Originally Posted by Mike Young December 2006

During the month of December, many of us will see and hear the slogan: Jesus is the Reason for the Season.

I’m glad that someone coined that phrase to keep us focused on Christ in Christmas. But, I want to share another, powerful thought with you. In this week’s session of The Quest for Authentic Manhood, many of us heard Robert Lewis say, WE are the reason for the season.

We celebrate Jesus’ birth at Christmas but He left heaven’s throne and came to earth as a man so that we might experience re-birth.

Consider these passages:

For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given… Isaiah 9:6

Today in the town of David a savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:11

…They will call him “Immanuel” – which means, God with us. Matthew 1:23

So at Christmas, we rightly celebrate Christ, but he didn’t come to be celebrated. He came to save.

John 3:16 punctuates this thought.

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

Folks, Christmas is just a few days away. Could I challenge you now to begin finding the quiet time in your day to “walk with God?” I don’t know about you, but there have been years when this time has been so busy and hectic, so bright and exciting that I’ve gotten to December 26th and realized that I had experienced the “mas” but missed the “Christ” part of Christmas. I have often found myself focused on doing things that fill my schedule and my tummy but leave my spirit undernourished. This year, I want to make sure I spend some concentrated time trying to be mindful of what Christ has done for me.

I’m convinced that we all need to find a strategy during these next busy weeks to be reminded of why Christ came to earth. Let’s face it; we don’t like to get out our warm and comfortable beds to go check on a sick child whom we love dearly in the middle of the night. We often grumble when our routines are disrupted by a friend or family member who needs our help. (We really don’t like it when a needy stranger interrupts our schedule.) I’m sure you don’t complain out loud, but when our comfortable lives are disrupted we have a tendency to react. Now take those thoughts and reactions and compare them to Christ.

He left the glory of heaven to come do something special for us. It’s not about Him, it’s about us.

Finding strategies and time to work on your walk with Christ is going to be challenging for the next couple of weeks. For me, it’s more difficult to work through the distractions and focus on Christ during sacred times of the year than it is during other times. I wish I could generate a list of suggestions or a formula to ensure that we all stay close to Christ. But, the problem is that our needs and our situations are all different. I don’t know what will work for you. Often, I’m not sure what will work for me.

But let me offer this: Read God’s word daily between now and Christmas.

Read the Christmas story in Luke several times. Look for something new each time. Look for a new revelation, thought or idea for you from God’s word.

Take time to make some notes about what God is revealing to you. It is God’s desire that we would walk closely to him and know Him better. Allowing Him to speak to you through His word is a great start.

Satan will fill the air with distractions. Stay focused!