Keeping Christ in Christmas

I know… I know… It’s not yet Thanksgiving but Christmas decor is everywhere and Christmas shopping is in full swing!  Usually by this week in November, we have already put up our Christmas tree.  (That’s on next week’s list this year.)

Personally, I view the celebrations of Thanksgiving, Christmas, Epiphany, and  the New Year as one long and wonderful holiday season full of gratitude, love, and giving.

Focusing on the celebration of Jesus’ birth shouldn’t detract us from exhibiting a spirit of “thanksgiving.”  In fact, in my way of looking at things, early Christmas decor should enhance our attitude of gratitude… especially as we acknowledge all that we are and have in Jesus Christ.   🙂

It’s fun to be able to lightly enjoy the coming Christmas season at a leisurely pace for a few days.  However, as we all well know, within a mere week or two, schedules will become filled and pressure will be felt.  So… now is the best time to do some pre-season preparation.  {And I’m not talking about gift-purchasing, though that is a great idea, as well.}

What I’m talking about is the preparing of the heart.

The Christmas season gets so full and frantic that, though the season really IS about JESUS, if we aren’t intentional, we’ll leave Him completely out of it all.  (Or He will be an afterthought, at best.) Isn’t that sadly true?

The traditions, the shopping, the decorating, the family gatherings, the ministries, the parties, the movies, the music… they are all wonderful and have their rightful places.  But if we don’t prepare our hearts BEFORE we prepare our homes and make our holiday plans, though the calendar may look full, we can find ourselves empty and lonely inside.

It is with humility and hope that I admit that this is a work-in-progress for me.  That’s why I am starting NOW to begin to prepare my heart for CHRISTmas.

One thing I’ll be doing this weekend is getting my spiritual life in order… As in, deciding what I’ll be doing for my Bible study time each day, cleaning out and refilling my Quiet Time notebook, and making a dedicated commitment to the Lord to awake early enough every day to begin the day with Him.

Because we can NEVER out-give God, giving Him the first fruits of our days – that time most precious to us in the morning – is and investment in the day ahead.  God knows the paths on which we will walk.  We don’t. Time spent at the feet of Jesus is never lost or wasted.  When we begin each of the upcoming busy and hectic days with Jesus, we will navigate this Christmas {which is really tHIS CHRISTmas} season with our eyes and ears tuned into the REASON for the season ~ Jesus Christ.  He will fill us and guide us and spill out of us as we move through this year’s holiday festivities.

Do you want to spend some time with Jesus, but you’re not sure how to do it or where to start? An intimate fellowship with The Lord, time in His Word, soaking in what He has to say to you and responding to Him as if you are “best friends” is offered to each one of us. We just have to take the time to invest in our relationship with The Lord.

Like building any friendship, it takes an investment of time, energy, and purpose. But my friends, it is SO worth it!

If you’re wondering where you’ll get any extra minutes in your day, let me ask you this: Do you use your snooze alarm? If so… there’s your answer! 😉

My personal philosophy (though it is sometimes a struggle to abide by it) is that if I have time to snooze in the mornings, I could invest those 10 minutes in Jesus and be more rested than if I had slept a few extra minutes. If you’ll set your alarm back just 10 minutes earlier, and get up when it goes off, you can start your day filled and refreshed – rather than tired and cranky. I promise. We can never out-give God. If we give Him those precious 10 minutes, we will see just what He gives in return: strength, encouragement, hope, a plan for the day, inspiration, peace… to name a few.
{From my own experience, I trust that soon you’ll find that 10 minutes just isn’t enough, and you’ll see such a “return” on your investment, that you’ll be craving more and more time with Him.}

 

 

Need a Jump Start? Here is a plan for 10 Precious Minutes with the Lord.

Have these items handy:

A Bible (easy to read and understand version – I LOVE the Amplified, Holeman Christan Standard, Message, NIV, and the New Living Translation)

Paper – I use a spiral notebook or several sheets of notebook paper folded up in my Bible for these moments with God.

A Pen or Pencil (highlighter optional)

 

Here’s the plan:

 

1 minute – Submit yourself to the Lord. Bow yourself to Him, acknowledging Him as your King and Authority over you. Give yourself and your day to Him. Ask Him to speak to you.

 

1 minute – Praise God for three of His Characteristics and Thank God for three ways He’s blessed you. Quickly write the date and record these on your paper.

 

1 minute – Ask God to create in you a clean heart (Ps. 51:10). As He reveals any unconfessed sin, repent of it lay it before Him. (Of course, this is more than a minute long process – it’s an every day, all day long process. This minute just opens the door for the Lord to speak to you throughout the day about your sin. As He convicts you of sinning, repent right then. Don’t wait until later. Confess it. Ask for forgiveness immediately, and stay clean throughout the day. It’s like washing your hands each time they get dirty, instead of waiting till the end of the day or the next morning. There are times we all need a long, deep spiritual cleansing, and I encourage you to set aside a special time with The Lord to do that.)

 

2 minutes – Ask God to fill you, cover you with His armor, shine through you, and speak to you.

 

“Fill me” – Colossians 2:10 says in the Jewish New Testament, “It is in union with Him that you have been made full.” Especially when we are rushed and stressed, we tend to run on empty. It is in union with Jesus – this time together with Him before anything else depletes us – that we are made and kept full.

 

“Cover me” – Using Ephesians 6:10-14, put on the armor God has provided for you to wear in Victory! You might want to list the armor pieces at the top of your notebook paper so you can quickly go through and picture each piece. I picture myself putting them on piece by peace, as I speak each piece aloud, thanking God for this awesome protection.

 

“Shine through me” – Pray that you will “Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your Light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.” Isaiah 60:1

 

“Speak to me” – Pray Psalm 119:18, “Open my eyes that I might see wonderful things in Your Law.” and get ready for God to reveal Himself to you through His Word.

 

(Now, you’re about 5 minutes into the 10.)

 

3 minutes – Read God’s Word. Have a specific place in the Bible in mind, so you won’t waste your time randomly searching. I’m going through Psalms right now. Other wonderful books are Proverbs, John, James, Philippians… they are all so wonderful, it’s hard to choose one. But for this quick quiet time, I would encourage you to stick to one of the books mentioned above.

There is just something special about getting a Word from what I like to call “the raw Word of God”. I LOVE devotional books and Bible studies… and I encourage you to find time through out your day to add a Bible study or devotional book reading to your life. But if you truly have only 10 minutes, I encourage you to spend them in God’s Word first and add what someone else has written about God’s Word later. {If you have The Holy Spirit living within you, He will speak to you just as He speaks to those who write those devotions and Bible studies… That is…if you ask Him to…and if you then get in His Word. :-)}

What to do: Start at the beginning of the book/passages you are reading. Read for 3 minutes or until you have some type of “reaction” (Wow! or Oh, You are so Good, Lord! or I am so sorry! or I never thought of it like that before… or even, I don’t understand…) Stop reading at that point. You’ll pick up at this spot tomorrow and continue reading.

1 minute – On your paper, under your praise/thanks, write the reference for what you just read, then write your reaction. This makes Scripture come alive, because God has just spoken to you, revealing His Truth to you in some way, and in your reaction, you are responding to Him. It’s like you are writing to each other. This is so important, because as we get busy, we tend to forget the wonderful things The Lord revealed to us. Having them written down, gives us a reminder and a visible picture of God’s activity in our lives at the moment. These types of papers are a treasure to me.

 

1 minute – Pray these truths into your life. Ask God to help these truths be a reality in your own life.

 

The 10 minutes is over, but your fellowship with Jesus has just begun.

As you begin preparing for your day, continue to talk with Jesus about the day ahead, about your family, your concerns, your needs and those things/people heavy on your heart. You can even pray that these same truths you just heard from God in your time with Him would be found true in the lives of others. As you go about your day, drive to work with Him… fold the laundry with Him… acknowledge The Lord in your daily life … lingering in His presence as you would your best and dearest friend. The presence of God’s fellowship and the awareness of His personal involvement in your life will be a sweet blessing and reward for seeking Him!

 

No matter how busy the day ahead becomes, or what lies ahead, this 10 minutes with the Lord will help jump start your day with the breath of the Lord God Almighty propelling you forward in His strength, joy, and fellowship!

 

Will you begin to

prepare your HEART 

for CHRISTmas

by starting your days 

with Jesus?

James 1:5 promises that if we ask for wisdom, God will grant it to us.  So ask Him, my friends.  Ask the Lord how YOU can begin to prepare your heart for tHIS CHRISTmas season.

May the Lord’s Peace rest upon us all as we seek Him first… (Matthew 6:33)

 

 

 

For future reference, this post can be reached under the top tab “Want to grow closer to Jesus?” or by clicking this link: How to Start A Daily Quiet Time.

And if you want to dig a little deeper into God’s Word, see this post (also under the tab “Want to grow closer to Jesus?”): How To Study The Bible for yourself, by yourself.

A practical and inspirational approach to seeking and finding Jesus this Christmas season, Keeping Christ AS Christmas offers simple strategies and sanity savers to help your Christmas be meaningful in a new and treasured way. Prepare your hearts, households, and homes for Peace this Christmas season by Keeping Christ AS Christmas.

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ChristASChristmas.com (for all other e-book formats)