(December 08, 2024) Carol Round reflects on Christmastime…

Love Came Down at Christmas, one of my favourite hymns, was written by Christina Rossetti in 1885. The lyrics capture the very heart of Christmas in one word— love.

And love is highlighted in one of the most well-known scriptures: ‘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).

Christmas Essence
James W. Moore, in his book Christmas Gifts That Won’t Break, writes, ‘Well, of course, the essence of Christmas is love. God’s incredible love for us, expressed when He sent His only Son into the world to save us. Love Came Down at Christmas— that’s how the hymn writer puts it.

Whenever and wherever we receive God’s sacrificial love, whenever and wherever God’s love is accepted and shared, Christmas comes once again.’

Moore explains it this way. ‘When we, like the shepherds, fall down in awe, wonder and commitment before the manger of God’s love, there is Christmas! When, like the three wise men, give our best to the Master, there is Christmas! When we, like Mary and Joseph, trust and obey God and try our best to do God’s will, there is Christmas.’

Celebrating the essence— the very heart— of Christmas is not just a time to put up a tree and decorate. Buying and giving gifts isn’t the meaning of Christmas— even though we like surprising our loved ones. We can celebrate Christmas every day of the year

Christmas Spirit
We’re usually in a giving mood during this time of year.

Caught up in the Christmas spirit, we’re more generous. Donations to food pantries, coat and toy drives, and financial help to charities, increase as people are filled with Christmas joy. 1John 3:18GNT reminds us that ‘our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action.’

The very basis of the gospel message, love is an action verb and Jesus is our role model for loving others. Once we accept Him as our Saviour, His love dwells in our heart— an unconditional love that we didn’t do anything to deserve it.

 This realisation leads to a question: How then can we love like Jesus?

Christmas Responses
(i) Kindness
We can show kindness to everyone we meet. Whether it’s our family, our neighbours, a co-worker, or a stranger, we can choose to be kind (See Ephesians 4:32).

(ii) Prayer
We can pray for others and not just when they’re facing trials. When we have nothing else to offer, we can pray for them, trusting God will answer (See Ephesians 6:18).

(iii) Showing patience
Each day, we encounter people who are different from us and we have no clue what battles they are facing (See Ephesians 4:2).

(iv) Loving ourselves
We must love ourselves before we can love another. This means we must receive God’s love, which is freely given (See Matthew 22:29).

(v) Loving our enemies
This is one of the most difficult choices we face— loving our enemies. However, when we choose to love them, we’re doing so because Christ lives in us (See Matthew 5:44). Paul gave us good advice in 1Corinthians 16:14—‘Do everything in love.’

When we choose love each day, then we can share the greatest gift of all, not just at Christmas but always.

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Carol Round is an inspirational speaker and author whose encouraging articles have appeared in many publications. Carol especially loves hearing from readers, saying ‘Feel free to share this post.’ For more inspiration, visit https://carolaround.com. Link: carol@carolaround.com.

Recommended: Journaling with Jesus and companion The 40 Day Challenge. These help readers draw close to God— (See: http://bit.ly/2LGOvKN and Amazon author page: https://amzn.to/2pP5Yr6).
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