Christmas is about GIFTS...

Something that sparked this thought was during ushering briefing yesterday, when Muiling asked some of us how we're feeling about Christmas service... and to be honest, quite a few of us weren't feeling v excited about it.

She was quite shocked, and exclaimed (something to that effect), "It's CHRISTMAS! Jesus' birthday! How can you not be excited?"

So from that heartfelt exclamation, it made me think about personally, as a 7-yrs old Christian, what does Christmas really mean to me now? And remind me again, I've heard so often that God gave us His one and only Son - not just during Christmas, but all year-round... so why do we bother to celebrate Christmas, if His gift of salvation is freely available all year around? Has Christmas become just another day in the church calendar where we invite our friends to special services?

Think the true meaning of Christmas - beyond bringing ppl for evax services, etc... if I really want to enjoy it personally, to REALLY celebrate Christmas...
is simply that Christmas is about GIFTS.

"He gave us the greatest Gift of all... when He gave His Son Jesus..."

Even now it still wrenches my heart every time I think of this song:

"As little children we would dream of Christmas morn
And all the gifts and toys we knew we'd find
But we never realised a baby born one blessed night
Gave us the greatest gift of our lives..."

It really pierces my heart - because I'm simply so grateful...
that I've finally received His greatest gift of all...

I really don't know how to express this joy of receiving this gift enough... I remember, many years ago, my family would go out along Orchard Road to listen to the Christmas choirs sing carols... and I think it's during those times, over many years, that God planted several seeds in my heart, that stirred my curiosity about what the real meaning of Christmas really was... who is this Jesus, and how come they call him the greatest gift of all?

"As the years went by we learnt more about giving
And giving of ourselves and what that really meant
On a dark and cloudy day a Man hung crying in the rain
Because of love, because of love..."

Christmas really is all about giving - and personally, I think the only way that we Christians can truly celebrate Christmas is to give freely, just as we have so freely received. That's why we give gifts to one another... real gifts of love... not mere "Merry Christmas" wishes, but real tangible gifts - whether it's a simple handmade card, or some exquisitely crafted jewellery, or even a thoughtfully given sum of cash... Christmas is all about gifts that really meet our needs - whether it's need for affirmation, need for a hug, need for food or for cash, etc. etc...

For God Himself sent a real and tangible Gift down on that very first Christmas Day - gift-wrapped in cloths, because we so needed to be rescued from our lostness.

Dear friends, if you're reading this, and deep down in your hearts you feel, even though you're a Christian too, that Christmas, for you, has lost its meaning, why not take the time to offer a real gift of love to another brother or sister? It could be anything... as simple as a handmade card, or a much-needed sum of cash, or something else... For when you give freely, you share in the experience of the true spirit of Christmas - God's one and only Son, given so in love, that whoever believes in Him may not perish, but have eternal life.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
But dear friends, if you've not yet asked Jesus to be the Lord and Saviour of your life yet, why not ask Him into your heart this very moment? You can pray this simple prayer now:

Dear God, I know I'm a sinner and that I've done many wrong things against You. But I know that You love me so much that You sent Your one and only Son, Jesus, to die for my sins on the cross, that I may be forgiven. I believe that You raised Him from the dead, and so I ask You, Lord Jesus, to come into my heart from this day now on, and make me the person that You want me to be. Thank You Lord.

I prayed this prayer 7 years ago, and I've been finding out more and more that Jesus Christ really is the greatest Gift that I have ever received in my whole life. He has never failed me. He is the most faithful friend that I can ever have, and He's been changing my life ever since the day that I first met Him.

Dear friend, Jesus is really the greatest Gift that you can ever receive. Won't you ask Him into your heart today?