A True Blessing

As I write this, we have just started a New Year, have celebrated a wonderful Christmas season and have made it through the “Holidays”. Now it is time to get back on schedule and get our lives back to normal. It is time to use what we have gained at Christmas in our daily lives. Yes, I mean all the presents that we have received. What are we going to do with them –return them because we are not going to use them, OR are we going to find a way to incorporate them into our lives?

Jesus offers us the same opportunity—what are we going to do with the spiritual gift that we have received? Jesus was born again into our lives offering us all new opportunities to change things.

We have the opportunity to allow Jesus to be more to us.

With the birth of Jesus Christ, we celebrate the fullest picture of God the world ever received. He came to earth as a baby and grew to be a man who ate, walked and slept, just as you and I do. By the life he lived, he revealed the heart of our gracious and loving God.

We ought to respond to the revelation of the Lord with a revelation of our own: the uncovering of our heart to him. Too often we hide from God behind our fear, pride, and shame. But Jesus came to earth to find each person where they are, not where they ought to be. God reaches into the darkest, dirtiest , most fearful places to correct and restore us into who He meant for us to be. This is the real gift that we received this Christmas season.

May each one of us open our hearts to the Lord this January and everyday of our lives, and show Him what’s really in it. Open up and tell the God who loved us so much- that He was willing to put on human flesh(phil2:6) and dwell among us-God simply wants us to be honest with him about our life and what is going on with us.

As we start a new and exciting year 2018 may we allow our lives to truly reflect the gift that has been given to us.
 
May The Lord Bless and Keep You,
 
Rev. Stephen W. Barch