Greetings to you…”the fragrance of Christ”…in the beautiful, wonderful, and powerful name of Jesus Christ – THE Risen Savior! Wow! “This is the day that the Lord has made” for us…can we, will we, rejoice and be glad in it? I trust that all is well with in body, mind, and spirit for you, and that you are not letting the enemy gain a foothold in your thoughts and attitude. Today I will be praying for you, asking Father to surround you with a hedge of protection and a band of strong angels to fight for you…may you experience peace that doesn’t make sense…may you know an expressive joy…and may you feel His healing touch.
I had a quick trip to a store and saw the staff putting new stock on the shelves and dispersing the Christmas items…the times they are a changing! One of my challenges is how to keep the relevancy of Christmas front and center as long as I can. It is so easy to lose touch with what we have heard and experienced. The circumstances and challenges and complexities of life can overwhelm us to the point where the “good news” is lost and we start looking for answers and direction. I have a concern that we have forgotten how to stop and encourage ourselves in God’s presence.
One of the words of Christmas that we must never put away is – “Emmanuel”, God with us. I think that far too often we forget the importance and necessity of that concept. This morning as I pondered – “Emmanuel”…an old chorus began to resound in my heart…“Christ is the answer to my every need-Christ is the answer, He is my friend indeed-Problems of life my spirit may assail-With Christ my Savior I shall never fail-For Christ is the answer to my need.” I can only believe that and sing it as a declaration if I keep the truth of Emmanuel in front of me. Note the words say – Christ is the answer, not was or will be!
Goodness knows that there are enough ‘problems’ assailing us these days – problems that “steal, kill, and destroy” our hopes, dreams,, and peace. We need answers – direction, energy, solutions…we need to hold onto the truth that because of Christmas we have an “Emmanuel” – God with us. This God we believe in has been revealed as the One who dwells in the “here and now” through Jesus Christ. Let is “encourage” ourselves with the fact…we are never alone if keep Emmanuel front and center in our beliefs.
Just a little something to ponder…be blessed today!