Is this the happiest season of all?
Our good folks want to wish you a VERY MERRY fun, happy, Christ filled Christmas ! We’re using the whole month to celebrate the birth of our Savior and the coming of God’s hope for lost sinners and wounded Christians into this world that First Christmas. We have our program and Christmas Dinner Sunday December 15 but we also invite children from the community to come to our free gingerbread house outreach, Wednesday, December 11, 6:30pm at the Fellowship Hall. Every year this event is a big success and LOTS of FUN !!
Is this, as the song says, the Hap Happiest season of all ? For those of us who know Jesus and the real reason God sent his Son into this world, to take our sins and set us free, it can be wonderful. But for those who don’t know Jesus, or those who have lost a loved one this year, or for those who really have no family to this special season, it can really hurt and almost seem like you’re the only one left out of the joy of the season. You might even be a bit bitter or resent those who seem to have more reason to celebrate. Let me say first, if you’ve suffered loss or find yourself alone, I can believe there is real pain for you. But let’s talk about an answer to your situation. For those who don’t understand the meaning of the season and see it as empty commercialism, the truth will set you free. Jesus really IS the “Reason for the Season”. God so loved the world that He sent His only Son into the world to help us find forgiveness and reconciliation with a Holy God who LOVES us, But has to work past the obstacle of our sin to be able to have relationship with us. That’s why Jesus was born to a virgin who was made to be “with child” by the Holy Spirit planting God’s seed in her womb. So much more could be said, but that’s what Christmas is all about in truth.
Secondly, IF you’ve lost a loved one this year and it’s your first year for the pain of a holiday season without them, or if you really have no family in the area to share the joys of Christmas, it’s normal for you to miss them and to have difficulty adjusting or to fight the lonely feelings of a kind of abandonment. But with God’s help, the help of a good church family, the difficult can be bearable and you can still find some joy this year, and more in the years to come.
If you need a friend, start with Jesus, but be sure to add to that an effort to connect with a loving local church family. And, if you need us, here we are.
God bless you and Merry Christmas from Myself and Linda, and from a congregation of kind and loving people at Church on the Hill.
