While listening to the tv and washing dishes, I noticed how over and over the message was Happy Holidays. They said it over and over. It actually got a bit on my nerves because I like for people to say Merry Christmas. But while I was letting their words irritate me, God spoke to me: without Christ there would be no Christmas. The message that God gave Matt was completely about how different this world would be without Christmas. How we would only have a winter season, no longer a Christmas or holiday season. How we would not decorate early for Christmas, how we would not buy gifts, children wouldn’t ask for every single toy they saw, no stockings hung by the chimney with care, no more, no more, no more…. Then he went on to say, now get away from all of the commercialized part and get into the real reason we have Christmas. Without Christ, there would be no miraculous virgin birth, the Word would have never been made flesh, ”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1 KJV This precious verse would not be! Nor would, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Gen 1:1 KJV Nor would, “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” Matt 1:21 KJV A world without Jesus Christ, the Savior, the Messiah, Yahweh would be no world at all. He is why we are alive and can breathe for as the word says: “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Gen 2:7 KJV Christ is our very existence! Mankind would not even be here if we remove Christmas, because removing Christmas removes Christ. Removes salvation, forgiveness, true love, peace, joy, long suffering, patience and every other attribute of God.

With saying all of that, I want to ask: does anyone pay attention to the message? As Matt preached yesterday morning desiring for every single person in the congregation to receive the message, to gain the full understanding in the depths of their hearts, to feel the conviction of God, to be filled up by the Holy Ghost and to release their life to God. I listened to the message, I prayed for him as he so obviously desired for the message to be received. (Not to be boastful, but I can only speak for my own actions.) In order to honestly receive the message God has given His servant (the preacher) one must stop thinking about everything they gotta get done, one must invite the Holy Ghost into the service, one must be obedient to the movement of the Spirit, one must listen – having ears that hear and a willing heart ready to receive the message. You see, the entire point of the message offered was why do you leave Christ out of your Christmas, out of your everyday life, out of your heart and out of you? Every year Christians fuss about how more and more people leave Christ out of Christmas, but why aren’t we doing something about the fact that Christ is being left out of people’s everyday lives every other day of the year. Christ is not the Savior just during Christmas and Easter. He is our Savior everyday of the year. It is my prayer that all Christians would earnestly pray for every lost soul in the world to receive Christ as their Savior, that they would receive the message of Christ.

Lord God, Please forgive me for the time in my life when I refused to receive the message, when I didn’t allow Christ into my so called Christmas. Thank You for the day I opened the gift of salvation when I invited You into my heart, my life and Thank You for how much my life has changed since that blessed day. Thank You for being long suffering, patient with me when I wasn’t listening to the ongoing message for my life. Thank You for being so loving and kind when I held onto things that were not productive. Thank You for knowing I needed someone who would love me as Christ loves the church, Thank You for Matt and his love for me, for our family and for everything he does because he opened Your gift of salvation in his life. Thank You for our sons, Nicholas and Jeremy, and for the lessons in life they have taught us, the blessings they are to us and for knowing they can have that same gift. Thankful one has opened that gift and one has it before him “under the tree” waiting to be opened. Thank You for the lovely ladies in their lives whom they are building futures with who also have this same opportunity of receiving the message. Thank You for the beautiful, smart, adorable and all sass granddaughters, Alayah and Karsyn, who have the same promise to them. What wonderful thing to know that the blessed promised made to Peter, John, Paul, Mary the mother of Jesus was also made to our ancestors, to my grandparents, to Matt and I and is promised to them. Thank You for the message.