Peace – it’s elusive sometimes, isn’t it?

Are you dealing with any of these issues? Maybe your circumstances concern the loss of a loved one, divorce, separation, depression, addictions, or any number of other things. Have you maintained peace in your suffering?  When we allow the cares and anxieties of life to overwhelm us and we make no time to sit at the feet of our most beloved Lord for intimate conversations, we relegate Him to a waiting room. And our peace crumbles.

But what is peace?

Peace is the tranquil state of a soul, the calm rest in the Lord that brings harmony to the depths of an agonizing heart in the midst of a fiery trial. When chaos invades my world, do I still claim His peace and praise Him? And when the enemy swirls his darkness around me and attempts to discourage or frighten me, do I still trust the Lord? Yes, I do!

Paul said, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank Him for His answers. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:6-7 TLB)

Trust begets peace. Total reliance on the Lord carries us through the worst of life’s flames. Isaiah wrote of God’s promise of peace, “You will keep the mind that is dependent on You in perfect peace, for it is trusting in You.” (Isaiah 26:3, Holman Christian Standard Bible)

Are you struggling to retain your heart’s peace? The Bible says God is Jehovah-shalom, the Lord our peace, and Jesus is Immanuel, God with us, always. Therefore, that shalom-peace is always with us.  When you persevere in trusting Him, the Lord will “give you His peace no matter what happens.” (2 Thess. 3:16 TLB)

Where is the peace?

That gift of peace is within us, for Christ “Himself is our peace.” (Eph. 2:14 NKJV) Just as He told His disciples, Jesus tells us, “I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart! And the peace I give isn’t fragile like the peace the world gives. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” (John 14:27 TLB)

Scripture tells us that “God has called us to live in peace” (1 Cor. 7:15b NIV), to “let the peace of God rule in your hearts” (Col. 3:15 NKJV), and that “to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Rom. 8:6 NKJV)

Are you living in peace? Or are there things rolling around in your head and heart making an uproar? Are you sitting at the Lord’s feet or have you put Him on a waiting list?

My prayer for you is this: “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Rom. 15:13 NLT)

Take the next step:
Peace, perfect peace
Peace in the face of foreclosure
Take a lesson: Choosing peace

Would you tell me your job title or refer to your relationships – husband, wife, son, daughter, friend? Would you talk about your successes, or failures, your dreams or your past? These are parts of who you are, but you are more than what you do or where you live.

You are a human being who is loved by God. You are intelligent, beautiful, loved, and not alone.

Take a minute to think about that – God loves you, and not because of what you do. He loves you for who you are and will never leave you because of anything you’ve done. Isn’t that just the kind of love you’ve always dreamed about?

You might not think of yourself as exceptional, but you are. You are a hand-crafted original. God made you on purpose, no accidents of fate or chance. The Bible says that when God created man and woman He “saw everything that He had made, indeed it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31) God created you and He is interested in the details of your life. The Bible tells us that Gods knows each of us better than we know ourselves – he even knows how many hairs are on your head! (Matthew 10:30)

It’s pretty incredible to think about. The same God who created the stars and turns the colors of the leaves in Fall, created you. You are His masterpiece and He loves you. God created you to have a relationship with Him.

So, why does it sometimes feel like you and God aren’t on speaking terms?

You know what it’s like when you have an argument with a friend and there’s distance between you? It’s like that with God and us. God could have created us as robots that just did whatever we were told, but he didn’t. He gave us free will, the ability to choose. It’s because of his love for us. Love without choice isn’t love, it’s coercion. You can’t have any real relationship without choice.

So, as humans we get to choose, and in the very beginning we chose to go our own way. Sin entered the world and with it came a separation from God, a distance in our relationship with him. I know what you’re thinking, “Sin? But I’m a good person” Being a good person isn’t enough.

The word sin in the Greek comes from a word that means simply “missing the mark”. We can try really, really hard to be good people, but to be able to be in relationship with God we’d need to be perfect in our thoughts, attitudes and actions. We all know that’s not possible. The Bible tells us that the punishment for sin is death – eternal separation from God. We are all sinners but that is not where the story ends.

If God loves us, why would we perish? That’s a good question. God cannot just ignore our sin. God is just – he is concerned with right and wrong. The price of our sin is death – eternal separation from God – someone had to pay that price. God couldn’t take away the punishment. If he did that it would be like saying that sin isn’t really a problem. It would mean pretending that everything is okay between us instead of actually repairing the relationship.

Since God loves us, he does not want us to perish. So He sent His son Jesus to die in our place. Jesus, Himself divine; God in human form; God’s only son, lived a perfect life and was put to death on a cross. He died a death He didn’t deserve so we could live a life we couldn’t earn. God made an unthinkable sacrifice. There was a card years ago that said something like this:

“How much do you love me?” I asked Jesus.
And he stretched out his arms on a cross and said “this much.”

It says in the Bible that “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8). God loves us so much that he didn’t wait for us to come to him with our need, he took care of it before we even realized we needed him.

It doesn’t end there though. Jesus died, and three days later He rose from the dead. Sounds impossible right? Jesus is the Son of God, not just a good man, a teacher or a prophet. Jesus proved who He was by raising up from the dead. Through Him we can know God because Jesus paid for the sin that separated us from God.

The First Step

Knowing about Jesus isn’t enough. Each of us has to accept what Jesus did for us. Imagine you were dying of some horrible disease and the doctor came into your hospital room and told you that he had the cure. Knowing about the medicine would not cure you. You’d have to take it for it to affect your condition. It’s the same thing with God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice, unless we own it, it cannot save us.

Owning what Jesus did is agreeing with God that you are a sinner. It’s not an easy thing to say. But as any recovery program will tell you, you have to own the problem before you can start to fix it. If you were back in that hospital room and told the doctor “I don’t need your medicine, I’m not sick” he wouldn’t be able to do much for you. You need to agree with God that you need Him in your life and that there is nothing you can do in your own strength to make up for your sin. That’s the first step.

The Second Step

The Bible tells us that if we accept what Jesus did for us, our sins are forgiven. Psalm 103 verse 12 tells us “as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” “Transgressions” is just another word for “sins”. Think about that, ‘as far as the east is from the west’. That’s pretty far.

What Next?

Accepting Christ does not transform you into a perfect person. But it does take you from being a condemned person and sets you free. You and I will keep sinning, but because our relationship with God has been restored we can go to him and ask for forgiveness and strength to make better choices. We can be assured that when we do sin and honestly seek forgiveness we will be forgiven.

You may have heard of a version of the Bible called The Message. The Message tries to put the truth of the Bible into more modern English. The Message explains sin and forgiveness this way:

But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.

With the barrier of sin gone, we can have the relationship with God that He wants for us. This relationship promises strength for today and eternal life, being with Him forever, after death. All you have to do is accept this gift in faith by and act of the will. The doctor is there with the cure, you just have to take it.

How do I accept Jesus?

The final step is a prayer asking God to come into your life and make you the person He wants you to be. Prayer is just talking to God. There is no right or wrong way to do it. God is not concerned about the words that you choose, he cares about the state of your heart. He hears you. You can pray a prayer something like this:

Jesus, I want to know you personally. I know that I am a sinner and that nothing I could do can make up for that. Thank you for dying in my place and paying the price for my sin. I know that my sin doesn’t separate me from God anymore. Thank you for forgiving me. I know that you love me and that I will spend eternity with you. I want you to be my Savior. Come into my life and take control, make me the person you want me to be.

God invites you into relationship with him. He is ready to welcome you home.

God desires to empower you through the Holy Spirit to live a Christ-directed life. As you continue to breathe spiritually (confess your sin and claim the fullness of the Spirit), you will experience a deepening fellowship with God enabling you to grow in Christian maturity.

What does it mean to grow in Christ?

It means to increase in your knowledge of Christ, your love for Him, and in obedience to Him.

“Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, Whom You have sent” (John 17:3).

How can I grow in Christ?

Spiritual growth results from trusting Jesus Christ. “The righteous man shall live by faith” (Galatians 3:11). A life of faith will enable you to trust God increasingly with every detail of your life, and to practice the following:

1. Go to God in prayer daily. “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you” (John 15:7)
2. Read God’s Words daily. “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11) Begin with the Gospel of John.
3. Obey God moment by moment. “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.” (John 14:21)
4. Witness for Christ by your life and words. “Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 4:19).  “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:8)
5. Trust God for every detail of your life. “Cast all your anxiety on him [God] because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
6. Allow the Holy Spirit to control and empower your daily life and witness. “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want” (Galatians 5:16-17). “But you will receive power when the Hoy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

Communication is vital to any relationship, including your relationship with Christ. There are four aspects of communication that will help you grow in your relationship with Christ as you live in the power of the Holy Spirit.

God communicates with us through the Bible, revealing His character and His will.

“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

We communicate with God through prayer – sharing our thoughts, our needs and our desires to do His will.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hears and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7)

“This is the assurance we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us — whatever we ask — we know that we have what we asked of Him” (1 John 5:14-15).

We communicate with Christians through fellowship – encouraging and building up one another.

“And let is consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10: 24,25).

We communicate with non-Christians by witnessing – sharing about our relationship with Christ.

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to me by which we must be saved” ( Acts 4:12)

Summary

Read 1 Corinthians 3:6, 7. God is the source of your growth. You cannot develop spiritual maturity by trying really hard. As you walk in the power of the Holy Spirit, read the Bible, pray, tell people about Christ and spend time with other believers, God will be at work in your producing fruitfulness and maturity.

Further growth:

Set aside time and a place for daily personal Bible study and prayer. A good book to begin with is the New Testament book of John. As you read, underline particularly meaningful verses. Pray and ask God to show you who He is and how you can respond to Him. Some additional suggested passages for study are the ones in this lesson. Other passages are: Colossians 1:9-12; Matthew 7:7-11; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Psalm 1; 34; 103; 145; John 15:1-7; and Luke 9:23-26.

This is the Beginning of Your Christian life and there is much more to understand than just these four lessons. The church is God’s appointed place for Christians to learn and grow. Take the initiative today to find a Bible-teaching church in your neighbourhood and make plans to attend regularly.

The Holy Spirit is the power source of the Christian life

Did you receive Christ into your life? According to His promise in Revelation 3:20, [Christ speaking] “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him.”

When we choose to sin, our relationship (our position as God’s children) is not affected, but our fellowship with Him is interrupted. Sin keeps us all from experiencing God’s love. Sin is more than cheating, lying, immoral behavior, etc. These actions are only the results of an attitude of sin. A simple definition of sin is: doing what we want instead of what God wants — both in actions and attitudes.

“So is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”  (Isaiah 55:11)

God speaks with a purpose, but sometimes it can be hard to know what that purpose is. Knowing the ways God speaks will help us determine if He is speaking to us, and what He is saying.

God speaks in various ways. One is called general revelation: through the world he made (water, colors, animals, etc.). This way of speaking will most likely come through something you enjoy about nature. If you love water and are amazed by its beauty and power, chances are God will speak to you through water.

He also speaks through His Word and the Scriptures. When God says who He is and what he desires of his people in the Scriptures, that never changes. Those recorded words can and do speak to humanity forever.

God also speaks through his people, the Church. Gifts of prophecy, encouragement, and exhortation can be God-given signs and messages that are often delivered on a very personal level.

God, thank you for speaking. I marvel at the many ways in which you speak to your children. Holy Spirit, keep me attentive to the ways in which you are speaking to me. Amen.

Questions: How might God speaking to you? In what ways can you be more attentive to His voice?

I heard Neil chuckle under his breath as we walked away from the elderly  couple we had been talking with.

“Did you just bless them?” he asked.

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing.  Very King James. “

Truthfully the words had just popped out.  But they’d been popping out a lot.  I had been blessing people right and left over the Christmas holidays.   Retail clerks, Walmart greeters, theatre ushers….it was getting kind of weird.    So I stopped – almost – saying it out loud.  But I still bless people in my head.

This morning I read Psalm 1.  It speaks of blessing.  It says we are blessed when we choose to follow God’s ways.  When we put God at the center of our lives.  It says when we live like that we are like trees planted by streams of water. Whatever we do prospers.

The accompanying devotional reading described being blessed as “divinely or supremely favored.  Fortunate.  Happy.  Content. “

That’s the blessing we pray over you – our Weekend to Remember alumni – as we enter 2012.  May you be blessed.  In your marriages.  In your families.  In whatever the year holds.  Remember, you are divinely favored.  That’s what the Christmas story is all about.  God so favored us that He gave us His only Son….

This year may you find your happiness and contentment in God’s outrageous love for you.  May you find happiness and contentment in your marriage.  In your family.  And may your happiness and contentment be contagious.

“Bless you.”

Along with our blessing comes a promise -  from all of us at FamilyLife -  to pray for you regularly in 2012.

Are you lonely this Christmas? Come talk to a mentor.

In 1962 I was preaching in Indianapolis, Indiana. I was single and it was Christmas time. I was heading home to Michigan to enjoy the holidays with my family.

It was an extremely cold day and it was snowing. The wind was howling out of the north, blowing thick clouds of fine flakes across the road – it was like a blizzard. The roads were icy in places and there was little traffic. Somewhere near Ft. Wayne, Indiana, I saw a soldier standing under an overpass.

He had a green army cap pulled as tight and low as possible over his head, his collar was pulled up around his ears, his hands were shoved down in his pockets and he had a stuffed duffel bag standing beside him.

Surely I can’t pick him up…

I was driving a Chevrolet Corvette and I was going very fast – faster than I should have been, considering the road conditions. As I sped by, the soldier jerked one hand out of his pocket and raised his thumb.

My Corvette had two seats – not a front and a back seat, but two seats side by side – and I was in one of them. The trunk was big enough to hold three loaves of bread and a pound of lunchmeat. Not only was my limited trunk space stuffed full with the clothes and boots I would need for my stay in Michigan, the front seat was stacked high as well, with the presents that I had purchased for my folks and my nieces and nephews.

When I saw the soldier, I was going much too fast to stop and I was well down the highway before I gave it much thought.

I told myself that I couldn’t possibly get him and his duffel bag in the car – I debated about the terrible inconvenience and delay it would cause if I did, and by the time I decided that perhaps I ought to at least offer to help, I was two miles down the road and out of sight.

But my Christmas conscience really went to work on me. It was so cold, traffic was almost nonexistent – he was a soldier – and it was Christmas. The inner battle raged for another three miles. Finally, I decided I would never get any peace unless I offered to help, so I made a u-turn and went back. I hoped with all my heart that someone else had picked him up. That way, I could satisfy my conscience and not be inconvenienced – wouldn’t that be great?

No such luck

But he was still there, looking more forlorn, lonely and cold than ever. I was disgusted. I pulled up and rolled down the window. He came running, stumbling on his numb feet, dragging the duffel bag. He leaned over and stuck his head in the window. His face was bluish, his teeth were chattering, his eyebrows and eyelashes were matted with frozen snow and he could scarcely speak intelligibly.

“Thanks so much for stopping.” He said. “I had about given up hope.” That was not what I wanted to hear.

“Where are you going?” I asked, hoping that it was in some direction that would alleviate me from further responsibility.

“I live in Michigan, in Taylor Township,” he said hopefully. That was really discouraging. It wasn’t directly on my way, but it wasn’t too much out of my way either.

“I’m going to Royal Oak,” I said reluctantly.

“Oh,” he said, “I know where that is. That’s great! If I could just ride with you to Ann Arbor, it would mean a lot to me. I’m almost frozen; I can’t feel my ears or feet any more,” he said plaintively.

“I don’t think I can possibly get both you and your things in.” I said.

“If you’ll let me, I’ll get in – I promise you. I’ve been standing here for three hours.”

I told him to try getting in and we begin rearranging things. The duffel bag was almost as big as he was and there was only one place for it – the passenger seat. No matter how he put it in the car, he couldn’t get in himself. I suggested that maybe he could hide it somewhere and come back for it later. He said he couldn’t possibly do that; it had his kids’ Christmas presents in it and he wasn’t going anywhere without it. I finally got out, walked around the car, and told him to sit in the passenger seat. As he sat there, I wedged the duffel bag between his legs and between the floor and the roof of the car. I sandwiched all of my presents around him – and I slammed the door. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t see out either the windshield or his side window – but he was in. I still don’t know how we did it.

Doing the right thing

Once he began to get warm, he began to talk. I found out he was stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.

“Didn’t I see you go by about five minutes ago?” he asked. I really felt stupid.

“Yes.” I said very matter of factly.

“You mean you turned around and came back?” I nodded an affirmative.

“Why would you do that?” I paused a long moment.

“Well, you see, I was raised in a home where helping people who were in need was very important. In addition, I’m a minister – actually, it’s more than that – I’m a Christian, and if it weren’t for that, I’d probably still be going. I have as hard a time doing the right thing as most folks. I fought with this decision for five miles – it’s Jesus who makes me do things like turn around and come back. When I don’t do the right thing, I have this feeling He’s looking at me and He’s so disappointed that I can’t stand it.”

Conviction sets in

“Oh!” he said. “You don’t know how that convicts me. I’m going to tell you something I never thought I’d tell anybody. I’m no Christian, but my wife is the best person in the whole world and she goes to church all the time and takes the kids. Truthfully, I’ve done everything I could to discourage her, but she just keeps going. She’s trying all the time to get me to go, telling me that someday I’m going to wish I had.

“Do you know why I’m here hitchhiking? Let me tell you a little story. I was turned down for holiday leave because I got drunk and caused some trouble at the base. I was sick about it. I haven’t seen my wife and kids for six months. A friend of mine, who’s single, found out at the last minute that his folks were coming to visit some relatives who live close to the base during the holidays. He went to our commanding officer and volunteered to take my duty, if he would let me go home.

“He gave me permission, but I had spent all my money buying presents, which I was going to mail home, so I decided to start hitchhiking. My family doesn’t even know I’m coming. I wasn’t sure I’d make it and I didn’t want to disappoint them. I’ve been standing there for three hours, thinking. I watched folks drive by and it occurred to me that some of them must be Christians and it made me feel pretty bitter – until I got to thinking about what a lousy person I am, and I knew if I was them, that I probably wouldn’t stop either.

“Let me tell you something embarrassing – I got so cold, so lonely and so desperate that I started to pray – honest to God I did – it was so humiliating. I told God that if he would help me, I’d do better. And you know what? About that time you showed up and you told me that you came back because of Jesus – now what do you make of that?

“Well, first I’d say that maybe there’s more to Christianity than either of us thought, and second, I’d say you’d better start doing better.”

I found out exactly where he lived and we agreed that I could get him pretty close before I had to go in another direction. I think I knew what I was going to do long before I actually said anything. As we approached where I was going to let him out, I told him that I had made up my mind to take him home.

Home for Christmas

About two hours later, we pulled up in his driveway. It was almost dark. He was really excited. He asked me to blow my horn, and I did. A few minutes passed and the inside door opened slowly. The glass in the outside door was frosted over and whoever was looking out could only tell that there was a car in the driveway. The outside door opened, and a five or six year old, barefooted, pyjamaed boy peeked around the door. When he saw my sports car, he came out on the porch and peered intently at us. His dad opened the door and stepped out.

“Hi David, it’s Daddy. I’m home for Christmas!” He started to say more, but the boy had seen the uniform and heard the voice.

The boy’s face lit up and he turned back into the house. I could hear him distinctly – “Mama, Daddy’s home,” he yelled shrilly. “Daddy’s home! Mama! Mama! Daddy’s home for Christmas!”

The door opened again and it didn’t open slowly this time – it was thrown open. A woman dressed in a bathrobe and house slippers came running down the steps, her hair flying in the wind, oblivious to the snow and the cold, eyes and mouth opened wide with excitement with joy etched in every line of her face.

“Oh, Carl,” she said. “Oh, Carl, you’re home. Praise God, you’re home. The kids and I have been praying every day that, somehow, God would send you home.” She was followed by a skinny, fair-haired, ten-year-old girl.

They kissed and hugged and laughed and cried, and they danced in the cold and the snow until the soldier finally disentangled himself from them long enough to introduce me.

Incredible reunion

“This is John,” he said. “He’s a minister and he’s also a Christian, and if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be here. And I’m going to tell you something, Sandy right here and now. I told John that I promised God that I was going to do better and I am. I’m going to stop drinking, be a better husband, a better father – a better man – and we’re going to start going to church together.”

I have never witnessed such gratitude in my life. They all had to hug me and kiss me – even the two-year-old – and they told me what a blessing I was to them and that they owed me a debt they could never pay.

Carl was home.

I think at that moment, home meant more to him perhaps, than it would ever mean again. Home was somehow brighter, warmer, more dear to me than it had ever been before.

Every human longing – bound up in the inherent yearning to be loved and to be “home” and to experience the peace and security that “home” signifies – has found its fulfillment in Jesus who said, “I go to prepare a place for you.” Everything we ever dreamed of home being – what it was or was not – is in that place. Jesus has given purpose, even to the dream of death, because for those who know God – that is the way home. Jesus comes to us in many ways. He came to me in the form of a freezing soldier trying to get home for Christmas. He came to a freezing soldier in the form of a young minister trying to find his way to God. Either one of us could have missed Him. Jesus will come to you this Christmas, too, and His coming will be in an unexpected way – don’t miss Him.

Do you want to know God and have him heal your life? God wants to meet you right where you are, He loves you, and wants to be in your life. He wants to heal you and to give you and abundant life. Why don’t you pray the prayer below and ask Jesus to be Lord over your life?

Lord Jesus, I want to know You personally. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to You and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be. Amen.

The holidays can be challenging. If you need someone to talk to, come talk to a mentor.

One Christmas, I came across an article in a local newspaper by an articulate columnist named Bill Johnson. His column was titled, “A Lesson in Catching the Christmas Spirit.” Johnson began his search for the Christmas spirit at the Christmas tree lots, which, he believes, “by their very nature are hotbeds of the Christmas spirit. Nobody goes there if they don’t have it, so I went to one, hoping that some would rub off.” But the only people he found there were mortgage bankers looking for trees for their offices.

On the way to the local mall, Bill ran into a family dressed festively and figured they must have the Christmas spirit. Upon questioning, the mother said, “Let’s see, yesterday we put up the tree, put up the lights on the house, and played all of our Christmas CDs. I’d say we have the Christmas spirit.”

Unsatisfied, Bill headed for the mall’s Santa, reasoning, “If he can’t get you in the spirit, nobody can.” Finding the long line of children, he thought, “This is what Christmas is all about.” Still something still didn’t feel right. On a lark, he asked an employee of the mall, “Where might I find the Christmas spirit?”

“It’s in your heart,” she said, barely glancing up. “It feels warm and glowy, like a mother’s love for her child. You can’t buy it at any store here, and you can’t get it from anybody else. It’s in there,” she said pointing to Bill’s chest. “It’s in your heart.”

One strand or two

The mall worker had a popular answer the common question: “What is the Christmas Spirit?” It’s inside of us somehow, in some way, most people reason. We just have to find it. But when does the Christmas spirit hit? Is it when we unpack our decorations and start playing the music? How many decorations do you need before you officially have the Christmas spirit? Does it take a Christmas tree? One strand of lights? Two? Three? How many times do I need to watch the How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Christmas Carol, or It’s a Wonderful Life before I enter into the Christmas Spirit?

At this time of year, we seek to outshine and out-dazzle our neighbor with our Christmas spirit. More lights, more ornaments, a bigger tree, brightly colored presents, and more of them. Flashing lights and moving figurines. The more decorations, the greater our Christmas spirit. So goes the conventional wisdom.

As I thought about Bill Johnson’s question, I decided to re-read the Christmas story, the one in Luke’s Gospel. But this time I tried noticing the reactions of those who had just learned of Christ’s birth. Maybe I would stumble across the Christmas spirit in embryo.

The first we see reacting are shepherds, who, we are told, “returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen” (Luke 2:20).

Shepherds in those days weren’t the pastoral, gentle-eyed, soft-spoken fellows that our Hallmark friends have portrayed. Shepherds were crude, rude and hardy, and you wouldn’t want your sister dating one. The only way I can draw any kind of accurate picture is this way:

Imagine a room full of men drinking beer, making lots of disgusting male noises, and watching a football game. They are cheering on their favorite teams with great gusto and excitement. There’s lots of yelling and words being tossed about that aren’t used in polite society. That comes close to describing first-century shepherds.

The celebrating these shepherds were doing wasn’t exactly artistic praise spoken by highly cultured men, nor the quiet reflective praise given by articulate men in expensive clothes. There wasn’t an anchormen among them.

When the Bible says that they were glorifying and praising God, it is describing something like the last second of a playoff game, in overtime, when the home team wins and the whooping and hollering starts. That was the only kind of “glorifying” it’s likely they knew.

Further on we find Simeon, a much different character. He was a holy man who walked with God. What did he do with the Christ Child? He “took him in his arms and praised God” (v. 28). Here is a much more dignified response, but certainly one with a great depth of excitement and feeling.

But then what of Joseph and Mary, who by this time had a pretty good idea they had one special child on their hands. “The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him” (v.33).

The rough around the edges shepherds whooped and hollered in the middle of the night, the holy Simeon reverently praised God, and Jesus’ own parents were just amazed at what was happening. In retrospect, it seems that everyone’s reaction was a little different, each according to their personalities and occupations.

Drawn to celebration

“How can we ever have the Christmas spirit,” I wondered, “when it seems everyone responded differently?” The more I thought about it, the more I realized that we could never hope to recapture that first Christmas spirit anymore than we could recapture the excitement of our wedding day, or the birth of our children. They are strictly one-time events.

Some people are attracted to Christmas the same way they’re attracted to parties, laughter and large, popular events. Everyone seems to be having fun, and the excitement is contagious. It’s a welcome relief from the grind of everyday living.

People share the wholesome emotions of excitement and anticipation, and they find themselves drawn toward the celebration as they would to a Disney movie, even though they don’t really know what it’s all about.

The event that fills us with so much joy and gladness that we celebrate it each year, with more attention than for any other event, is the entrance of Jesus Christ into our world. It is the living proof that, “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).

The real Christmas spirit

And that is what brings us back to the question that Bill Johnson and the entire world are asking: What is the real Christmas spirit anyway? I believe I finally know.

When everything is said and done, and everyone’s differences are accounted for, I believe the real Christmas spirit is a deep-seated lingering joy in knowing that the story is true!

This means that some will come very near to the celebration, and yet never have it. They’ll experience the fun and excitement, but never make the connection between their celebration and the event itself. They will be like people at a wedding who celebrate with more energy, laugh louder, and drink more than anyone else, and yet they’ve never met the bride and groom. They have no real interest in the marriage. Their real interest is in the celebration. Take away the party and you remove the celebration.

That, Mr. Johnson, is where I believe the difference lies between those who have the Christmas spirit and those who don’t. For those will real Christmas spirit, if you removed their trees, and their lights, and their poinsettias, and their decorations, and their presents and their food and their music. . .the story would still be true, and their joy would still be there!

That’s why it is possible to celebrate the Christmas spirit by re-reading and pondering the impact of the Christmas story, moving away from the hoopla long enough to remember what it is all for; or when surrounded by family and friends, with music and noise and laughter. Each to his own personality. I hope this year Mr. Johnson goes looking again and discovers “that” Christmas spirit.

Celebrating Christmas

Do you know the importance of the baby in the manger? The little child born in the town of Bethlehem was God himself, come to Earth to save the ones he loves. The baby in the manger was real and all of the things the Bible says about him are true. You can know the peace that comes from knowing that you are loved, that you are forgiven and that there is a God who not only exists, but knows that you exist too and is interested in your life.

God sent his son, Jesus to come into the world to redeem it. His sacrifice on the cross paid the price for all of the sins you or I will ever commit. He makes it possible for imperfect humans to have a living relationship with a perfect God.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

This article is from In Search of the Real Christmas Spirit published by Discovery House Publishers.