Greetings,

It is that time of year again! The jingling Salvation Army Christmas bells, the nonstop Christmas songs being played everywhere you go, the smell of fresh evergreen cut and brought inside, and the feeling of warmth of friends and family around during this season.

Some people genuinely love the nostalgia of Christmas and to others this season brings memories of sadness and loneliness. This Christmas, would you consider reaching out to someone that you know that might need a cheerful hello or a long needed word of appreciation? Take a moment and pray for someone that might be feeling less than joy filled this Christmas. Tell them that you are praying for them and what you are praying for them about. Often we feel like it would be awkward or sort of strange to greet someone out of the blue without a reason. It may be received as strange, but the motivation behind it is love. Genuine concern for our friends and those around us.

This last year I have come to realize that I think really loving and kind thoughts about many people around me and often I never tell them. I told my wife the other day that I think about her a lot and how much I love and appreciate her and she seemed surprised. Her response helped me to realize that although I think great things about her, she would appreciate hearing it out of my mouth a bit more.

My challenge to you is this: When a kind or thoughtful comment comes to your mind about someone, take just the few seconds that it requires to say it, text it or email it to the person. We are people of love. God is love and whoever lives in love lives in Him. Living in love means living it out loud. Love is only a feeling if it remains in your mind. It is best demonstrated by word and effort.

Here’s the deal folks... since God loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we could have eternal life through him, we must love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. People will know we are disciples of Jesus by our love for each other. (John 13:35)

God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him... and we have seen with our own eyes, through people’s life transformations, that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Everyone that declares that Jesus is the Son of God has God living in them, and they live in God. We know how much God loves us, and each of us have put our trust in his love.

God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.  And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So, we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.

This kind of love has nothing to fear, because perfect love banishes all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we haven’t fully experienced his perfect love. We love each other because he loved us first.

If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their fellow believers. (1 John 4:11-21)

My hope is that you will love well this week and love out especially to those who need to hear it most.

I love you,
Merry Christmas