Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus This Christmas
By Lynette Kittle
“Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” - Hebrews 12:2
It’s easy to get caught up in all the various holiday events that take place during the Christmas season: running from place to place, shopping for gifts, attending holiday parties, and preparing festive meals. In the rush and excitement of it all, it’s easy to get caught up in it and take our eyes off the real focal point of Christmas, Jesus, our prefect gift from our loving, heavenly Father (John 3:16).
Putting Gift Giving in Perspective
The desire we have to give comes from God. He is the ultimate giver, proving over and over again by His generous heart toward us. Because we are made in His image, our hearts are created and moved to give, too. However, even though giving is a God-thing motivated by love, sinful thoughts and attitudes can corrupt motives behind it, causing many to give for the wrong reasons, such as wanting to be accepted or to impress others. As well as giving to receive something in return or to buy or manipulate favors from others. All year long, and especially at Christmas, we want to keep our hearts and minds focused on God’s leading in giving to each other, asking Him to guide us in giving gifts that meet needs, and ones that have lasting and eternal value.
Guarding Our Thoughts and Minds during Holiday Movies
More than ever, Christmas holidays are marked now by watching countless Christmas movies. Along with the Hallmark Network, now Great American Family and Lifetime Networks are airing Christmas movie marathons 24/7. For Hallmark especially, most storylines never mention Jesus or leave Him totally out of the picture. So is it okay for us as Christians to watch them? Watching faithless films requires us to keep a guard over our hearts and minds, aware of how easily holiday glitz and glitter is able to lead us astray from focusing on God’s gift of eternal life through Jesus. If not kept in check, over time, the superficial holiday glamour starts to turn our thoughts to how, where, and when we will celebrate Christmas rather than looking at the One we are celebrating.
As long as we keep aware of how these movies-minus-Jesus have the potential to influence and shape our thoughts about Christmas, we can watch their entertaining holiday themes, keeping in mind how they are missing the mark when it comes to communicating the Season’s real meaning.
Filtering Jesus-less Messaging
With all of the Christ-less messaging surrounding us this time of year, we want to recognize that even though many offer bright, colorful, warm, and magical holiday atmospheres, they are selling us worldly views and outlooks concerning the meaning of Christmas. We want to recognize how Jesus-less celebrating leaves us feeling empty in the end because Santa, elves, Christmas cookies, hot cocoa, and colorful lights, overall, leave us without the hope that comes through the true, hope-filled biblical story of Christmas. Christmas without Jesus will always come up short because without Him, there is no reason to celebrate. If Jesus hadn’t been born, there would be no Savior for a fallen world that is lost, broken, and hopeless without Him.
Concentrating on the True Joy of Christmas
Fixating on holiday extras causes us to miss the true joy of the Season. Luke 2:10 explains the origin of this joy. “But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.” Whereas the world offers us temporary, surface forms of holiday cheer and happiness, the Season’s true joy is found in Jesus, a joy full and satisfying every day of our lives (John 15:11), the kind that daily strengthens and sustains us (Philippians 4:13).
Intersecting Faith and Life:
What is your vision like lately? Are you focused on Jesus, or have you found yourself distracted by holiday events? If so, take time this week to turn your eyes towards Jesus, asking God to keep your sights on Him.
Further Reading: How to Keep Your Eyes On Jesus
Photo credit: ©GettyImages/Winyuu
Lynette Kittle is married with four daughters. She enjoys writing about faith, marriage, parenting, relationships, and life. Her writing has been published by Focus on the Family, Decision, Today’s Christian Woman, kirkcameron.com, Ungrind.org, StartMarriageRight.com, and more. She has a M.A. in Communication from Regent University and serves as associate producer for Soul Check TV.
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