Finding Christmas: Giving Ourselves

Merry Christmas from Greenbriar Farms and the Wonder Dogs! 

"For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me." Matthew 25: 35 nasb

As we celebrate today, thousands of people in our area are still reeling from the catastrophic tornado less than forty-eight hours ago. The loss of property, catastrophic in its own right, is nothing compared to the loss of life and limb. Not everyone is celebrating the way I will today, with a special meal eaten with those I love. 

Not everyone is eating in the place they most love to be.

Wednesday, emergency personnel, many who are volunteers, went door to door, checking to be sure people were safe. It was a horrible kind of head count. Who made it through? Who didn't? At least one of those rescue workers lost his home, yet he was there, doing his job. 

For thousands of people across the South, it was a long, hard night.

As the WTVA newscaster reported on the damage in Holly Springs, there was a catch in her voice. "I live in Holly Springs," she said. Her heart was breaking for her town, but she stayed in place. Warning others. Keeping people safe.

There are many people who went above and beyond. We'll hear their stories over the next few days and we'll take heart in the kindness of strangers, the mercies shown in the midst of the tragedy. You and I can be part of the recovery effort. We can be one of the ones who goes above and beyond. 

We can be the strangers who show kindness to those in desperate trouble.

Hope Reigns (a Tupelo-based charitable organization) strives to "show the Love of Jesus Christ to disaster victims 48-72 hours after a disaster strikes anywhere in the contiguous 48 states." (I've copied directly from their website to ensure my accuracy.)

"The means to meeting this goal will be through clearing debris, tarping roofs, gutting water damaged homes and salvaging personal property. These are the most basic immediate actions necessary to preserve property and livelihood. In so doing, Hope Reigns volunteers seek to build bonds with home owners, community leaders and other disaster relief organizations for immediate relief and in hope of laying a foundation for future disaster-recovery efforts."

If you are interested in volunteering, please email hopereigns@eightdaysofhope.com.

There will be lots of presents given and received today, but one of the best gifts you can give is a helping hand to one in need. Why not join with us in helping our neighbors recover from the disaster they've experienced?

"The King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me." Matthew 25:40 nasb 

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links:  Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled, Finding Christmas: The Good Husband, Finding Christmas: The Sin Fast, Finding Christmas: The Mission Statement, Finding Christmas: The Divine Paradox, and Finding Christmas: The Storm Shelter, Finding Christmas: Overcoming. 

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.
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The Clay Papers (lessons in being moldable in God's hands, based on a series of pottery lessons) is now available as a 99 cent ebook on Amazon. Click the link to see more. 

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#HopeReigns #eightdaysofhope #mstornado #tornado #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist 

Finding Christmas: Overcoming

Late yesterday afternoon, Sam came by. "What about these storms they say is coming?" he asked. I opened my radar app and projected their course. They would miss us. I thought. I hoped. 

Friends and family began to text and call. "Are you watching the weather?" No. Of course I wasn't. I was knitting and listening to Josh Groban's Christmas album. "You can stream it live," my sister told me as she repeated what Matt Laubhan (our meteorologist) was saying. "Get in a safe room or go to the storm shelters." 

I called Sam. For the first time ever, I put a chair in the small hallway outside my downstairs bathroom and sat Sam in it as I prayed for safety. It's a tiny space. Barely room for Sam and his chair, two Wonder Dogs, pillows and blankets, I sat on the floor with my laptop. We were squeezed in tight. 

Until I began to stream the live weather report, my only concern was me. 

My farm. My property. My animals. My Sam. My house. Suddenly, I realized the storms were headed toward people I know. People I love. My prayers weren't just about me anymore.

The long-track tornado was on the ground for more than 150 miles. It left devastating damage. At least four are dead in Mississippi alone, two more in Arkansas. 

Homes are gone. Dreams are wiped away. Life has changed.

This morning, people will search through the debris to find whatever they can salvage. The process of rebuilding and recovering has already begun.Those who have lost so much will survey the damage and wonder how to go on.

I don't have all the answers, but there is one thing I know for sure. 

Jesus said we'd have trouble. There would be heartache and loss and sorrow. And there is. 

He said something else, and we'd do well to remember it today.

"... In the world you have tribulation, 

but take courage; I have overcome the world."

                                           John 16:33b nasb

In the midst of our sorrow, one truth remains. Jesus can help us face our loss, and He will. He has overcome the world, and He will help us. 

For thousands of people who were in the path of the storms, life has changed in ways they never imagined, never wanted. The recovery will be long and hard. One truth, however, remains the same.

King Jesus reigns victorious over sin and death and He has not left us alone.

And old song plays in my head this morning. Maybe you remember it.

"Jesus will help us. Jesus alone."

Pray for all those affected by last night's storms, especially those who have lost loved ones. They have sustained unimaginable loss. Pray, too, for those who will be aiding in the rescue effort. 

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links:  Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success,  Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled, Finding Christmas: The Good Husband, Finding Christmas: The Sin Fast, Finding Christmas: The Mission Statement, Finding Christmas: The Divine Paradox, and Finding Christmas: The Storm Shelter.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.
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The Clay Papers (lessons in being moldable in God's hands, based on a series of pottery lessons) is now available as a 99 cent ebook on Amazon. Click the link to see more. 

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#mstornado #tornado #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple,#Wordbecameflesh  #Christian

photo courtesy of freeimages.com

Finding Christmas: The Storm Shelter

Like most people around here, the warm weather in December has concerned me. It's a precursor of bad weather, and I've dreaded what was to come. I listened to the weather report yesterday with growing concern. 

Storms are predicted for today. The possibility of tornadoes in our area is 70%. Twenty years ago, I'd have heard that figure and interpreted it to mean it's a 30% chance of no tornadoes. That was before I saw the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused. Before I survived the Tupelo tornado of 2014. Before I volunteered in the recovery effort in Louisville and in Tupelo. 

Storms come, and they can leave incredible destruction in their wake.

We know that now, and people in our area have already begun to take precautions. They've located storm shelters. Gathered food and supplies. Just in case.

Storms can come in life, too. You've probably experienced those, just as I have. 

Those terrible trials can leave incredible destruction in their wake. They leave us longing for a life-storm shelter to protect us and those we love.

Isaiah wrote of a shelter that never fails.

A King will come, he wrote. One who will reign righteously. His princes will rule justly. 

And each will be like a refuge from the wind,

And a shelter from the storm...

Isaiah 32:2 nasb

We have a shelter that never fails. A refuge from the wind. Protection from the storms of life. King Jesus rules and reigns with righteousness. His name is a strong tower and we can run to it. No matter the storm we face. Illness? Betrayal? Heartbreak? Death? He can shelter us and carry us through.

Isaiah was right. Our good and righteous king, Jesus, did come. As we approach Christmas, and the celebration of our Savior's birth, let's remember that the Baby in the Manger is also our Righteous King and He, alone, is our refuge and shelter.

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links:  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success,  Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled, Finding Christmas: The Good Husband, Finding Christmas: The Sin Fast, Finding Christmas: The Mission Statement, and Finding Christmas: The Divine Paradox.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.
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The Clay Papers (lessons in being moldable in God's hands, based on a series of pottery lessons) is now available as a 99 cent ebook on Amazon. Click the link to see more. 

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#stormshelter #tornado #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple,#Wordbecameflesh  #Christian

photo courtesy of freeimages.com

Finding Christmas: The Divine Paradox

I know that Isaiah is not generally considered a comic read, but reading Isaiah 64 this morning struck me as so funny that I laughed out loud. Maybe I found humor in the words because I identified with the sentiment so strongly.

"Oh, that Thou wouldst rend the heavens and come down...

When Thou didst awesome things which we did not expect, 

Thou didst come down, the mountains quaked at Thy presence..."

Isaiah 64:1-3 nasb

I've felt like that before, and you probably have, too. (This is the Leanna interpretation) Isaiah had been waiting for God and was about worn out. I've been there. Desperate for God to do something. Anything will do. Just move, God. 

That's where Isaiah was. Just come and do something, God. How about something big and showy? Do something impressive and flashy, the kind of thing that scares us out of our minds because of how huge it is. Do something so big even the mountains will quake in response.

Isaiah wanted an enormous move of God that would impress everyone with its magnitude and power. It took hundreds of years, but God answered his prayer, and His answer took everyone by surprise.

God rent the heavens and came down. Wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. It wasn't a joke. It was an answered prayer. It was so big and surprising that most people couldn't believe it, because, although it was huge, it looked so small.

The paradox of God is a delight to me. We want something big, and He does something big but disguises it as something small. So small that we have to look close and open our hearts to receive it. 

I've prayed for God to move in huge ways many times. A few weeks ago, the invitation at the end of the church service I had attended, as usual, was for anyone who wanted to come to the altar to pray alone, to have the altar ministry team pray with them, or to have prayers for healing, in addition to making a decision of some kind. 

More than a dozen people went down. Some prayed alone. Some prayed with ministers. At least one person went forward to request healing. 

As I watched the forward flow of people, saw their tears, recognized the peace in their faces as they left the altar, I understood something in a deeper way than before. 

Sometimes the move of God is so dramatic and flashy that every eye sees it and trembles. Sometimes the move of God is so intimate and personal that only a handful of people see it and tremble. 

Both moves of God are big. Both are "awesome things which we did not expect". Both are answered prayers.

As we celebrate the big move of God that seemed so small, the Baby Jesus in the manger, let's be sure to thank Him for all the ways He moves in our lives and celebrate the paradox that startled mankind and transformed our world. 

God sent His Son to save us all. Nothing could be more dramatic than that.

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes,  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success,  Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled, Finding Christmas: The Good Husband, Finding Christmas: The Sin Fast, and Finding Christmas: The Mission Statement. 

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.
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The Clay Papers (lessons in being moldable in God's hands, based on a series of pottery lessons) is available as a 99 cent ebook on Amazon. Click the link to see more. 

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#divineparadox #moveofGod #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple,#Wordbecameflesh  #Christian

Finding Christmas: The Mission Statement

It was Chicago, October, 2003. I was attending a conference for Christian healthcare workers. One of the speakers used Isaiah 61 as the basis for his talk, and it changed how I saw Jesus and my obedience to Him. 

In a subtle way, I had begun to think of Jesus as mostly a healer of physical ills. He healed everywhere He went. He's the Great Physician. I saw the miraculous healings and, in a subtle way, mistakenly thought they were the "main thing", but they were not. Jesus made that clear from the start.

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

Because the Lord has anointed me

To bring good news to the afflicted;

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to aptives,

And freedom to prisoners;

To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord...

                                     Isaiah 51:1-2 nasb

You probably remember this passage. It's Jesus' "mission statement." Hundreds of years after it was written, Jesus stood in the synagogue in Nazareth and read Isaiah 61:1-2. "Today, this is fulfilled in your presence," He told those listening. 

It didn't go well. Before he was through talking, the men there that day tried to throw him off a cliff. 

They wanted Jesus' miraculous healings. They wanted His water-into-wine trick. They didn't want to hear His good news or His proclamation of liberty.

He came to spread the good news of freedom in Christ. 

Christ did not come to tout a set of rules or beat us into submission.

He came to set us free. 

He did not come to heal all our sickness or remove all our sorrow.

He came to proclaim liberty to those bound by sin and its consequences.

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus this year, let's also celebrate the work He came to do... proclaiming, declaring, offering freedom, providing balm and binding hurt.

If we are to follow Him, we, too, must embrace the work He came to do. We, too, must make bringing the good news of Christ to a dark and perishing world our highest priority. Every other action must be made with the proclamation of truth as its objective.

My pastor said something yesterday that pretty much sums this up. "God was so excited about His plan to send Jesus that He couldn't wait to tell it. He announced it seven hundred years before He did it. If God was that excited about the coming of Christ, shouldn't we also be excited to tell the world?" 

We have good news and it's worth sharing. This Christmas, let's be sure to proclaim the best news of all. 

Christ has come. Christ has risen. Christ is coming again. Hallelujah.

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Sustenance for the Weary, Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes,  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success,  Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled, Finding Christmas: The Good Husband, Finding Christmas: The Sin Fast.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.

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#GoodNews #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple,#Wordbecameflesh #

Finding Christmas: The Sin Fast

"What are you giving up for lent?" my friend asked more than a decade ago. Lent? I wasn't giving up anything at all. It was a foreign concept to me, as was fasting, but the conversation began a journey I never expected.

In studying about fasting (because if I'm going to do something, I want to do it "right") I found Isaiah 58. The people, God said, were attending church services and doing all the right things. They were fasting and expecting God to answer their prayers, but it wasn't happening. (This is, admittedly, the Leanna Paraphrase... you can read it for yourself in your own Bible.) 

"What's up with this, God? You aren't doing anything we ask!" they complained.

"You're just fasting to get your own way. You don't want to have a changed heart. You want to continue in your sin. What's humble and repentant about that?" God countered.

If your prayers are not being answered, the Lord spoke through Isaiah, maybe you need to get the sin out of your life. Maybe the fast you need to do is a sin fast.

God described the fast He chooses:

"To loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke... to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into the house... When you see the naked, to cover him... Don't hide yourself from your own flesh..." (Isaiah 58:6-7 nasb)

Ouch. I've been there before, and you probably have, too. I've had a heart full of hurt and anger. I've struggled to connect with God. I've been the one holding to so much sin that I couldn't hear God's voice.

The wonderful thing about Isaiah 58 is it's an IF/THEN chapter. I love this because God makes it so simple. 

IF we do what He says, THEN we can be certain He will do what He promises.

IF we live generously and strive for righteousness, if we let go of the anger and bitterness that separates us from our own families, a wonderful thing will happen. Light will flood our lives. Righteous will go before us. The glory of the Lord will be our rear guard.

The best of all, however, is that, when we choose to let go of the sin that binds us up, we can call on God and He will answer us. 

"You will cry, and He will say, 'Here I am'."

IF we remove a judgmental and critical spirit and replace it with a spirit of generosity and giving, THEN He will continually guide us, satisfy us, strengthen us. He will empower us to make a difference that lasts for a lifetime. 

We can't have God's "then" without obeying His "if". 

Our anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, selfishness, and stubbornness have to go. It's as simple as that. I know, because I've been there. Knowing God, hearing His voice finally became more important than the sin to which I was clinging. Letting go was the best decision I ever made because when I obeyed the IF, God kept the promise of the THEN. 

If what we desire this holiday season is to "find" Christmas, to experience it in the way God intended, we will have to "find" it God's way. 

It seems hard, but it's not. Simply let go. Give your sin to God. He will do the rest.

What can  wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 

Psalm 51:10 nasb

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Not Forgotten, Finding Christmas: Sustenance for the Weary, Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes,  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success,  Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled, and Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Good Husband.

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#Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple,#Wordbecameflesh #Repent #sinfast 

Finding Christmas: The Good Husband

It was more than two decades ago, but I can still see myself, standing in the hallway of the office, one hand on the phone, blinking back tears. Former State Senator Nancy Collins was working at the hospital back then. She had called to ask me to be chairperson for a fund-raiser. I don't remember the cause, but the conversation is still vivid in my mind.

I didn't feel I could tackle a big project, I told her, because I was in the midst of a divorce. It was a devastating time. Between working, dealing with my farm and livestock, and (most importantly) being a single mother, I had more than I could handle already. I was fragile. The thought of adding one more thing to my overwhelming life brought me to tears.

She understood. She'd been there before, she told me, and there were two verses that had sustained her during those difficult days.

Fear not, for you will not be put to shame;

Neither feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced;

But you will forget the shame of your youth,

And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.

For your husband is your Maker,

Whose name is the Lord of hosts;

And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,

Who is called the God of all the earth.

                                                     Isaiah 54:4,5 nasb

I didn't realize how important those two verses, hidden away in Isaiah, would be to me over the years. The words "your husband is your Maker" rang in my heart. That evening, I wrote the verses on an index card and tucked it in my pocket. I carried it with me until I had memorized the words. They are written on my heart to this day, for they sustained me through a time when I felt shamed, humiliated, and disgraced. A time when I was heart-broken and struggling to carry on.

Nancy was right. My Maker did become my husband, and He has been the best husband imaginable, even though He is a not a "husband with skin on". He's met my needs, provided wisdom, strength, and hope. The shame I felt during that time is only a distant memory.

I've never believed in a "name it and claim it" theology, but I do believe in clinging to truth. Over the years, the truth in Scripture has spoken to me just as these two verses did. It has specifically addressed my need and given me direction, or hope, or strength. Sometimes, it's given me conviction when I was in danger of wandering.

This year, let's immerse ourselves in the Word of God, the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us, the Word we celebrate this season. Whatever need we face, the answer lies in the Word. If we need help, or hope, or strength, we can find it, not in the glitter and rush of this world, but only in God's Word.

"And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14 nasb
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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Hidden Paths, Finding Christmas: Not Forgotten, Finding Christmas: Sustenance for the Weary, Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes,  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success, and Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled. 

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: Separating Truth and Fiction.

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#Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple, #Wordof God #Wordbecameflesh, #NancyCollins

Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled

Jesus didn't look like anyone expected. Most religious people rejected Him. Despite their enmity, He carried their sins (my sin, our sin) to the cross. Everything He suffered was for us, for me. Because of His sacrifice, we are justified. I am justified. 

He prayed for us as He was dying. He prays for us still.

Isaiah 53 might be my favorite chapter in the Bible. I know that Luke 2 is the passage most people read on Christmas, but this chapter is always part of my personal Christmas reading. Pure prophecy. Every word fulfilled in Jesus the Christ. It's so beautiful that I'm including it, in the NASB version that I prefer, in its entirety. Nothing more. Rejoice today in the One who carried our sin and set us free.

Who has believe our message?

And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,

And like a root out of parched ground;

He has no stately form or majesty

That we should look upon Him,

Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.

He was despised and forsaken of men,

A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;

And like one from whom men hide their face,

He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Surely our griefs He Himself bore,

And our sorrows He carried;

Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten of God, and afflicted.

But He was pierced through for our transgressions,

He was crushed for our iniquities;

The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,

And by His scourging we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray,

Each of us has turned to his own way; 

But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all

To fall on Him.

He was oppressed and He was afflicted, 

Yet He did not open His mouth;

Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,

And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,

So He did not open His mouth.

By oppression and judgment He was taken away;

And as for His generation, who considered

That He was cut off out of the land of the living,

For the transgression of my people to whom the stroke was due?

His grave was assigned with wicked men, 

Yet He was with a rich man in His death,

Because He had done no violence,

Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

But the Lord was pleased 

To crush Him, putting Him to grief;

If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, 

He will see it and be satisfied;

By His knowledge the Righteous One,

My servant, will justify the many,

As He will bear their iniquities.

Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great,

And He will divide the booty with the strong;

Because He poured out Himself to death,

And was numbered with the transgressors;

Yet He Himself bore the sin of many,

And interceded for the transgressors.

                    Isaiah 53:1-12 nasb

Merry Christmas, all, as we celebrate the One who came for us.

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Ongoing Surrender, Finding Christmas: Hidden Paths, and Finding Christmas: Not Forgotten, Finding Christmas: Sustenance for the Weary, Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes,  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, and Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success. 

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: Separating Truth and Fiction.

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#Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple #SufferingServant #allaboutthecross

Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success

When I was much younger than I am now, I thought being prosperous was the same thing as being financially wealthy. I imagined how prosperity would look. Big house. Lovely furnishings. Servants (possibly in uniforms). Gigantic bank accounts. New car. Foreign travel. Twin engine plane. 

I thought prosperity was about stuff. 

With that same mindset, I thought Christmas was about the number of presents under the tree, the wrappings, the tinsel and glitter. As a child, I counted the number of presents under the tree with my name on them, hoping I had as many as my sister. If there was stuff to be had, I wanted my full share.

I thought Christmas was about stuff.

I was so wrong, on both counts.

This morning, I was reminded again of the difference between prospering and having stuff. In Isaiah, the words of God, speaking of Jesus, describe Him as prospering.

"Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up, and greatly exalted." (Is. 52:13) 

This passage continues to describe Him as "marred more than any man" before saying "Kings will shut their mouths on account of Him..."

Being high and lifted up and greatly exalted sounds like prosperity to me. Being "marred more than any man" does not, but it was only in the marring that Jesus achieved His prosperity, His success.

The Hebrew word translated as prosper is sakal and is sometimes translated as to be prudent, to see with insight, to act wisely, to succeed (or prosper). In the passage in Isaiah, it is used as "succeed". 

A close look at Jesus' life reveals little of the world's definition of success. He didn't own a home. He traveled on foot, spent time with gluttons and drunkards, and was despised and rejected by the establishment. He died an ignominious death on the cross. 

By most standards, Jesus was not a success. Until the third day.

On that glorious morning, the stone was rolled away. The tomb was empty. The enemy was defeated. The Savior was risen. The truth of His success was evident for all who would see. 

The prosperity of Jesus had nothing at all to do with an accumulation of stuff. He prospered because He succeeded in accomplishing the task for which He had come, to be the perfect sacrifice for the Sin of the world. 

It should be no surprise, then, that the celebration of His birth has nothing at all to do with a display of material wealth. Generations of gift-giving have not changed the truth. 

Success is not defined by the accumulation of things, nor is Christmas.

This year, let's focus on our Savior, who found success in the marring, in the sacrifice, in the suffering. The number or quality of the gifts under the tree will never substitute for the gift most needed, that of a worshipping, humble heart.

Start first with the gift Christ most desires this Christmas. Let's give Him our hearts.

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Separating Truth and Fiction, Finding Christmas: Ongoing Surrender, Finding Christmas: Hidden Paths, and Finding Christmas: Not Forgotten, Finding Christmas: Sustenance for the Weary, Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes, and Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, and Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: Separating Truth and Fiction.

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 #notaboutstuff #prosperity #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple 

photo courtesy of freeimages.com