Daily Devotional

My Dad loved to disguise our Christmas presents. He would put a phone book or catalog inside a present to make the box heavier. My sister and I would shake our gifts and hear rattles that turned out to be a bunch of pencils surrounding our gifts.  Some gifts contained bells or even cans of soup to deceive us. We could not guess the gift by shaking it or feeling its weight.  One particular gift stands out in my memory. Dad labored with the weight of my huge present. When I took it from him, I realized it was light as a feather. He was up to his old tricks again. Joyfully I tore through the festive wrapping paper and opened the large mysterious box. I was astounded. Inside and half-way down I saw a big X formed by strings attached to the four corners, intersecting in the middle. In the center of the X hung my gift… a beautiful gold ring. He really outdid himself that day.  
God really knows how to disguise a gift.  His most precious gift He sent in the form of a newborn baby. Jesus was 100% God, but also 100% human. It’s hard to fathom. God in the form of a baby. Cute little wiggly toes and fingers. Soft delicate skin, Maybe a puff of hair. Absolutely adorable, as all babies are. He was a typical baby with all the baby needs of comfort, food, sleep and love. Jesus was so much more than a precious human baby. Jesus was the Savior of the world. His birth was announced by an angel to the shepherds.

Luke 2:10–11 - "But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'"

When I was 17 years old I began my quest to find out if God was real. I discovered that God desired to reveal His glorious gift to me.  The beautiful but mysterious account of Jesus birth in Bethlehem touched my heart. I had the joy of celebrating the full meaning of Christmas for the first time when I was 18 years old. Although I have heard and read the Christmas story over and over throughout my life, I never get tired of it. This Christmas season let’s all be intentional in sharing the Christmas story. God desires for us to spread the good news, just like the Shepherds did that wondrous night when they gazed upon the Christ child.

Luke 2:20 - "The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them."

New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.