Christmas Decorating Kit

Luke 1:11-12, "Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." (NIV)

Each year as the Christmas season approaches
I look for ways to balance the duties and distractions of Christmas
while keeping Christ at the center of our celebrations.
This year I'm committed to finding a spiritual application for items
I might use in preparation for this holy and wonderful holiday.
As I prepare to bake our favorite holiday treats, I will need my cookbook.
What a wonderful reminder that the Bible is my cookbook for life.
It gives me the ingredients and instructions for fruitful living.
When I cover my clothes with an apron
I'm reminded that the blood of Christ covers me
and keeps me from being stained by sin
My kitchen timer ensures that nothing is under or over baked,
in the same way the Lord times out every situation in my life perfectly.
As I bake holiday treats to share with family and friends,
I always use sugar this is my reminder
to share the sweetness of Christ's love with others
The measuring cups and spoons I use provide exact amounts
of the necessary ingredients for my recipe
Think about how God always provides abundance
of His love, His mercy and His grace in our lives
Aren't you thankful that God's provision is not limited to measuring cups and spoons?
When I add spices and flavorings to my foods
I'm reminded of Christ's words in Matthew 5:13, "You are the salt of the earth"
I should be adding flavor to the lives of others.
I have many different cookie cutters in my collection,
and as I bake our favorite cookies I'm reminded that,
just as my cookie cutters are all different,
each one of God's children is unique and wonderfully different.
In setting the table with my Christmas china I am reminded
I must feast on God's Word each day for spiritual food
and I should be reminded that Christ is the "Bread of Life."
When I pull out my artificial Christmas tree
I like to place a nativity scene between the branches.
I am reminded of why we celebrate this holy season.
Christ was born in a manger, but He came to die on a tree for our salvation.
Christmas music holds a very special place in my heart since I am a singer. Songs that tell the glad tidings of Christ's birth are a wonderful reminder to proclaim this joyous message to all those we encounter during this holy season and throughout the year.
I like to decorate our home with lighted garland and lots of candles. This is a perfect picture of Christ coming to be "The Light of the World." This year I hope everyone who visits my home and yours will know that it is decorated in honor of Christ's birthday.

My Prayer for Today:

Father, Help us to remember that Christmas is not about the gifts, or the twinkling eyes of children; it's not about a Christmas tree and special cookies or families gathering together. Christmas is the time to celebrate the fact that Your Son became man to enable man to become Your sons (and daughters). I pray our focus will be Christ alone as we celebrate this season. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

before we knew it, christmas is here...this is a good reminder to all of us on the real essence of Christmas....good thing to ponder upon as we approach the Christmas Season...

Reminds me of the song: We are the Reason

As little children
We would dream of Christmas morn
Of all the gifts and toys
We knew we'd find
But we never realized
A baby born one blessed night
Gave us the greatest gift of our lives

We were the reason
That He gave His life
We were the reason
That He suffered and died
To a world that was lost
He gave all He could give
To show us the reason to live

As the years went by
We learned more about gifts
The giving of ourselves
And what that means
On a dark and cloudy day
A man hung crying in the rain
All because of love, all because of love

I've finally found the reason for living
It's in giving every part of my heart to Him
In all that I do every word that I say
I'll be giving my all just for Him, for Him

He is my reason to live