As I write this, we’ve just gone through another Christmas season. Don’t you just hate how the birth of Christ, Christmas, has become so commercialized and secular? It’s not politically correct to say “Merry Christmas” now; you have to say something like “Happy Holidays”. And the holiday emphasis and blitz starts way before Halloween. For our world, money, getting, spending, fun, activity, partying, all have replaced Christ at Christmas.
Yet our own schedules were so full (most of which were good things) that we had very little time to chill, to meditate, to remember, to pray, and to center in on the birthday One. So easily we chant “The world is trying to take Christ out of Christmas”. Yet we who know Him leave Him out, TOO! Remember that the world doesn’t know Him, so it’s only right that they leave Him out. But for us to do so…?
So why bring this up in our March newsletter? Because most of us are continuing to live our lives with God on the fringe. He just gets crowded out. I’m sure we don’t set out for it to be that way. I didn’t intend to miss my Quiet Time with Him this morning, but I stayed up later than I knew I should last night watching a football game that I was only half interested in and found myself with a headache this morning because my body was going on lack of sleep. And my body held onto the pillow and the bed when my heart was saying “Get up and meet God.” My body won out and I lost out. And God was pushed back in my priorities.
How about your life? Is Jesus center stage for you? Is He consistently winning out over your desire? Would your spouse, child, parent, or best friend describe your life as God-centered? Is Jesus in control of your thoughts, attitudes, schedule, possessions, money, actions, and relationships? Are you in constant and consistent dialog with the Lord?
The Lord made you. Each of us is His through creation. The Lord paid a huge ransom price for you at Calvary. Each Christian is His through redemption. But think seriously with – How much of you in reality belong to Him? How much control are you allowing the Owner of your life to have over you? In a 24-hour day, how much time to you spend on the throne of your life? Every second you are on the throne, He is not!
Is Jesus on the fringe or is He in the forefront? You know where He should be. What are you and I going to do about it? The world can’t be expected to get it right about Jesus. And they certainly won’t until we do. And they are watching us.
And maybe the reason they haven’t become Christians already is because they’ve been watching Christians (you and I perhaps). The less Jesus is on the throne of your life, the less the world sees Him in your life. It’s not time to put Christ back into Christmas, it’s time to put Christ back into the Christian.
God would like to start with you!!!!
Another usurper of His throne,