When Jesus was delivered in the stable in Bethlehem so very long ago, a very special gift was given to the world. Just think, God gave his only son to mankind, allowed him to be born in poverty under horrible conditions, knowing that he would grow up to pay a horrible price so that our sins might be forgiven and we could spend all eternity in the presence of our “Father” the one and only God, but only after the gift of our lives would be blessed and come to whatever end our creator determined. The story of “Christ” and what he would be destined to do for the sake of saving poor souls filled with the sins of mankind, but forgiven, at least those who believed in him is our prerequisite to gain entrance into his house. That’s all God would ask of man, was for them to accept the scriptures as “Truth” and believe in the printed word that although many would question their validity, it would be faith, unconditional faith and love that would prove to be the key to the door that those who lived their lives in a way that a forgiving God would open and receive each who trusted that he was real and not a fairy tale as many would have us believe. Oh, the story of the “Christ Child” and what he would mean is a story of love, unconditional and a blessed love that only God knows how to give. I am a Roman Catholic, and regardless what Christian faith each of you is, as long as your faith is prefaced “Christian” and you know God’s love, we will all see each other on the other side in the safe and loving presence of our creator.
In a few days those of us who know that God is real, knows that he gave his only son to save our souls, forgive our sins, and bless all of his children as they sit around their “Christmas Trees” and tell the story, the greatest story ever told, the story of the Christ Child and the meaning of Christmas, the true meaning of Christmas, the meaning that gives hope to the hopeless, and peace to those who know only pain and suffering. Never forget, no suffering that any of us may consider more than man can stand, will never compare what Christ suffered so our sins are forgiven. There is no way for man to know the pain that God suffered knowing that he sacrificed his only begotten son to pay for the sins we commit, how could we ever know. One thing is for sure, the wonder of the birth of Christ is the miracle that gave us the key to enter the kingdom of heaven when God calls us. Are we teaching our children of this miracle, or are we teaching them of all the gifts they will be expecting under the tree each year, I pray that we are giving our children the gift of knowing the meaning of Christmas, rather than the expectation of receiving material “things” when we owe them the knowledge of the birth of a small child, the Christ Child, who is the reason we have any hope of entering the kingdom of heaven, where the power of being in the presence of our creator when we leave this world and enter his has been paid for by the blood of that small holy Christ Child, who would grow to be first a “Teacher” and then our savior who would suffer the pain of being beaten and spat upon, soon to be nailed to a cross, all so that our sins might be forgiven and allow us to know what it is to be in the holy presence of God, our loving God who waits for us and asks that we share the beautiful, wonderful story of “Christmas”, the day a small baby boy, the son of God, would be born into this world for one reason only, and that is to save us from our own weaknesses and to forgive our sins. This is the story we must pass on to our children, we must teach them to give without the expectation of receiving. If we fail to do this, we fail our children, we fail ourselves, but most of all, we fail our “Lord God” King of a heaven that only those who believe and know that their faith will gain their entry so that we might witness the glory of the God who created the heavens, the earth and all that is of this earth, as we came from dust, we all shall return to dust, but our souls will rise and through our faith and trust, will become a part of a heaven only God can grant us entry into.
Shame on those of us who fail our children by failing to teach them the meaning, the true meaning of “Christmas”, and most important is that all of our children should know the story of a small child born in “Bethlehem”, in a stable as there was no room at the “Inn” so the son of God entered this world with less than most of our children will ever know and never being given the gift of the story of how God gave us his only son, sacrificed him, so that we may know the kingdom of heaven, know the miracle of Christmas, a gift to man, a gift so great no gift will ever compare and to deny our children the story of Christ’s birth would be a sin that only Christ and his heavenly father has the power to forgive. In my heart I know that those who belong to this site (NWW) are blessed with a deep and strong Christian faith and love of God that would never allow the love of “Things” to ever supersede the true meaning of “Christmas”, the act of giving, for to give out of love for one another is to give from the heart, hearts filled with God’s love, a love so special only those who are filled with belief, trust and a love for our creator that we will never forget to pass on to our children the meaning of “Christmas”, the story of Jesus, a baby born into a world who only knew of what was in the holy scriptures, the promise of a savior, a child who not only is the Christ Child, but a miracle that allows three divine and holy pieces that make up the one true God, (The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost or Spirit) and if you know this to be true, and you believe you have been saved by the coming of Christ into this world, who suffered and crucified so that we might live in and know the very presence of God, then we have a chance!
We can disagree here on earth with each other’s political views, but I pray as we enter the season of the Christ Child, Jesus, son of God, that we do not now or ever allow our human differences interfere or influence or deep Christian faith or belief in our one true God, and that our heavenly father in fact gave us his only son to be bone into this world of sin, suffer, and pass from this life on earth into his life as the son of God who is our savior. If we ever forget that, or lose sight of the importance of his coming, we have lost and will be condemned to an afterlife without ever knowing the presence of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit! Our faith must be cause enough to pass on the story of the “Real Meaning of Christmas” to our children, shame on each of us that allows that to happen.
My Granddaughters will spend Christmas eve with us and when they get up in the morning Santa will have been, but I can promise you this, they will have heard the “real story and true meaning of Christmas” before Christmas eve has passed. We, Val, Emma and Sarah (last two are my granddaughters) will sit by the fire, not far from the customary decorated tree, and will listen intensely as the story of our Christ Child is told with the tenderness always delivered, partly by Val (Nana) and partly by me, (Grandpa). Their little innocent faces will glow as the fire reflects off of them, and they will ask questions about our “Savior”, some will go unanswered as they always have a way to find a question far too complex for our simple minds, but we will always leave them with the truth, that we believe and the importance of them to find it in their pure hearts to consider believing in the “Truths”, read from a book filled with pictures of Mary, Joseph, on their journey to Bethlehem, to the Inn where they are turned away, and finally to the stable where the “Christ Child” is born, the star the guided the three wise men to our savior, and the Angle and the Shepard boy, the whole true story of the miracle of Jesus, a small baby boy, who is our savior. Due to their age we will increase the details as they grow older and we grow wiser. Let us all pray that with this year’s celebration of the coming of Christ, a better understanding of who we are, what we stand for and never, ever forgetting that without God’s blessings, without our trust and faith, there is no America, not the way we were blessed with her, so we cannot fail the future of our children, we must give them hope, something to believe in, a truth that God is real, is forgiving, and is “Love”!
Merry Christmas and God bless you all, Milt, Val and our granddaughters, tomorrows future.
No comments:
Post a Comment