Picked up a random poetry book From the crowded shelf. Quick easy hour read: Delight and wonder. Then, Found…
The Christmas Spirit Inside You
Merry Christmas Eve to you!
Do you feel the Christmas Spirit in your heart?
What would you think of the “Christmas Spirit,” if say Charles Dickens had never written A Christmas Carol?
Dickens wrote about a miserly man who hated everyone and everything except his money. When three spirits visit him to show him his past, present, and future, he gets a wake up call and changes his perspective about life (Dickens).
Dickens has the ghost of Scrooge’s old business partner explain to him, “‘At this time of the rolling year,’ the spectre said, ‘I suffer most. Why did I walk through crowds of fellow-beings with my eyes turned down, and never raise them to that blessed Star which led the Wise Men to a poor abode! Were there no poor homes to which its light would have conducted me!’”
How many of us walk in a selfish haze without realizing the joy and the opportunity to share with others around us? How can we open our hearts and eyes to the true honor it is to live?
We are daily blessed by others, and we in turn bless others, even without realizing it. Feeling the Christmas Spirit is possible, we just need to sit still and feel the love in our hearts.
What would we celebrate if it was not for the greatest gift of all?
God’s gift to us is His son, Jesus, lives in each of us. Jesus came to be born as a human as a living sacrifice. At Christmas time especially, we exchange gifts and spend time with family and friends because we have that example from God who sent the Magi to honor blessings on His son.
Lenny Espinito shares, “Christmas celebrates humanity because it recognizes that God offered the first gift in Jesus Christ, and began the process of reconciling us to Him. There can be peace on earth because the Prince of Peace has come; there can be joy to the world because Jesus, the Joy of Man’s desiring is here.”
What if you still do not feel the Christmas Spirit this year?
St. Luke’s United Methodist Church posted suggestions to this for how to find the spirit of Christmas within you:
- “Look past the labels. If you want to get in the Christmas spirit, try looking past all the labels and judgments to truly see the people around you. It may be a stranger, a friend or people in your own family, but chances are there are people are around you, who you’ve failed to see.”
- “Be a blessing to others. Second, it is by blessing others that we can experience the Christmas spirit. Open your eyes to those around you who could use encouragement. Maybe it’s a member of your family, a friend or a stranger you encounter. There are so many wonderful opportunities to bless others this time of year. When you look for ways to be a blessing, it prepares your heart to experience God reaching out to you on Christmas.”
- “Look for God at work. Third, you and I need to practice knowing the presence of God. I believe God is working in the world every day, but a lot of times we don’t see it; we miss it because we are so busy and overwhelmed… Optimism rules when you and I know we’re not doing it alone, when we feel God’s presence and cultivate a receptive, listening heart,” (“CHRISTMAS SPIRIT: WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU’RE NOT ‘FEELING IT'”).
In conclusion, I pray that you do feel the gift of the Christ child in your heart today and always. May you remember your hope in something bigger than yourself. God will keep you rooted and balanced in your life. You just have to let Him in. It is as simple as just sitting still and being aware of your emotions and thoughts.
May you find the guiding light of love, hope, and joy this Christmas! Blessings to you and your family!
Dickens, Charles. (Aug. 11, 2004). A Christmas Carol. Project Gutenberg. Retrieved from: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/46/46-h/46-h.htm.