Accept no substitutes

As I do every year, I write a blog about Christmas. Last year it was about why we celebrate Christmas and the year before that what Christmas means to me. This year, what do you do for Christmas every year? This question has a lot of implications with in it but mainly, as Christians; we will need to be prepared to answer this very question. Not just from other Christians either…how we answer can impact those who have not received Christ into their hearts yet.

Just by answering this simple question, we can lead others into knowing the true meaning of Christmas and the fact there is a God that really loves them. With that being said….what is the true meaning of Christmas?

As I type this, there are people asking….What will I do for Christmas? The general answers I’m hearing are: Were going to have dinner with friends; My spouse is getting off work and so we plan to spend Christmas together; and my children are in town and so we will get together. Deep answers….don’t you think? We expect to take time to spend with our families and friends. We celebrate by giving gifts to each other.

Is this truly Christmas though? Is this what is to be expected from the Holiday season? The word holiday is taken from the words “Holy Day”. What should you and I be doing this Holiday season then? Is it more than just giving gifts (or expecting gifts?) Is it more than spending time and money going places so that we can say that we visited important people? Is this Christmas?

Some of you know how I favor drinking Dr. Pepper. Believe it or not, Dr.Pepper was the first soft drink invented. Coca-Cola was invented in 1886 but the Doctor, 1885. It was invented in Waco, Texas at the Morrison’s Old Corner Drug Store. The name supposedly came from a Confederate Army Doctor named Charles Pepper.

There are many substitutes for Dr. Pepper…There is Mr. Pibb; Mezzo-mix (German brand) and they all taste similar but there not the same as Pepper. While there may be competitors that try to act like this soft-drink brand, no one can compare. The same is true for Christmas. We try to do things that come close to the real substance of Christmas. But they are just imitations and poor substitutions. So what is the substance of Christmas?

Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. While the celebration of the birth of Christ is not a written law; it’s not even what Jesus said we should celebrate. Jesus said to remember His death, not His birth. Yet we do it in this gift-giving and family-visiting way. Is this really Christmas?

·        Christmas is not about getting gifts, but about giving gifts and serving others. Just as the shepherds took care of sheep and were called out by the angels to visit the Savior, so you and I are called out to serve. We need to take the time of Christmas and serve others. You can do that by simply offering a place for others who have nothing. You can do that by inviting people to your home and celebrating Christmas together.

·        Christmas is about visiting God. We need to take time to get to know Him and celebrating Him. Soon after the Shepherds visited the baby Jesus they go tell someone else. When you become a Christian, you follow Christ. When you visit God and realize the good things He has in store for you through His Son Jesus, you want to naturally tell someone else? Have you struck up a conversation with someone this month about Christmas? Did that conversation include telling them that you follow Jesus? Did that conversation come to a point of inviting others to visit with Jesus? This is part of what Christmas is about.

No matter how you celebrate Christmas this year, spend that time focusing not on the material gains in gifts, or the requirements of family expectations. Instead, focus this year on Jesus – He is the reason for Christmas.

I love God and serve him and can’t see myself EVER doing anything else.

See…everything else is just a poor substitute.