5 WAYS TO MAKE CHRISTMAS SPECIAL (Part 2)

In the last blog I shared 3 ways to make Christmas special this year – enjoy family advent devotions, sing traditional Christmas carols and read the biblical narratives. Here are 2 further ways……

4. GIVE A GIFT WITH A DIFFERENCE

There are many gifts we give to people who give back to us.  But how about a gift which will make real difference to someone in real need?  That gift may be financial and you may deliberately and intentionally support a person or a project with a real blessed gift e.g. this year in Newtownbreda our Christmas giving will go to the “Water for Life” project run by Fields of Life.  My gift can be added to hundreds of other gifts to make a real difference to communities in Uganda. A simple thing but surely one which reflects the God who gave at Christmas. The problem is that often we just can’t be bothered or are too lazy or just leave it to others.  Or we never really think about it or get round to it or we feel we can’t afford it or we are just tired out. But we need to conquer our lethargy.  A gift with a difference doesn’t have to be money – it could be time with someone or just your presence in a home or at an event.  The Lord Jesus himself said “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (see Acts 20 v35) More blessed. That is an irreversible principle. So we make it more special when we give – but we need to be conscious and deliberate about that.

5. GIVE OUT AN EVANGELISTIC LEAFLET

That may sound so old fashioned but we are called to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel”.(Mark 16 v15) There is power in literature (How do I know? How much junk mail falls through your letterbox this time of year? Think those companies would spend all that money if leaflets had no effect? Of course literature works!)  A carefully chosen, well presented leaflet which tells the gospel story and reveals the truth about the Son who came to this world to save us can be mightily powerful in the hands of the Spirit.  It’s a unique time of the year – a time when many are at least exposed in some way to spiritual things.  So we need to be ‘intentional’ (there’s that word again) about getting out the message of the gospel.  And if you don’t do it then who will?  Honestly?  Who? What have you got to lose?  Some people say, “I don’t like handing out literature.  I just live the life”.  Really?  Well that’s a good thing.  You should ‘live the life’ but when was the last time somebody came and asked you how they could be saved just because they thought you were such a great Christian?  When did that happen?  Thought so!  So why not let the power of the written word do its work.  Don’t be ashamed of the gospel.  Christ is not ashamed of you.

So 5 simple things to DO so that the season does not pass you by or is handed over completely to the secularist agenda of our age.  Over to you.  Over to me.  At the end of life I’m sure that, like me, you want to hear “Well DONE good and faithful servant”.  Not just well discussed or well thought about.  Well DONE so………go and do it.