Still a Season of Love
Happy Valentine’s Day to each of you!
I do recognize though, that for some this season of love brings a sense of indifference and even intimidation. For you, I encourage to remember that the love of God is still “rich, full, and free”!
Thank you for the love, encouragement, and prayers. I look forward to sharing new writing and exciting writing news in the near future!
Christ Was Born—Now What?
“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” John 3:17.
The power of choice is real, yet pervasive.
A recent Twitter post disturbed me. It stated that while many are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, others are debating the date of his birth.
There is one group who chooses not to accept that Christ was born on December 25. They are possibly correct in that the only eyewitnesses we have are God the Father, God the Holy Spirit, Joseph, Mary, and the angels. The only evidence we have is that as documented by the gospel writers. The shepherds came after the fact and the so-called wise men were not in the same time period. I love the account as given in Luke chapter 2 and Linus presented it in such a heartwarming rendition in the Charlie Brown Christmas special, a holiday requisite.
There is yet a second group that chooses not to accept the deity of Christ, or the more commonly referred to Immaculate Conception, that is the Holy Spirit impregnating the Mary, a young virgin. “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 714); “But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 1:20).
Pregnancy and childbirth are miraculous events in and of themselves. Most people tout nine (9) months as the ideal for a full-term birth. However, in perinatology, the study of fetal and infant medical care, we recognize that nine-month pregnancy is actually four (4) weeks premature and that 40 weeks, or 10 months, is actually the expected course. One can only imagine what took place 2000+ years ago “as shepherds watched their flocks by night.” Suddenly, angels who had missed their commander for 10 months, burst on the scene saying (not singing, as recently pointed out by my uncle) “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill unto men” (Luke 2:13, 14). What a night that must have been! Fast-forward 2000+ years and some have become rather reticent to proclaim this marvelous event.
Both of the aforementioned groups miss out on two important gifts during this season. There is the gift of appreciation for Christ’s birth and all that it entails—His simple, yet flawless life; His death on a cruel cross, accepting our punishment for sin; His resurrection; His ascension; His continual intercession on our behalf and His soon return to reclaim those who love Him. It is a package deal; it is good news!
The second gift is the wonderful opportunity to share this good news, especially during this Christmas season. Hearts are full of love, attuned to benevolence, and are fertile ground to receive the greatest gift, that of the miracle of Christ. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth (John 1: 1, 14). This is Immanuel—“God with us” (Matthew 1:23)!
Thus, my prayer for us is that we will share Christ at Christmas. I pray we will focus more on the coming Christ, rather than on the coming crisis. I pray we would not only remember the first coming of Jesus, but look with expectation to His second. I pray that we would have peace and goodwill towards each other. I pray we will experience the true and intended blessings of the Christmas season.
Christ was born; oh come let us adore Him!
Gratitude is an Attitude
It is a Christian virtue to express gratitude. As Christians, to us, this is synonymous with expressing thanks to God. It has become so deep-rooted in us it is natural and almost reflexive. We sing songs of expressing gratefulness or thanksgiving to the Provider of our very breath.
Why then has gratitude in its basic form taken off with great momentum in mainstream society, even for those that don’t overtly express a belief or dependence on God? Is it because they have discovered that there is an added benefit to being grateful? In secular and other positive-thinking circles, gratitude is a component of healthy living. It is almost obvious that if one has a negative outlook on life, then one will decrease their rate of success. Pick up your average daily planner in the bookstore and you most likely will find a section for documenting gratitude.
In the past few years, I trained in three courses that had gratitude as an essential component. Two courses were Christian based, and the other was a professional social media online training. The latter, produced by LinkedIn Learning, aimed at making writers more productive. After all, if one writes for a living and doesn’t churn out the books, articles, or blogs, one starves! So, alongside developing routines, healthy diets, meditation, and brain-wave manipulation, there was the concept of gratitude. The premise was that if one starts the day with a negative mindset jaded by email, texts, and bad news, then one hampers their productivity. One is writing from a so-called “dark place” where ideas don’t flow as well or in an uplifting fashion. The solution then is to start the day by making a gratitude list of ten (10) things to reframe one’s thinking and set the mind up to produce from a positive writing reservoir.
The other course is the Nedley Depression and Anxiety Recovery Program®. Dr. Neil Nedley presents outstanding evidence and makes gratitude one of the eight (8) key components to developing a strong and healthy frontal lobe, the seat of spirituality and the will. He recommends identifying five (5) items of gratitude, but the daily checklist gives room for three (3).
CREATION Health®, a healthy living program designed and produced by Florida Hospital parks the concept of gratitude under its acronym “O” or “Outlook”. So, along with Choice, Rest, Environment, Activity, Trust, Interpersonal Relationships, and Nutrition, it is a vital component of true healthy living. Its “prescription” in this category recommends not only writing one (1) item of gratitude each day, but to whom one expresses gratitude. Therefore, although there are a variety of methods of acknowledging and documenting gratitude, the common thread is that the conscious act of doing so is imperative to realize the benefits.
What are the benefits of gratitude?
Certainly, we recognize that showing appreciation to God is essential. He does not make it conditional for His grace and mercy to be extended towards us, but it definitely enhances our love for and relationship with Him when we show gratitude, gratefulness, and thanks. Dr. Nedley notes one will have a calm state of being and not only recognize but exemplify a positive disposition, which includes the outward expression of a smile. By changing one’s mental perception, Florida Hospital outlines, the body follows suit. There is a boost to not only one’s demeanor, but one’s motivation and joie de vivre. This emotional and physical elevation contributes to the other categories within the acronym and directly or indirectly results in a well-rounded individual.
We have seen that although there may be many variables in play within a person’s physical, mental, social, emotional, and even economic construct, which may or may not be static, the recognition and change of an often overlooked changeable aspect of gratitude may make a world of difference. So on this Thanksgiving Day, choose to be grateful, give thanks, and make gratitude your new attitude!