It’s All About Love
Who can tell me the story of Christmas? Don’t read it. Tell it from memory.
What is that story really about? The birth of Jesus. What else? What does Christmas mean to you? What’s important to you this time of year?
Why did Jesus come? To save us from our sins. But why? Because God so loved the world. Love. What did Jesus say about the importance of love.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” -- Mark 12:30-31
How do you think we should react in the face of such love? With gratitude.Gratitude. We’ve talked about this before. What exactly does it mean? A feeling of being thankful to somebody for doing something. (Dictionary lookup) What are you grateful for? Family. Friends. Health. Home. Food. Safety. Anybody want to add anything else?
Sometimes we show our gratitude by being generous to others, especially this time of year. We buy gifts for family and friends. We share cookies and meals. We give to others too. There’s the Angel Tree ministry here at our church. Some of us drop money in the Salvation Army kettles. We may give to other charities or adopt a family or remember the elderly widow down the street.
Did you all here about the story last week of the cop who bought a carton of eggs for a woman caught stealing? She was trying to steal five eggs to feed her family. That cop showed mercy. The store showed mercy. And the cop met her need. He bought her a carton of eggs. Something so small, so simple, and yet it made the news. Why? Because we aren’t a nation of mercy anymore. But let’s not go off on that just yet.
We give out of our abundance. What if giving meant a sacrifice on our part? Maybe -- if it’s someone we know and like. Someone we think is deserving of our generosity. Someone who will thank us the way we think they should.
Think about your life. What do you need? Before you answer, what is a need? Food. A place to live. Medication.
Now what do you want? A warm bed to sleep in. A television to watch Alabama football games. What are some other things?
Now let’s look at the excess. Yeah. We’ve all got excess. Lots and lots of excess. Things we’ll never use again. Things we’ll never wear again. Books we’ll never read again. What are some excesses in your life?
What would happen if we used some of that excess to bless someone who is lacking in the basics? What if we did it anonymously? What if we looked someone in the eye and told them you wanted them to have something of yours? Something nice, not something ready for the trash bin.
Let’s go a step further. How generous are you with compliments? When was the last time you wrote a note thanking someone for being who they are? In this world, we’re so quick to criticize. What would happen if we were just as quick to thank someone for laughter, kindness, courtesy?
I shared something on our Facebook page that came from a Catholic group.
It says:
Want to keep Christ in Christmas?
Feed the hungry,
Cloth the naked,
Forgive the guilty,
Welcome the stranger and the unwanted child,
Care for the ill,
Love you enemies.
You’ve got homework this week. Pick out something you own and give it away. That’s right. Give it away. Don’t simply take it to the mission or other charity. Look someone in the eye and give it away. Give from your abundance.
Then do something for someone anonymously. (gift card left in McFarland’s mailbox) You don’t have to spend money. It could be a note of appreciation sent through the mail.
This is a special season of hope and love and a special kind of beauty that came in the form of a baby in a manger. Remember that. Life isn’t about stuff. It’s about people. And sometimes we have to let go of our stuff to free ourselves to love the people God puts in our paths. Go and do likewise.
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