Which of these excites you about Christmas?

What excites you about Christmas?

Ask a child that question and it’s likely the immediate and jovial response will be, “Presents!”

It’s no wonder, then, that when Grace Davidson took her four-year-old granddaughter to “big church” for the first time, she misunderstood something the preacher said. The little girl sat quietly, taking in every aspect of the service, and her attentive curiosity stayed in check until the pastoral prayer. The pastor said, “We thank You, Lord, for Your presence.” The little girl’s eyes flew open and she whispered to her grandmother, “Granny, we’re gonna get presents!”

If truth be told, most of us get excited about Christmas because of the presents we’ll receive. Even at that first Christmas, a present was given – God gave us the presence of His Son:

“This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. ‘Joseph, son of David,’ the angel said, ‘do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: ‘Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us,'” Matthew 1:18-23.

The presence of God being with us wasn’t a one-time-only event limited to that first Christmas; rather because of the present of His presence, we can experience the presence of God in our lives any time, anywhere!

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you,'” Hebrews 13:5.

And after the baby born on Christmas grew and lived a sinless life, sacrificed Himself on the cross to save us from our sins, and defeated death with His resurrection, before ascending back to the Father He would give us an assurance of His ongoing presence:

“Jesus came and told his disciples, ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age,” Matthew 28:18-20.

What could be more exciting than the presence of God in our lives?

Certainly not presents … right?

What excites YOU about Christmas?

Scotty