King David had no reason to invite Saul’s crippled grandson, Mephibosheth, to sit at his royal table. But David had made a covenant with Jonathan. Jesus has made a permanent place for us to sit at His table if we only humble ourselves, accept His invitation and sit down. Preached at Fresh Life Chiurch. Used by permission.

How would Christ celebrate Christmas? It seems like a difficult question to answer. Author Erin Davis pens her thoughts: “Most years I tend to lose sight of Jesus somewhere between the deals of Black Friday and the dawn of a new year. Of course I understand that Jesus is the real reason for the season, but the frantic pace I usually set to celebrate Christmas isn’t very conducive to focusing on Him. Between Santa and jingle bells, Christmas parties, and presents to buy and hope for, I think most of us struggle to keep our attention focused on the baby in the miracle we’re supposed to be celebrating. As I fight to carve out the time to consider the sacred, I keep wondering how Jesus would celebrate His birth. It’s true that Christmas is a holiday created by the church long after Jesus ascended into heaven. He never had the chance to partake in Christmas as we know it. Even so, Christ’s example is always a lead we should follow. If Jesus were still walking the earth, what would He be doing this Christmas? Here’s my best guess. Jesus Would Celebrate Christmas There are many places throughout the Gospels that record Jesus participating in the holidays of His culture. He ate holiday feasts with His family and friends (Matt. 26:18–19). John 7 shows Him attending church with His brothers during the Festival of the Tabernacle. Jesus wasn’t a stick-His-head-in-the-sand kind of guy. He didn’t sequester himself away from His culture. While there are plenty of elements of our traditional Christmas celebrations that don’t focus on Him, I doubt Jesus would ask us to ditch the entire celebration based on principle. (That’s throwing the miracle baby out with the bath water.) I believe He would join us at our church Christmas pageants and family dinners and would accept an invitation to step into our decorated homes. Jesus Wouldn’t Focus on Presents Jesus wasn’t into stuff. In Matthew 6:19, He said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.” In Luke 12:15, He said, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Jesus never said possessions are bad. I don’t see any evidence in Scripture that He would say giving each other gifts is wrong. But He did warn us that our stuff isn’t as important as we think it is. This anti-materialism message is certainly worth revisiting at Christmastime. Jesus Would Serve Others Jesus repeatedly asks us to live our lives in service to others. I doubt He’d use His birthday as a holiday from serving others. Specifically Jesus asked us to make an extra effort to meet the needs of the poor (Luke 11:41), the hungry and thirsty (Matt. 25:35), those in need of clothing (Matt. 25:36), the sick (Matt. 25:36), and those in prison (Matt. 25:36). It’s great to spend Christmas with the people we cherish, but I don’t think Jesus’ Christmas celebrations would only include the people He is most familiar with. I believe He would spend His birthday in service to others. Can you think of one way you can reach out to the poor, the hungry, the thirsty, the needy, the sick, or the imprisoned this Christmas? Jesus Would Take the Opportunity to Teach the Good News In John 7:14 and John 7:37, we see Jesus using a festival as an opportunity to teach truth. As I read these passages, I am reminded of the simple fact that not everyone knows about the true meaning of Christmas. Not everyone understands that Jesus didn’t stay in a manger but went on to die to pay the price for our sin. Not everyone has peace that passes understanding and the hope that this life is not all there is. Jesus took advantage of those times when many people were gathered to celebrate a festival to reveal truth about God. We can do the same thing. Who will be at your Christmas party who doesn’t know Him? Who will sit at your Christmas table who doesn’t have the hope that only He can give? Follow Jesus’ lead, and take the unique opportunity that Christmas provides to teach others about Him. Clearly, this season isn’t really about Santas and wreaths, presents and bows. It’s about Him. He shows us how His miracle is best celebrated. Don’t get too hung up on what’s right or wrong about Christmas. Look to Jesus’ example, and then bow your heart to the miracle in the manger.” And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by cancel the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him. Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ (Col. 2:13–17, emphasis added). www.reviveourhearts.com .

Who was the Innkeeper in Bethlehem who cruelly turned Mary and Joseph away? We’ll never know his name. Pastor John Beeson decries him as one of the Christmas villains: “Every self-respecting children’s nativity play has Mary and Joseph greeted by the gruff Innkeeper who rudely tells Mary and Joseph that there’s no room and then, for good effect, slams the door in their faces. What was the motivation of this heartless hotel manager? Why didn’t he find a place for this pregnant woman? Today we met the second villain of Christmas: the Innkeeper. The biblical story isn’t nearly as clear as to the backstory of this Innkeeper. There is a just a fleeting reference to the incident and that reference only occurs after Jesus’ birth. Luke tells us simply, “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”[i] Unlike last week’s obvious villain: Herod, the Innkeeper is a little trickier to decipher. In the ambiguity, though, we find ourselves and the reality that Christmas reveals in us the sneaky villain of a lack of prioritization. Surely the Innkeeper should have been able to find a place for Mary and her child. Let’s first briefly consider who this Innkeeper might have been and why he didn’t have room for Mary and Joseph. Our minds immediately think of the Innkeeper in modern terms—like a hotel manager. While there were instances of a rudimentary form of the modern hotel (with the first floor housing animals and the second floor housing guests[ii]) in urban areas in the ancient world, it is highly unlikely that this sort of inn existed in tiny, ancient Bethlehem. Bethlehem, a town of under a thousand, would have been an unlikely spot for such an inn.[iii] More likely is the assumption of most commentators that the inn referenced in Luke 2 would have been the house of a relative of Joseph.[iv] With the census being called by Caesar, the town would have had quite a bit of extended family pouring in from out of town and in a culture as highly hospitable as the Ancient Near East, it would have been the responsibility and privilege even of extended family members to welcome into their homes. Why, then, were Mary and Joseph turned away? The simplest explanation is that the home of the closest relative of Joseph in Bethlehem was full—other relatives had gotten there first and the relative likely thought it rude to expel someone from his home to make room for the young couple. Another explanation is that perhaps the spot was reserved for older relatives, who would have had the cultural priority. Maybe it was a lack of courage of the homeowner to displace someone else. Or perhaps, the decision was made to avoid shame by letting a woman pregnant out of wedlock into his home. We don’t know the reasons for the decision by the Innkeeper, whether it was an unintentional slight or a slight with more malicious intent. I might be reading into the brief mention too much, but I believe that, even if the slight was unintentional, Mary received it as intentional to some degree. Luke, after all, received the primary testimony about the birth and early years of Jesus from Mary and, all of those years later, she still remembered that detail. Perhaps she still felt its sting. Whether intentional or not, the Innkeeper is still a threat to Christmas. Surely, if he knew what would happen, the Innkeeper would regret his decision. Who wouldn’t regret not making room for a mother who would give birth in the elements? Who wouldn’t regret not making room for the very Son of God? And yet, is this not the story of so much of our lives? Is not the Innkeeper alive and well in all of us? Is it not absurdly difficult to prioritize space in our lives to commune with the very Creator of the Universe and Savior of our souls? How can that be? But the urgent presses in at every side and we find ourselves, who have access to the very throne room of God and hold onto the very words of God, just too busy. The Innkeeper is no stranger to me. And my hunch is that he is no stranger to you.” www.thebeehive.live . Used by permission.

A war will be waged again this Christmas, a battle far more pressing than whether to say “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas.” For believers, the real challenge is something entirely different. It’s a battle for our heart, our joy, and our worship. I’m no Scrooge. I love the holiday, even some of the silly things we do that have very little to do with the birth of Jesus. I’m not the “Christmas is a pagan holiday” guy. But we have to know what we are up against this season. Almost every commercial, television special, and classic movie promises us a false reality. These things tell us that we’re going to gather as a family, group hug while we carve the ham, and end with us all laughing in pure joy. There’s a feel to this time of year, and we love the feel. But as we start celebrating earlier and earlier, wearing Christmas sweaters in 90-degree weather, we must ask ourselves: What do we truly want from this season? What do we put our hope in that makes the season merry? What do we long to have that makes Christmas a favorite time of year? A thousand other answers subtly (or overtly) compete with this: “To us a child is born, to us a son is given” (Isaiah 9:6). Our battle is to get underneath all the commercialism and consumerism, to actually experience Christ Jesus, our Savior, who has come — and who will come again. Less Merry Than We Hope “What do we long to have that makes Christmas a favorite time of year?” When we shift from the real meaning of Christmas, when we go looking for some other “good news of great joy ” ( Luke 2:10 ), we long for something that will never come. Why? Because we live in a fallen world. Something has gone wrong in you. Something has gone wrong in me. Something has gone wrong in the cosmos. Something is broken. This severance between God and humankind led to a brokenness that overflowed into a brokenness in the systems we have built, in the governments we run, in the businesses we lead, and in the families we grow. We have no power to save ourselves. No amount of might or education will usher in peace on earth (or in our extended families). Instead of hiding from this reality, this is the very context which makes the real meaning of Christmas irreplaceable. The Christmas joy, the Christian hope, the baby given to us in love ( John 3:16 ), is to be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” ( Isaiah 9:6 ). A  Wonderful Counselor  for those who mourn and have lost their way. A  Mighty God  able to redeem his people from their past, present, and future sin. An  Everlasting Father  — not to replace the first person of the Trinity — but to imitate his fatherly care for his people. Our  Prince of Peace  to cease warfare and usher in what no government, treaty, or president can: peace with God himself. To not lose the substance of Christ in the shadows of all the Christmas hoopla this season, we must seriously reflect upon this good news of great joy given to those in a broken world. It may feel counterintuitive to consider our brokenness during “the most wonderful time of the year.” But instead of merely distracting ourselves with the lights and the tinsel and the trees — things which are not bad in themselves — we should consider the reality of sin in order to remember why we need a Savior, to sit in darkness that we might marvel that the Light of heaven came down to earth. Redeeming Our Anticipation “To keep Christ in our Christmases, we consider the bad news that makes the good news wonderful.” So, to keep Christ in our Christmases, we consider the bad news that makes the good news wonderful. But we shouldn’t stop there. We also rebuild anticipation. Even for our broader society, this holiday season is built on anticipation. Over time, you roll out the lights outside, you put up the tree, you put presents under the tree, all anticipating Christmas day. But we believe that the same God who promised Jesus would show up the first time, to win and save his people, said that Jesus would return to bring them home. We celebrate the first Christmas because we know there’s a second coming. In the first Advent, Jesus comes as a baby in a manger to inaugurate his kingdom. When Christ returns in the second Advent, he will consummate that kingdom. Christ will not come as a baby who needs to be swaddled, but as a man with a tattoo on his thigh and a sword protruding from his mouth (Revelation 19:15–16). Our Savior will come again to judge the living and the dead, to make all things new. When he returns, Christ will transform hearts and, ultimately, this world. He finally and completely will fix what has been broken. The full womb which led to a full crib which led to an empty tomb should fill us with great joy for this simple reason: he is coming back. God said he would come once, and he did. He said he would lay down his life for his people and take it up again (John 10:14–18), and he did. He said he will return, and he will (John 14:1–3). We celebrate Christ’s birthday knowing that one day we will celebrate with him face-to-face. Getting Back to Advent “We celebrate Christ’s birthday knowing that In the swift-flowing river of commercialism and consumerism this Christmas season, in the hustle and bustle of buying and traveling and gathering, we need to drop an anchor. And I believe that anchor is essentially the practice of Advent. This traditional Christian season calls us to reflect on the brokenness of our hearts and of this world, and to look ahead to a day in which all that brokenness will be eradicated once and for all upon his return. That’s the real (and subtle) war this Christmas. It’s not some debate about political correctness, but it is a focused and passionate effort to make the most of this season — instead of being swept away by the decorations and gifts. Instead of falling for the feelings of Christmas, we’re learning to truly enjoy the child. www.desiringgod.org . Used by permission.

We’ve all had our share of cynics and pessimists try to dissuade us from action. We live in an age in which there is no shortage of opinion. The challenge these days in leadership (and in life) is that a lot of those opinions are not particularly helpful. On most teams, boards and in most organizations and churches you’ll find cynics and pessimists who are constantly offering opinions on what you should do, or more frequently, not do. The question you have is this: how do you handle the cynics and pessimists, whose usual response to your new idea is to explain to you why it won’t work, why it’s doomed to fail or why it’s simply not worth pursuing? Of course, cynics and pessmists rarely own up to being who they are. Instead, they tell you they’re realists. Realism is often just a thin disguise for the much deeper problems of cynicism and pessimism. The worst thing about the constant barrage of negative voices is that they snuff out hope. And you never get to a better future without hope. So how should you respond? How do you keep hope alive when the cynics and pessimists keep telling you it can’t happen and it won’t happen? Here are five ways to handle the negative voices that come your way. You never get to a better future without hope. 1. CONSIDER THE SOURCE Cynics and pessimists often have opinions on everything. But drill down a little further and you’ll soon discover that in their personal lives, they’ve rarely attempted anything. Never trust those who have opinions on everything and attempt nothing with their own life. RedditUser218 can point out everything that’s wrong with everybody else, but scroll through his profile and feed and you’ll soon discover he’s in the business of doing nothing significant other than tearing down others who are attempting to do good things…or anything. Similarly, Twitter dude with the cartoon avatar and 113 follower likely isn’t making any original contribution of his own. Check his feed, and you’ll soon see he spends his days shooting down others who do. Criticism is not a spiritual gift. If the only thing you contribute to a conversation is criticism, you haven’t contributed at all. Criticism is not a spiritual gift. So when you’re sorting through the various voices that have come your way, consider the source. It’s not that all negative opinions are bad opinions. Sometimes what you’re saying or doing needs correction in whole or in part. But what’s I’ve found is that the best critiques come from people who are attempting to do something significant with their lives. I don’t mean famous. It could be as simple as the parent who is trying to organize all the other parents at their school or in their neighborhood. Or the barista who is hustling hard and trying to make each customer have a great experience. Or the student who is getting up early to ace her courses. That kind of critique can be very valuable, because it comes from someone who’s in the game and trying to make a difference. They’re the kind of people you can build the future of your church or organization on. So lean in. But if you’re hearing from the person who has nothing but negative things to say and is honestly attempting little to nothing with their own lives—well, that’s a different story. After all, cynics never change the world. They just tell you why the world won’t change. Cynics never change the world. They just tell you why the world won’t change. 2. LOOK FOR ANY TRUTH YOU CAN FIND All that said, your critics are probably never  entirely  wrong. When you hear criticism, ask what part of it might be valid. Maybe the idea isn’t great after all. Or perhaps it’s a great idea, but you could have angled it differently, or shared it in a more helpful way. You can learn from everyone, and you should have the humility to learn from anyone. Even your critics. Even if what they said is 99 % unhelpful and defeatist, learn from the 1% that might help you. Pray about it. Talk about it with a trusted friend. Learn and grow. You can learn from everyone, and you should have the humility to learn from anyone. 3. DON’T FIGHT A BATTLE YOU WON’T WIN As much as you want to learn from cynical and pessimistic people, you’re probably wasting your breath in trying to fight back or change their mind. I’ve found the best way to engage a (true) cynic or pessimist is this: thank them for their viewpoint, and move on. I used to spend a lot more time trying to change people’s minds and convince everyone to come along. Sometimes it worked, but usually the latent pessimism would surface again soon, and I would emerge out of those conversations exhausted and depleted. Years ago, someone shared this with me: Don’t wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig liked it. There’s a little too much truth in that. The best way to win a battle with a cynic is to move on and build a better future. Results have a way of speaking for themselves. Results also usually either silence the critics or reduce their influence to the ever-shrinking group that will listen to them. 4. WATCH FOR THE CYNIC IN YOU Ah yes…so you’ve noticed the push-pull in their post. Wait…you’re dealing with critics by  criticizing  them? How beautifully ironic and hypocritical. Well, yes and no. You can get all cynical about the cynics and travel deep down that wormhole, but I’m not sure anyone wins in that scenario. That’s NOT what I’m trying to do. On the other hand, you can also pretend every voice should have equal weight. Just be open and don’t differentiate between the different voices you hear and the sources they come from. The problem with that is that it’s a recipe for inertia. When you have five conflicting voices (several of them negative), what do you do? Well, then you do nothing because everything grinds to a halt. So that’s no good. If you  always  listen to negative voices, you’ll accomplish nothing. However (and this is a big ‘however’), the more you hear negative voices around you, and the longer you lead, the more easy it is to become cynical yourself. If you’re not careful, responding to the cynics around you can deepen the cynic within you. There’s a part of me that’s always tempted to reply to the cynics with an even deeper cynicism. See point #1. (You should see what goes through my head some days that never makes it past my lips or onto the keyboard. It can get dark.) It’s so easy to get dragged down into a mind-set that’s just negative about negativity, but nobody ever wins in that space. If you’re not careful, responding to the cynics around you can deepen the cynic within you. So what’s the point in all of this? The point is this: become  discerning  about who you’re hearing from…discerning enough to when to listen and revise, and when to listen and just move on. And while you’re doing that, fight the cynic inside you. Every. Single. Day. Return to hope again and again. Keep trusting, Keep believing. Keep making progress. Fight the cynic inside you. Every. Single. Day. 5. STAY CURIOUS An incredibly effective antidote to cynicism is curiosity. Yes, simple curiosity. One thing I’ve noticed again and again is this reality: curious people are never cynical, and cynical people are never curious. Cynics are never curious. And the curious are never cynical. Think for a minute about the wonderfully curious people you know: a friend, a former teacher, a neighbor, or an uncle. You’ll quickly realize that the curious are always interested, always hopeful, and always open to new possibilities. Some grandparents are infinitely interested in their children and grandchildren, asking questions, discovering new things together, embracing the changing possibilities of a new world. Some older people have more joy for tomorrow than they did decades earlier and become cheerleaders for hope in their communities, families, and congregations. So if you want to foster hope and bring about a much better future, stay curious. Feed your curiosity, and it grows. Starve it, and it withers. www.careynieuwhof.com .

Share 0 The majority of people in the world will miss the next Christmas. But how can that be? How can anyone miss Christmas, given the amount of advertising, publicity, and promotion the holiday receives each year? Because although many celebrate Christmas every year, most don’t know what it’s about. In spite of all the media promotion of Christmas, the majority of people will miss it because it has become so obscured. For those of us who know and love the Lord Jesus Christ, Christmas is a time to focus on His birth. But even we can get caught up in the swirl of activity around Christmastime and can miss it in a practical sense. Satan has so cluttered the Christian concept of Christmas with such needless paraphernalia that its true meaning is easily lost. A Brief History of Christmas Most scholars doubt that December 25th is the true date of Christ’s birth. There is no biblical support for it, and some against it. That date was decided upon by the church in Rome in the fourth century. They had a specific reason for doing so. Many of the earth’s earliest inhabitants were sun worshipers because they depended on the sun’s yearly course in the heavens. Most people held feasts at the time of the winter solstice (mid-December)—a time when the days were shortest. They built bonfires to give the sun god strength and bring him back to life again. When it became apparent that the days were growing longer, there was great rejoicing. The fathers of the church in Rome decided to celebrate Christ’s birth on the winter solstice. It was their attempt to Christianize the popular pagan celebrations. But they failed to make the people conform. Instead the heathen festivities continued, and we are left with a bizarre marriage of pagan and Christian elements that characterizes our modern celebration of Christmas. The following examples will give you some idea of how much pagan customs make up what we know as Christmas. To the Romans the month of December marked the Festival of Saturnalia (Dec. 17-24). One of their most common customs during that festival was giving gifts to one another. As far as we know that is where the idea of exchanging presents came from. The evergreen wreath also derives from the Saturnalia festival, during which homes were decorated with evergreen boughs. The Druids of England gathered sacred mistletoe for their ceremonies and decorated their homes with it. It is believed that the first Christmas tree was instituted by Boniface, an English missionary to Germany in the eighth century. He supposedly replaced sacrifices to the god Odin’s sacred oak with a fir tree adorned in tribute to Christ. Certain accounts claim that Martin Luther introduced the Christmas tree lighted with candles. “Santa Claus” is a contraction of St. Nicholas, a bishop in Asia Minor during the fourth century known for his extraordinary generosity. He was later associated with giving presents at the end of the year. St. Nicholas was adopted by the Netherlands as the patron saint of children. On St. Nicholas eve, the children would leave their shoes filled with hay for the saint’s white horse. No wonder so many people miss Christmas. The simplicity of the birth of Christ is drowned in a sea of traditions, many being pagan in origin. Even worse than that, when Christ was born in Bethlehem , most people of that day missed it. In the following gospel accounts, we will see six ways people missed Christmas, and learn how to avoid making the same mistake ourselves. Ignorant Preoccupation Luke 2:7 says, “[Mary] gave birth to her firstborn Son, and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” The first person who missed Christmas was the innkeeper. He was unable to take in Mary and Joseph because he had no room for them. Apparently he was indifferent to their plight—there is no indication from Scripture that he called for any help. Notice that verse 7 says, “She gave birth to her first-born son.” Mary herself gave birth to Jesus. By herself she wrapped Him in cloths. Joseph was there to help, but if he was anything like most young fathers, he would have been of little help. Middle-eastern people are hospitable, kind, and caring. They are not barbaric. They are not the kind of people who would leave a woman alone to have her baby. But in this case, they did. Where were the midwives? You’d think the innkeeper would have known someone who could have helped. Luke tells us she laid Him in a manger, which is an animal feeding trough. The cloths she wrapped Jesus in were long strips of cloth. Whenever an infant was born, immediately the baby was cleaned. Then the baby’s limbs and body would be wrapped in these swaddling cloths and then wrapped in an outer blanket. That was a duty normally carried out by a midwife. But Mary had to do it all herself. Commentator G. Campbell Morgan wrote, “Think of the pathos of it. ‘She brought forth;’ ‘she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes.’ It is very beautiful, but oh, the pity of it, the tragedy of it, the loneliness of it; that in that hour of all hours, when womanhood should be surrounded by the tenderest care, she was alone. The method of the writer is very distinct. She with her own hands wrapped the Baby around with those swaddling cloths, and laid Him in the manger. There was no one to do it for her. Again I say, the pity of it, and yet the glory of it to the heart of Mary” (The Gospel According to Luke [Old Tappan, N.J.: Revell, 1931], p. 36). We don’t know anything about the innkeeper because the Bible doesn’t say anything about him. Some commentators speculate that Jesus was born in a stable some think He was born in a cave, and others believe he was born in an open courtyard at the inn. One thing we do know: whatever hospitality Mary and Joseph hoped to find, they found none—they were turned away. Why did the innkeeper miss Christmas? I think the simple answer is preoccupation. He was busy. His inn was full because a census was being held in Bethlehem . The city was bulging with people whose ancestors came from there. Since Bethlehem was the city of David , all those who were in the line of David were there, including Joseph and Mary. The innkeeper wasn’t necessarily hostile and unsympathetic; he was just busy. Many people are like the innkeeper. The chambers of their souls are filled with needless things—with stuff that doesn’t matter. As a result, they miss the Christ of God. Our society is filled with the unnecessary, the insignificant, and the meaningless. We spend a fortune to amass things so we can let our children fight over them when we die. And our time is eaten away by the demands our things place on us. People miss Christ at Christmastime because He is crowded out by a world that dictates what they should think, do, and buy. Like the innkeeper, people today are preoccupied. The innkeeper didn’t know anything about the baby Mary gave birth to, and neither do they. They don’t know who Christ is and they don’t know why He came. Instead, they’re ignorantly preoccupied with the mundane and the meaningless. How sad it is that so many people live their lives in pursuit of such, only to wake up one day in eternity without God. Jealous Fear In Matthew 2 we meet another man who missed Christmas: “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem , saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him.’ And when Herod the king heard it, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him…. Then Herod secretly called the magi, and ascertained from them the time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem , and said, ‘Go and make careful search for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, that I too may come and worship Him'” (vv. 1-3, 7-8). Herod was the king of the land. He feigned his desire to worship Jesus Christ, but he was fearful because One had been born who was called the King of the Jews. The Greek word translated “troubled” in verse three means “to be agitated” or “stirred up.” It carries the idea of total panic. Herod panicked. Why? He was afraid of Jesus—afraid of another king. Let’s see why. Julius Caesar appointed Herod’s father, Antipater, to be procurator, or governor, of Judea under the Roman occupation. Antipater then managed to have his son Herod appointed prefect of Galilee . In that office Herod was successful in quelling the Jewish guerrilla bands who continued to fight against their foreign rulers. After fleeing to Egypt when the Parthians invaded Palestine, Herod then went to Rome and in 40 B.C. was declared by Octavian and Antony (with the concurrence of the Roman senate) to be king of the Jews. He invaded Palestine the next year and, after several years of fighting, drove out the Parthians and established his kingdom. Because he was not Jewish, but Idumean (an Edomite), Herod married Mariamne, heiress to the Jewish Hasmonean house, to make himself more acceptable to the Jews he now ruled. He was a clever and capable warrior, orator, and diplomat. But he also was cruel and merciless. He was incredibly jealous, suspicious, and afraid for his position and power. Fearing a potential threat, he had the high priest Aristobulus, his wife’s brother, drowned—after which he provided a magnificent funeral where he pretended to weep. He then had Mariamne herself killed, and then her mother and two of his own sons. Five days before his death (about a year after Jesus was born) he had a third son executed. One of the greatest evidences of his bloodthirstiness and insane cruelty was having the most distinguished citizens of Jerusalem arrested and imprisoned shortly before his death. Because he knew no one would mourn his own death, he gave orders for those prisoners to be executed the moment he died. Thus he guaranteed that there would be mourning in Jerusalem . That barbaric act was exceeded in cruelty only by his slaughter of “all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its environs, from two years old and under” (Matthew 2:16 ). By that action he hoped to kill any threat to his throne from the One the magi said had been born King of the Jews. Why did Herod miss Christmas? Jealous fear. Lest you think there are no more Herods in this world, you need only read the daily newspaper. Man is depraved. There are Herods in every society. But there is a greater lesson for all humanity. Many people miss Christmas because of the same kind of fear Herod had. Herod was afraid that someone else would take his throne. Today people are fearful of giving up their own plans, priorities, values, and morals. They don’t want to come to Christ because He will cramp their style—He will lay claim on their lives. That means they will have to alter the way they live. The media tells people to do their own thing, master their own fate, and chart their own destiny. The world is full of kings who will not kneel before Jesus Christ, so they miss Christmas just like Herod. What about you? Have you said no to Jesus Christ because you are afraid of the claim He will lay on you? Do you want to be the lord and master of your life and the king of your little kingdom? That’s tragic—His kingdom is so much more glorious! Prideful Indifference Once Herod learned from the wise men that a child would be born who would be King of the Jews, he gathered “together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, [and] began to inquire of them where the Christ was to be born. And they said to him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet, “And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the leaders of Judah; for out of you shall come forth a Ruler, who will shepherd My people Israel”‘” (Matthew 2:4-6). Herod called in the experts. The chief priests consisted of the high priest, the captain of the Temple police, and the best of the other priests—those who had great administrative, teaching, and leadership skills. For the most part the chief priests were Sadducees. The scribes were primarily Pharisees. They were the linguists and interpreters who understood the culture and history of the biblical data. Those two groups knew where the Messiah was to be born because they knew Micah had prophesied that ” Bethlehem was to be His place of birth (5:2). One thing the Jewish nation had been looking for, and still does to this day, was the Messiah. They had been waiting for a deliverer throughout their history, especially while under Roman oppression. However, these priests and scribes were unwilling to travel the few miles to find out if this baby might be the Messiah. Why did they miss Christmas? Indifference. They didn’t care. They had all the facts, but they didn’t need a Messiah. Why? Because they were self-righteous—they saw themselves as perfect keepers of the law. In their minds they were all God could ever ask of them. You could say they were filled with proud indifference because indifference is always a result of pride. There was no room for the Son of God in their system. When the grown child arrived on the scene, they hated and despised Him. So they plotted His murder and screamed for His blood. Jesus pinpointed their indifference in a stinging rebuke from Matthew 9. “I happened that as He was reclining at [the] table in the house, behold many tax-gatherers and sinners came and joined Jesus and His disciples” (v. 10). Jesus sat down to this meal with people who needed His help: outcasts, tax collectors, traitors, and sinners. “When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with the tax-gatherers and sinners?’ But when He heard this, He said, ‘It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are ill. But go and learn what this means, “I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,” for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners'” (vv. 11-13). When the Pharisees held a feast, they invited self-righteous people. When Jesus held a feast, He welcomed those who knew they were sinners and were desperately aware of their need for a Savior. Many people today miss Christmas because they don’t realize they are sinners. Thus they ignore Christ. They don’t show any interest in the Savior because they don’t understand their need to be saved. They don’t understand that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23)—that sin plummets people into an eternal hell. Consequently they ignore the remedy because they don’t even know they have the disease. Religious Ritual Luke 2 indicates another group of people who missed Christmas: “in the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields, and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them” (vv. 8-9). The angel proclaimed the birth of Christ, and the shepherds went to Bethlehem to see Him. Verse 20 says, “The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.” Out of all the people in Jerusalem , God singled out shepherds to receive the great news about the birth of Christ. Shepherds were a despised group of people. They couldn’t maintain all the ceremonial washings and activities because they were busy tending to the sheep. Yet no on else from the city came to see the Christ child except these “unclean” shepherds. However, two special people did take note of Him when He was brought into the city. Luke 2:25-26 mentions Simeon—a man who “was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel ; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.” Luke 2:36-38 tells us about Anna, a widow who saw the Messiah in the Temple , and who “continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem ” (v. 28). However, the mass of people in Jerusalem missed Christmas. The birth of Christ took place only a few miles away. It was the fulfillment of all their dreams and hopes—the event that would change the destiny of the world—but they missed it. Why did they miss it? Religion. They were so busy with the rituals of their religion that they missed the reality of His birth. When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matthew 16:13), their answer was: “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets” (v. 14). All the speculations were wrong. Jesus didn’t fit into the religious system of His day. And the people knew He didn’t after He gave the Sermon on the Mount. Religion will damn a soul faster than anything if it is anything less than true worship of the true God. A false religious system gives a person a place to hide—a place where he can mask his spirituality. People steeped in various cults talk about God, Christ, and Scripture, but they don’t know Christ. They are lost in the midst of religion. So the people of Jerusalem missed Christmas while they were being religious. Idolatry The Romans also missed Christmas. Micah’s prophecy that the Christ child would be born in Bethlehem was set in motion by a Gentile emperor. Luke 2:1-2 says, “It came about in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria .” The Roman soldiers registered the people and took the census. Throughout the life of Christ we see the presence of the Romans. Before His death Christ appeared before Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea (John 18:28-40). He was executed by the Romans (Matthew 27:27-36). Roman guards lied about His resurrection, propagating a story to cover up the reality that He rose from the dead (Matthew 28:11-15). They all missed Christmas because of their idolatry: they worshiped their own gods. Christ didn’t fit in with them. They worshiped a multitude of gods, and the pinnacle of their worship was emperor worship. So in the midst of their pagan idolatry they missed Christmas. The world today is full of people who worship their own gods. They don’t worship idols like they did at the time of Christ, but we still have idols and gods. Some people worship money. Some people worship sex. Others worship cars, boats, and houses. Some worship power and prestige. Those things are the pagan gods of today—the idols of the twenty-first century. And if that is what you’re worshiping, you’ll miss Christmas, too. You may receive some presents, eat a big dinner, and enjoy a beautifully decorated pine tree, but you’ll miss Christmas. Over-Familiarity Perhaps the saddest of all, the people of Nazareth missed Christmas. Luke 2:39-40 says, “When they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city of Nazareth . And the Child continued to grow and became strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.” When Jesus returned to Nazareth , He was unlike any other child in Nazareth . He accompanied His parents to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover when He was twelve years old. He proceeded to confound the doctors of theology in the Temple (Luke 2:41-47). He spent thirty years of His life in Nazareth , yet the residents failed to recognize Him. Luke 4 unveils the tragedy that took place when Jesus revealed His identity to the Nazarenes: “He came to Nazareth , where he had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book, and found the place where it was written, ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.’ And He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon Him. And He began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips; and they were saying, ‘Is this not Joseph’s son?’ . . . . And He said, ‘Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his home town'” (vv. 16-22, 24). The people of Nazareth missed Christmas because of over-familiarity. They knew Jesus as Joseph’s son, and they didn’t view that as anything special. After Jesus finished speaking in the synagogue, the people “rose up and cast Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, He went His way” (vv. 29-30). Over-familiarity is a deadly thing. I come across so many people who say they were raised in a Christian environment but are not Christians. Fear grips my heart when I hear that. Over-familiarity strangles conviction. When you’ve heard something so many times without doing anything about it, such familiarity can breed contempt. Mark 6:6 gives us Christ’s own analysis of the people of Nazareth : “He wondered at their unbelief.” Matthew 13:58adds, “He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.” Over-familiarity with Christmas truth can breed a stony heart. You had better respond while your heart is soft, or your heart will become hard and you won’t have the opportunity to respond (Proverbs 29:1). Conclusion There are many ways to miss Christmas: ignorant preoccupation, ritual, idolatry, and over-familiarity. But behind all those reasons is unbelief. Many people simply refuse to believe in Jesus Christ. The apostle John said, “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” (John 1:10-12). If you’ve been missing the reality of Christmas in your life, know that if you receive the Lord Jesus Christ and believe in His name, Christmas will become real to you. It can happen today; and it’s between you and God (2 Corinthians 6:1-2; Romans 10:8-11). https://www.gty.org/ Copyright 2018, Grace to You. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Kevin DeYoung shares his thoughts on how his life changed with just a week of limiting his use of technology. This article was originally titled “What I Learned on my Week-Long Digital Fast.” just finished a week-long digital fast. Parts of it were difficult, and other parts were surprisingly easy, but most of all it was refreshing to be away from my screens and away from the internet as much as possible. As part of my pastoral ministry class at RTS I assigned a digital fast for all 30 students, and I told them that I would join them in the experience. To make even more people happy, I made my whole family join in the fast with us. While we weren’t able to completely detach from all digital technology, we did the best we could from March 4 to 11. These were the rules: No smart phones for the week except for calls and texting. I also allowed the use of Google Maps and a weather app. But no games or other apps on the phone. No television or movies. Computer use was allowed for work purposes. We are too tied to our computers to feasibly require students (or professors!) to keep the computer closed all week. No internet usage on the computer, unless absolutely required for work purposes. No games or streaming. No social media whatsoever. I allowed everyone (myself included) to check email only once a day (and no keeping it open all day as your one turn). If a student felt like there were essential reasons to break one of these rules, they had to mark that down in a logbook and report it to me at the end of the week. So how did I do? I would give myself an A on the rules pertaining to television, movies, games, and social media. I didn’t turn on or check any of these things. As for general internet usage, probably a B+. I didn’t go online intentionally, but I did follow a few links that were sent to me over email. I also needed to find some old blog posts for study purposes. I thought that was a legitimate use of the internet (more like a library than entertainment or distraction). Limiting myself to one email check per day was challenging. I kept to the rule fastidiously most of the week, but there were a couple days where I needed (or I thought I needed) to keep up with some important emails going back and forth, and so I checked a few times, but still much less than my usual rate. Overall, maybe a B- in this category. My kids did pretty well with the week considering I took away their phones and iPads and turned off the television. They didn’t complain (much). We did, however, allow a cheat or two for sick kids or for those who were babysitting their siblings. For as much as I’m usually tied to my phone and email, I was really looking forward to the digital fast. I knew it would be good for and good for my family. I’m not ready to throw out all my technology (I’m blogging these reflections after all!), but there are a number of lessons I’m processing from the last week—not lessons that will be surprising to most people, but important nonetheless. I didn’t miss social media at all. I thought I might, but instead it felt freeing to be away from Facebook and Twitter and the fever swamps of the blogosphere. I’m not going to quit social media, but hanging out there less sure seems like a good idea. I’ve thought for quite some time that scrolling through social media (especially Facebook and Twitter) has not made me happier or holier. Besides, it can be such a time waster. I found myself picking up a book to read or helping around the house in the little cracks of the day, instead of taking 10 minutes to scroll through the latest round of hot takes. We have allowed our kids too much time on their devices. My wife and I are still trying to determine what some workable rules look like, but we know tighter time constraints are in order. It was great to see the kids work on a puzzle, take out board games, and call on each other to play, as opposed to vacating in front of their own screens. It was also nice to be free from constantly monitoring device usage and calling for their attention. We depends more on our devices than we realize. During the week I’d pick up the phone to look up some factoid or to search out an article or get more information about some famous person, and then I’d remember, “Oh right, the fast.” I’m used to having all the information in the world literally at my fingertips. I “fell behind” on the week’s news (as if any of us is “caught up”). I didn’t even realize we needed to change our clocks until someone not on the fast told me on Saturday. We use our devices as treats throughout the day. I’m used to my phone or the television being my brain break after a day (or 20 minutes!) of hard work. I watch little television—Jeopardy, sports, and that’s about it. Still, I did miss the availability of putting on a game in the background at night, or of watching March Madness in my hotel room at the end of a long day. What I didn’t miss was the constant distraction of looking to my phone every time my attention span wobbled. We need better email habits. Or at least I do. On the good side, I generally respond to emails quickly and keep my (main) account at or near zero. On the bad side, the way I make this happen is by checking my email a bazillion times a day. Although it was hard to limit myself to one check a day (and I don’t think that’s workable in perpetuity), this approach certainly has its advantages. Because I could only check once, I made sure that one time would count. So I wasn’t about to check email waiting in line at the grocery store, or first thing in the morning, or in the five minutes between meetings. I checked when I knew I had at least 45 minutes to respond to as many emails as possible. This meant that I took care of everything I could on the spot. It also meant that once I was done, I was done. I didn’t feel the pressure to keep my inbox at zero. All the productivity books talk about limiting time spent on email. There’s nothing revolutionary here. But experiencing it for a week, I want to limit myself to a set number of checks each day, rather than being tethered to email constantly. I may miss some banter that would have been enjoyable, and I may be late to a few time-sensitive emails. But more than we realize, most emails can wait or plain old be ignored. So in the end, my takeaway from the digital fast is simple: less is more. We all know that, but few of us are willing to do it. I’m convinced almost all of us would be happier, healthier, holier, and more productive if we checked email less, checked social media less, turned on the television less, went to the movies less, picked up our phones less. To be sure, there is Christian liberty in all this, but on the other side of my fast I am more determined not to use to my liberty as a license for bad habits that don’t help me as a pastor, a husband, a father, or as a Christian pursing Christ. www.thegospelcoalition.org . Used by permission.

The Festival of Lights For many people in the diaspora – both Jews celebrating Hanukkah and Gentiles observing this celebration – Hanukkah is all about dreidels and latkes. However, if you happen to be in Israel during Hanukkah, go to a children’s party in a kindergarten or elementary school. You would be amazed, as was I many years ago, that it is all about light and lights! Many Hanukkah celebrations begin in full darkness, then the light of a candle – the first Hanukkah candle – pierces the darkness, and then – more candles and more lights! It’s very beautiful and very impressive! One of the central songs sung during Hanukkah is called BANU CHOSHECH LEGARESH – “WE CAME TO DRIVE AWAY THE DARKNESS” – and this is indeed the overwhelming feeling one gets during these celebrations: The light came to overcome the darkness! In this sense, one can’t miss the connection between Hanukkah and Christmas. that seems to me absolutely amazing about Christmas, is the fact that it happens in the darkest time of the year (at least, in the northern hemisphere). This is so beautiful and symbolic: In the world’s darkest hour, the light comes! And the same is true about Hanukkah: BANU CHOSHEKCH LEGARESH – Light comes into the world, and darkness cannot overcome it! Jesus Celebrated Hanukkah We read in the Gospel of John: And it was at Jerusalem the Feast of the Dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch. What is this winter “Feast of Dedication”? It’s not mentioned in Leviticus 23, where all the biblical feasts are described and their observance is commanded. So what did Jesus celebrate in the Temple? Of course, John is referring to Hanukkah (Hebrew for dedication.) The story of Hanukkah is preserved in the books of the Maccabees. However, these books are not part of the Tanach (Hebrew Bible), and therefore, surprisingly, we find the clearest mention of Hanukkah in the Bible, in the New Testament! Not only did Yeshua celebrate Hanukkah, according to the Gospel of John, but he observed it in the same Temple that had been miraculously rededicated by the Maccabees just a few generations earlier. In order to understand it, let’s turn to the history. History of Hanukkah Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire. It happened in the 2nd century BCE – the intertestamental period – which is why Hanukkah is not mentioned in the Tanach. The Jewish people were then living under the oppression of King Antiochus IV and Hellenistic pagan practices. The ruling Syrian dynasty of the Seleucids required full assimilation in all aspects of life: language, arts, lifestyle – everything was to conform to the Greek way of life. Antiochus enacted a series of harsh decrees against the Jews. Jewish worship was forbidden; the scrolls of the Law were confiscated and burned; Sabbath rest, circumcision and the dietary laws were prohibited under penalty of death. In 164 BCE, Antiochus even desecrated the Temple: the altars, the utensils, the golden Menorah were all defiled. Antiochus’s men went from town to town and from village to village to force the inhabitants to worship pagan gods. One day they arrived in the village of Modiin where an old priest, Mattityahu, lived. There they built an altar and demanded that Mattityahu offer sacrifices to the Greek gods. Mattityahu replied, “I, my sons and my brothers will remain loyal to the covenant which our G?d made with our fathers!” After that, Mattityahu left the village of Modiin and fled, together with his sons, to the hills of Judea and all loyal and courageous Jews joined them. Thus, the uprising began. After Mattityahu’s death, his son Judah became leader. Judah was called “Maccabee” – a word composed of the initial letters of the four Hebrew words Mi Kamocha Ba’eilim Hashem, “Who is like You, O Yahweh?” – and therefore it is called the Maccabean Revolt. Realistically, the Maccabees had absolutely no chance of winning. The Syrian army consisted of more than 40,000 men – it was another David vs. Goliath scenario – but, as in the story of David, God performed a miracle, and after a series of battles, the war was won. When the Maccabees, miraculously, recaptured the Temple, they had to cleanse and restore it. They entered the Temple and cleared it of the idols placed there by the Syrians. They wanted to light Menorah, as it is commanded in the Torah: Bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually. However, according to the Talmud, they found only a single jar of undefiled oil, and that was only enough to last a single day. Taking a leap of faith, they relit the Menorah , and by a miracle of God, it continued to burn for eight days, till new oil was made available. In memory of this, Hanukkah, an eight-day celebration, was established. On each day, an additional branch of the nine branched Hanukkiah is lit with the shamash (“helper” candle), which sits on the middle branch. The Light Shines in the darkness This is the traditional story – but there is something more to be aware of. Not many people realize that the Maccabees had not won their independence when they proclaimed the Festival of Hanukkah. Antiochus was still their ruler, and Syrian troops still occupied Eretz Yisrael and even most of Jerusalem. The light of the first Hanukkah truly shone in the midst of the darkness! In this sense, the light of Hanukkah, shining in the darkness, prophetically foreshadowed this Light of the Messiah! This reminds us of the words of John about Yeshua: The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. According to the Gospels, the Light of Yeshua also came at a time of the darkness and foreign oppression; the hand of Rome was heavy upon Israel, the nation could hardly bear this oppressive yoke. No wonder everybody waited for a deliverer – hoping and believing the footsteps of this deliverer had already been heard! Thus, we may say that both celebrations, Hanukkah and Christmas, look to the Messiah, but from two different perspectives – like two olives on each side of the Menorah in the beautiful vision of Zechariah that is read in synagogues on the Sabbath of Hanukkah: “I am looking, and there is a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it, and on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps. 3 Two olive trees are by it, one at the right of the bowl and the other at its left.” 4 So I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, “What are these, my lord?” 5 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts.’ Zech. 2:4-6 www.eteacherbiblical.com .

Christmas may be celebrated around the world, but many people find it a lonely time. Dr. Deb Waterbury suggests ten ways you can avoid loneliness this Christmas: “It’s simply amazing to me how quickly the Christmas things are out on store shelves!! Before we can even get through Halloween the little green and red stuff starts appearing in stores. Then well before Thanksgiving, Walmart and Target and Costco are in full Christmas shopping swing. Of course, I know that this is mostly because of the category retail stores put Christmas in—exactly that: Retail. But what is also kind of ironic is that this particular season does not invoke joy from everyone. As some of us know very well, this season can the catalyst for more pain and loneliness than any other time of year. What I’ve also realized as I’ve gotten older and spent more time counseling and teaching women, is that this pain and loneliness isn’t necessarily dependent on physicality, and by that I mean whether or not you are physically alone or not. Loneliness and depression are no respecter of persons. They don’t just appear because of a death or a separation. They can come seemingly out of nowhere with no outward valid reason, and they invade every aspect of the recipient’s life. Christmas just makes that harder. It’s like having joy forced down your throat, and there’s not much else in the world that can make a person less joyful than being sad and then surrounded by a lot of stuff telling you to be happy. However, what I’ve also realized is that loneliness is a choice. Oftentimes, so is sadness. We can choose to remain in that state, or we can choose to move out of it, but only we can do that for ourselves. It’s absolutely unrealistic to expect someone else to swoop in and do that on our behalf. I feel lonely a lot of the time, and I’ve also come to understand that if I want to eliminate that feeling, then I am the one who must do something about it. What follows is a list I’ve created for this specific time of year to try to help myself and others get free from the pervading loneliness that seems to creep up on us particularly at Christmas. These are very practical suggestions, but I can promise you that if you will do even just a one or two of them, you will be pleasantly surprised at how much better you will feel. 1. Put up some Christmas decorations. I realize this seems quite trivial, but it is something to do, and in doing it, you’re basically telling your heart that you’re not listening to it. Instead you’re going to be festive, for crying out loudJ! It doesn’t have to be extravagant or expensive, but be sure that most of what you put up is about Jesus. After all, it is His birthday we’re celebrating. Then once it’s up, you have a daily visual reminder of why you’re celebrating in the first place. 2. Get involved with your local church’s Christmas pageant/program/outreach. This one is #2 on the list, but that by no means represents it as minimally important. This step is very important. Find out what your church is doing to celebrate, and get involved. Most churches at least do something with the children, and they are a blast during the holidays. It will be good medicine to be around the little ones who seem to have no troubles at all celebrating Christmas and having abundant joy in the midst of it. If you don’t belong to a church, then find one that is close to you and get involved with their program. Prayerfully you’ll find a church home when you weren’t even expecting it! 3. Make plans for Christmas Day. The tendency when we are lonely is to isolate ourselves, which when you see that actually written seems a little ridiculous, doesn’t it? However, this is precisely the human condition, so do something against that now. Make plans for Christmas Day. If you don’t have family in town, don’t be afraid to ask someone if you can join them for Christmas dinner. What is even better is if you organize a little dinner or something for you and anyone else you know who might be alone during this time. Start now. Have a plan and stick to it. 4. Make a “20/20” List. This one needs a little explanation. We’ve all heard the saying, “Hindsight is 20/20,” meaning that we all have perfect vision when we’re looking at what has already happened. A “20/20” list is a physical list that I make quite often when I’m feeling sad or lonely. I take just few minutes and make a list of all the ways God has shown Himself both faithful and loving in my past. It may take a few attempts, but all of us can write something, and the physical act of writing them is exceptionally therapeutic. As a matter of fact, while I was studying for my master’s degree in the Art of Teaching, I did my thesis on how the brain remembers things. I found out that there is actually a trigger in the brain for memory when we physically put pen or pencil to paper. It will happen with the computer, too, but not nearly as strongly. When we physically write something on paper, the chemical reactions in our brains for memory are stronger than at any other time. Writing a 20/20 list will help. I promise. 5. Sing!!! And you don’t even have to be good at it!! Sing Christmas songs, sing praise songs, and don’t just passively listen—Sing!! Sing loudly and sing out! Sing in your car, sing in your house or apartment, sing in your back yard—sing anywhere. It’s just about impossible to feel sad when you’re singing about the joy of Jesus and His birth. We’re going to live forever only because of it, so sing about it! 6. Volunteer I remember counseling a woman one time who had been suffering from loneliness and depression for a long time. She had been coming to see me for a while when one day I asked her, “Where do you serve?” She looked at me like I had suddenly sprouted an extra head and asked incredulously, “What do you mean?” “Where do you serve?” I repeated. “Where are you volunteering?” She was, quite frankly, flabbergasted and a little put out. “How am I supposed to serve or volunteer when I feel like this? Shouldn’t you be asking what has been done for me by others?” How sad that is, but again, that is our human condition. When we are sad and lonely, it is often our last instinct to serve someone else, but I can tell you definitively that serving someone else in the middle of your pain is exactly what the doctor ordered. Find a soup kitchen or a shelter or somewhere in your church (Ask the Children’s minister. Believe me, they are always happy to have help!), or just look in your neighborhood. Help someone. It is an elixir for sadness that is just about unmatched by anything else. 7. Join a Bible study. There are so many reasons why you should do this, not the least of which is to study the very Love Letter written to you by your Bridegroom and the Lover of your soul. There are lots of support groups out there, and many of them are very good, but nothing is quite as rewarding and edifying than spending time with other believers while looking at God’s Holy Word. However, even beyond the obvious benefits of studying God’s Word with other believers, it’s the “other believers” that is key here, which leads right into number 8 on the list. 8. Be vulnerable. Yikes! I had to go and say the “V-word” didn’t I? This is so difficult, I totally understand. It’s extremely hard for me to open myself up to disappointment and ridicule and betrayal, which might not even happen but is more likely when you open up to others. However, the flip side of that is so rewarding that we simply have to take the chance more often. Be vulnerable with someone, especially someone in your local body of believers. Is there a chance that you might get hurt? Of course there is, but there is an even better chance that you will be uplifted and encouraged and even more than that, an encouragement to someone else. 9. Reach out to family and friends, especially those with whom you may be estranged. These just keep getting harder and harder, don’t they? But there’s a reason for that. The more we’re willing to step outside of ourselves and allow healing in all areas of our lives, the more we rob Satan of any foothold he might have in causing us such loneliness and despair, especially during this most glorious of holidays. Take that step. Be the first one to talk. Be the first one to call. It may or may not bring resolution in the relationship, but it will bring peace to you. 10. Spend time with Jesus. I saved this for last, because it is absolutely the most important. How can we celebrate the birth of our King if we don’t even know Him? Make time for Jesus every single day. Get to know Him who came and gave His very life so that you would live forever with Him. I pray you have a gloriously blessed and happy Christmas. May your joy be exponentially greater as each day passes, and may loneliness be a thing of the past as you revel in the reality of your position in eternity. Amen.

One of my favorite biblical role models is Mary of Nazareth. In her life I have found a wealth of wisdom for my own walk with God. Her story illustrates many of the characteristics of the kind of woman God uses to fulfill His redemptive purposes in our world. An ordinary woman There was nothing particularly unusual about Mary. She was not from a wealthy or illustrious family. When the angel appeared to this young teenage girl, she was engaged to be married and was undoubtedly doing what engaged girls do—dreaming of being married to Joseph, of the home they would live in, of the family they would have. I don’t believe she was expecting her life to be used in any extraordinary way. The significance of Mary’s life was not based on any of the things our world values so highly—background, physical beauty, intelligence, education, natural gifts and abilities. It was Mary’s relationship to Jesus that gave her life significance. “The Lord is with you,” the angel told her (Luke 1:28, NIV). That is what made all the difference in this young woman’s life. And it is what makes all the difference in our lives. An undeserving woman God did not choose this young woman because she was worthy of the honor of being the mother of the Savior. The angel said to Mary, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!” (v. 28, emphasis added). That phrase could be translated, “you who are graciously accepted.” If any of us is to be accepted by God, it will be because of grace—not because of anything we have done. It’s all because of grace. Over and over again in Scripture, we see that God chooses people who are undeserving. God didn’t look down from heaven and say, “I see a woman who has something to offer Me; I think I’ll use her.” Mary did not deserve to be used by God; to the contrary, she marveled at God’s grace in choosing her. The moment we cease to see ourselves as undeserving instruments, chances are we will cease to be useful in the hand of God. A Spirit-filled woman We, too, must be filled with the Spirit if we are to fulfill the purpose for which God has chosen us. When the angel said to Mary, “You’re going to have a child,” Mary responded, “How can this be? I’ve never been intimate with a man!” God had chosen her for a task that was humanly impossible. The task for which God has chosen you and me is no less impossible. We can share the Gospel of Christ with our lost friends, but we cannot give them repentance and faith. You can provide a climate that is conducive to the spiritual growth of your children, but you can’t make them have a heart for God. We are totally dependent on Him to produce any fruit of eternal value. In response to Mary’s expression of weakness and inadequacy, the angel promised her God’s strength and adequacy: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (v. 35). Don’t ever forget that you cannot do what God has called you to do. You cannot parent that child, love that husband, care for that elderly parent, submit to that boss, teach that Sunday school class, or lead that small-group Bible study. God specializes in the impossible, so that when the victory is won and the task is complete, we cannot take any credit. Others know we didn’t do it, and we know we didn’t do it. We must always remember that we can only live the Christian life and serve God through the power of His Holy Spirit. As soon as we think we can handle it on our own, we become useless to Him. We have to be willing to get out of the way, let God take over, and let Him overshadow us. An available woman Equipped with the promises of God, Mary’s response was simply, “I am the Lord’s servant. . . . May it be to me as you have said” (v. 38). In other words, “Lord, I’m available. You are my master; I am Your servant. I’m willing to be used however You choose. My body is Yours; my womb is Yours; my life is Yours.” In that act of surrender, Mary offered herself to God as a living sacrifice. She was willing to be used by God for His purposes—willing to endure the loss of reputation that was certain to follow when people realized she was with child, willing to endure the ridicule and even the possible stoning permitted by the Mosaic law, willing to go through nine months of increasing discomfort and sleeplessness, willing to endure the labor pains of giving birth to the Child. Mary was willing to give up her own plans and agenda so that she might link arms with God in fulfilling His agenda. A praising woman When God puts challenging circumstances in our lives, we either worship or we whine. I’m ashamed to say I’ve done more than my share of whining—even about ministry. “Oh, Lord, I’m tired of traveling. Do I have to go there? This is so hard! Why do I have to deal with that person?” I am reminded of the children of Israel in the wilderness who murmured incessantly. “If only God had just let us die in the wilderness,” they whined. One day God finally said, in essence, “You want to die in the wilderness? Okay, you’ll die in the wilderness!” (see Num. 14:2, 28–30). Be careful what you say when you murmur—God may take you up on it. But when Mary’s world was turned topsy-turvy, when she was faced with a drastic change in plans, she responded in worship and praise. “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (vv. 46–47). So begins her Magnificat—one of the greatest hymns of praise ever lifted up to heaven. She worshiped God for His wonderful acts, for His mercy, and for choosing her to be a part of His great redemptive plan. A woman of the Word Her prayer in Luke 1:46–55 includes at least a dozen quotations from the Old Testament Scriptures. In those days women did not have a formal education; Mary was probably illiterate. But she had listened to the reading of the Word and had hidden it in her heart. Her life and her prayers were filled with Scripture. One of our greatest needs as women is to become women of the Word, so that our prayers, our responses, and our words are saturated with God’s way of thinking. The world does not need to hear our opinions. When friends approach us for advice about dealing with their children, their boss, their finances, their fears, their depression, or other issues, they don’t need to hear what we think. We should be able to take them to the Word and say, “I don’t have the answers you need, but I know Someone who does. Here’s what God’s Word has to say about this situation.” A wounded woman Eight days after Jesus was born, Mary and Joseph took the infant to the temple (Luke 2:21–35). Simeon, who had been waiting for the appearance of the Messiah, took the Christ-Child in his arms and blessed Him. Simeon spoke of how the Child would be a sign that would be spoken against—foreshadowing the cross and the suffering He would undergo. Then Simeon looked at Mary and spoke words that she would not fully understand until she stood beneath the cross of her Son 33 years later. On that day she surely remembered Simeon’s words, “A sword will pierce your own soul too” (v. 35). There at Calvary I believe that sword pierced Mary’s soul in more than one sense. First, as a mother she was losing her Son. She was giving up His life. Even as He laid down His life, she gave up her Son for the salvation and the redemption of the world. Mothers, have you laid down your children for the sake of Christ and His kingdom? How sad it is on occasion to see Christian parents stand in the way of their children laying down their lives for the sake of Christ. And what a joy to see parents who gladly release their children to the will of God. Another wound pierced Mary’s heart—this one even more deeply than the first. You see, she understood that her Son was dying not only for the sins of the world, but for her sins. Even before He was born, she had recognized Him as “God my Savior” (Luke 1:47, emphasis added). As good as she was, Mary was not good enough to get to heaven on her own. As is true with each of us, she had to place her faith in the crucified Son of God, who died in her place. As she stood beneath that cross, perhaps she recalled the words of the prophet Isaiah: “He was pierced for [my] transgressions, he was crushed for [my] iniquities . . . and by his wounds [I am] healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the L ord has laid on him the iniquity of us all (Isa. 53:5–6). Mary was a wounded woman–wounded not only by her suffering, but by her sin. As she gazed upon her crucified Son, she realized that He was taking her wounds upon Himself. And as she believed, she was healed—cleansed of her sin. Three days later when she learned that He had conquered death and was alive, knowing she had been made whole by His death, she joined the other disciples in taking the Good News of His atonement to a wounded, sinful world, that they, too, might know His healing salvation. For more than 2,000 years her life has provided a portrait of godliness for women who, like Mary, long to be used of God. © Revive Our Hearts. Used with permission. Excerpted from Portrait of a Woman Used by God by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. www.ReviveOurHearts.com

Christmas is not always a time of joy. Randy Alcorn shows us five ways to rejoice this holy season. He writes: “Family tensions (whose house do we go to when?), never-ending to-do lists, financial difficulties, unrealistic expectations—reasons for unhappiness abound. Can you find genuine happiness during the Christmas season, even in the midst of the pressures? Yes. True happiness—the kind Jesus offers—is at the heart of what Christmas is all about! Consider the angel’s message to the shepherds at Jesus’ birth: “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people” (Luke 2:10). The Greek adjective translated “great” here is megas—this isn’t just news, but good news of “mega-joy.” It’s the best news there has ever been or ever will be. What characterizes this good news is deep, everlasting joy for those who receive it. The Contemporary English Version renders the verse this way: “good news for you, which will make everyone happy.” Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness” (ESV). Here God tells us directly that our mission is bringing everyone the “good news of happiness” about Jesus. . If the message we share and model at Christmastime and all year long doesn’t include happiness, then it contradicts God’s direct words in Isaiah 52:7. The gospel offers an exchange of misery-generating sin for happiness-giving righteousness provided by Jesus himself—joy incarnate, happiness in human flesh. The gospel is happy-making! Each stanza of “O Come All Ye faithful” contains sentiments of true happiness: “joyful and triumphant,” “sing in exultation,” “born this happy morning.” Joy, exultation, and happiness are proper responses to Jesus. A gospel not characterized by overwhelming gladness isn’t the gospel. A Christmas without a deep, God-given happiness isn’t reflecting the good news of Jesus. So how do we experience true happiness during this season? It starts with a godly perspective, a right way of looking at life. An Eternal Perspective A reconciled relationship with God, coupled with an understanding of the biblical teaching of a resurrected Heaven and Earth, assures us utter happiness will be ours forever. This happiness will be fully realized in the promised culmination of God’s redemptive plan, in the New Heaven and New Earth. For various reasons, Christmas can be a difficult season for many people. Yet God comforts his people in suffering, saying, “Look, I am ready to create new heavens and a new earth!” (Isaiah 65:17, NET). What should be our response to this promise? God uses joy-drenched words to describe this New Earth, a place where his people will bring happiness not only to each other but also to him: Be happy and rejoice forevermore over what I am about to create! For look, I am ready to create Jerusalem to be a source of joy, and her people to be a source of happiness. Jerusalem will bring me joy, and my people will bring me happiness. The sound of weeping or cries of sorrow will never be heard in her again. Isaiah 65:18-19, NET The forever that awaits us should color our lives now. We should daily frontload eternity’s joys into our present experience by focusing on Christ and anticipating the Heaven that awaits us. Right Expectations about Life and Suffering This same eternal perspective will help us adjust our expectations about life under the Curse, especially during the holidays. A biblical worldview is supremely optimistic and joyful, but it also recognizes the present reality of a fallen world. By lowering our expectations that all should go our way presently, and raising our expectations of eternal life, we can experience true happiness now. Considering the judgment we deserve, every happiness, small or large, is an undeserved gift—the grace of God. When we experience happiness now, we’re grateful; when we don’t, we know someday our happiness will be complete and never-ending. God doesn’t say we’ll never have hardship or suffering—he specifically promises we will (John 16:33). We’re not to be surprised when we face difficulties, even around Christmastime. Whether it’s something as insignificant as a burnt turkey or as overwhelming as the loss of a loved one, God tells us: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). If we expect God to make our lives easy, our expectations are unbiblical. As Christians, we’ll be delivered from eternal suffering. Even now, God will give us happy foretastes of living in his presence where there is fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11). That’s his promise. And what better time to focus on living in his presence than Christmastime? Our outlook is changed when we remember that our afflictions are Father-filtered by the God who knows all, governs all, and sovereignly weaves all together for our good: “We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). The more we grow in our understanding of God’s sovereign grace and loyal love, the happier we become. We don’t have an all-powerful God who doesn’t care; neither do we have a caring God who is powerless to make good things happen. We serve a Creator who loves us and is sovereign over the universe, including all evil. Our circumstances do matter. Broken relationships can be felt more deeply at Christmastime. Expectations about gifts received or given can bring anxiety. Comparing how others celebrate Christmas can bring sadness, especially if we feel left out. But all circumstances are opportunities for growth and our ultimate good. When they threaten to overwhelm us, these difficulties remind us to look to our Rock and Redeemer (Psalm 19:14). Truly, “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). This is also an encouraging message for those who feel lonely around the holidays, and wish their lives weren’t less busy, but more. Even if not many friends and loved ones are nearby, Christ promises he will be with people always (Matthew 28:20), and will never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Acting on the Right Perspective We can control our thoughts and attitudes. They’re not foreign invaders against which we are helpless. Paul said, “Fix your thoughts on what is true. . . . Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise” (Philippians 4:8, NLT). This doesn’t happen automatically. But once we develop the habit and experience its rewards, we instinctively turn our minds to what makes us happy in Christ. Of course, we should never flippantly say, “Happiness is a choice.” It’s not always easy to choose happiness in Christ. Embracing happiness is not merely working harder to pull up our minds and moods, as we would our bootstraps. Rather, it’s gratefully receiving God’s grace and happiness. God provides everything we need to be happy, and empowers us through his Spirit to believe in him and obey. At the same time, he leaves it to us to adopt a right perspective and make the choices that result in happiness. God empowers us through his Spirit to believe in him and obey him. He also calls upon us to genuinely cooperate with him, which requires our effort as we draw on his strength and grace (Philippians 2:12-13). Happiness from Gratitude Coupled with Humble Service When life is viewed with a spirit of thankfulness, we’ll see the reasons for happiness that surround us. God gives us hundreds of reasons to be grateful every hour—ask him to open your eyes to them, especially during what should be a joyful season of celebrating Christ’s birth! Developing the discipline of gratitude brings greater praise to God and greater happiness for ourselves. When life’s tough, we can still be grateful that God is with us and that he’s using it for our good. No matter your circumstances this Christmas, there’s happiness to be found in being grateful for God’s provision, and seeking to serve and help others. “In humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4). Cultivating Christ-Centered Holiday Happiness Happiness comes naturally in the same sense that fruit comes naturally from a tree. If the tree gets sufficient sunshine and water, if the ground is nutrient-rich, then yes, it “naturally” produces fruit. Yet the joy spoken of in Galatians 5:22 is also the supernatural fruit of the Spirit who indwells God’s children. We must plant ourselves in the rich soil of God’s Word, soak in the living water of God and his people, and bask in the radiant sunlight of his grace. Then happiness will come (super)naturally—happiness made possible by our God who became a man, who suffered, died and rose again so we could experience substantial happiness now, as well as ultimate and unending happiness in our eternal home.” Learn more in Randy’s book Happiness. This article also appears in the November/December 2015 issue of More to Lifemagazine.

When my children were young, one of my sons came into the kitchen while I was doing the dishes, and nonchalantly asked me, “Mom, do you know how to tell a good angel from a bad angel?” I wasn’t sure where my budding theologian was going with this question, but my curiosity was piqued, so I said, “No. How do you tell a good angel from a bad angel?” “Oh that’s easy,” he said. “A good angel will always say, ‘Do not be afraid.’” “Wow,” I said, “that is really cool.” Suddenly, I was very curious, “Hey, who taught you this?” Again with a very casual attitude he said, “Oh we learned about it in Sunday School.” He soon left me alone in the kitchen with my dirty dishes, where I stood in awe of our conversation. As a mother I always love it when my children teach me. My young son was referencing the three angelic visits that are recorded in the Christmas story as it appears in the gospel of Luke. In Luke 1:13-17 we have the first appearance when the angel Gabriel spoke to Zechariah, the future father of John the Baptist. In verse 13 the angel said, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.” ESV Then in Luke 1:30-33 the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and said, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” ESV And, lastly, in Luke 2:10-12 an unnamed angel appears to the shepherds and says, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” ESV Can you imagine why the angels began their message with “Do not be afraid”? I think it could be frightening to see and hear an angel. Look at Luke 1:12. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. Mary was also greatly disturbed when Gabriel spoke. Look at verse 1:28-29. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. Extreme gentleness seems to be valued by the angels’ words. Ultimately, you see from these passages, regardless of their message, the angels wanted to bring peace to their hearers. But, each listener had a choice. Would they believe the message or would they give way to their fright? Ironically, of the three it was the most mature and seasoned believer who had the trust issues. Zechariah the righteous priest, who was chosen by lot to burn incense in the temple, who had walked with God the longest, was the one who struggled the most to believe Gabriel’s words. You should know I am making some assumptions about these incidents that the scriptures do not specifically speak to. I am thinking that the shepherds who got stuck with the night shift were younger than Zechariah. Late night work is often an entry-level job. Many companies like hospitals must pay more to get employees to work the night shift. So, I am assuming as I read these passages from the Christmas story that the shepherds, like Mary, were younger than Zechariah. So, what can be learned from these three angelic visits? A) Spiritual maturity will not stop you from listening to fear Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous before God (Luke 1:6-7). They were blameless in all the commandments and both were descendants of Aaron. And, yet when an angelic messenger from God came to Zechariah he was terrified. After the initial messages both Zechariah and Mary were confused. Look at Luke 1:18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” Mary’s question was similar in Luke 1:34 And Mary said to the angel “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” Both Mary and Zechariah wanted more information, but only one, Zechariah, suffers after asking . Why? Look at verse 20. “And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” Zachariah’s motivation was unbelief, but Mary chose faith. Look in verse 38. And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. It was not having questions that got Zechariah in trouble. It was the distrust driving his curiosity. Wouldn’t you like the longer you seek God to show a transformation in you? Zechariah had studied about God for many years and yet he stumbled. Unfortunately, seeking biblical head knowledge about God does not guarantee a spiritual transformation. A person could just be collecting facts. Remember, unbridled fear can eventually lead to unbelief. No matter your stage of spiritual maturity your peace will always be tied to your trust level. The more you believe God the more you will enjoy his rest. In Hebrews 11:6 the writer to the Hebrews wrote, “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” Do you believe God wants to reward you? Maybe, Zechariah fell for a common spiritual error. Do you think he actually believed he had spiritually outgrown his need to trust God? B) There is a heavy price to be paid when you begin listening to fear. The cost of Zechariah’s unbelief was severe. When he came out of his encounter in the temple he could not speak and God did not open his tongue until it was time for him to name the baby. As a life-long talker I cannot imagine how difficult that was. Think of the many times he wanted to speak to his wife about the impending birth of their first and only child, but he couldn’t because of his lack of faith. Like, Zechariah, you will suffer when you cannot trust God. C) Thankfully, God can still move when you begin listening to fear. Zechariah could not believe the angel’s message, but Elizabeth still got pregnant. When God wants to move nothing can stop God’s plans from coming to birth. But, what you can do is stop your enjoyment of being a part of God’s plan. Zechariah’s story is a great example of God’s grace. God can still move when you cannot trust. Zechariah’s story starts by revealing his many good works. And, yet his consistent right living had never brought him the child he so longed to hold. It was his fear, unbelief, and questioning of God’s message that God used to teach him about grace. Like Zechariah’s life, living under the law will exhaust you. Hear God’s gentle words, “Do not be afraid”, because fear is one of the most common of temptations. As you face the many unknowns and uncertainties of life, there will be many things you can’t control. But, there is one thing you have full control over. You can determine whether you will believe God. Ultimately, your choices will not thwart God, but it might determine whether you experience God’s rest now or later. As you celebrate your Savior’s birth this Christmas season remember that the angels’ desire was to bring peace. May you be blessed during this season with an ever-increasing calm and rest as you continue to exercise your trust in God.