, never to be repaired.
And whether we acknowledge it or not, this life we have been given comes from God, our creator. But He didn’t just create us and leave it there. Oh no, He gave us His Word, His communication to mankind, through the Bible, of reaching out to us, which tells of a separation caused by ignorance and self-centered pride, followed by a promise of reconciliation through a Savior who would do for us, what we in ourselves could not do. And this reconciliation comes through another gift, in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ.
And by this gift, which He holds out to us to acknowledge and accept, He brings us back into His family.
The birth of Jesus Christ speaks of reconciliation, it speaks of God’s love, and it speaks of a hope that bonds us back together in God’s family like it was meant to be.
There’s nothing wrong with exchanging gifts or sharing with the less fortunate or coming together as a family but look beyond the exchanging of gifts, look beyond the sharing with the less fortunate, look beyond the bonding together of the individually segregated families and see the true gift and meaning of Christmas.
John 3:16 NIV “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.”
This Christmas, if you haven’t done so already, come home to the family of God.
Worthy is the Lamb! Blessings!
Written by Bruce Cooper
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Christian Grandfather Magazine
Featured Image by Janet Dahmen from Pixabay
[…] Open the full article on the kingdomwinds.com site […]