That’s the best and greatest gift you can give anyone is not anything that can be bought at a store or online. It’s not something you can wrap up in a pretty package with a bow on it. It’s not something sparkly or shiny or anything that lights up or makes sounds.

The greatest gift you can give anyone is the gift of Emmanuel, God with us, and you can only give as you have encountered the presence of the risen Christ in your own life. That doesn’t come by rushing around like crazy to all the stores in all the traffic, but by finding margin in your schedule to be alone and be still, savoring the gift of the Christ child.

I have my Christmas list like everyone else does, but honestly there’s nothing that I really need there. I can think of years past when I was dying to get a particular toy or computer game or gadget for Christmas only to grow tired of it a few weeks later. I can’t imagine how many of my Christmas gifts eventually got sold in garage sales or donated to Goodwill.

But the gift of Emmanuel is one that only grows dearer with each passing day. It only gets better and richer and deeper as the months and years go by. That’s probably the best example of regifting where you don’t have to feel guilty because this gift is meant to be given away just as God in Jesus freely gave Himself away for us.

“DAILY PRAYER (BY SPURGEON)

Oh Lord Jesus, deepen in us our knowledge of you. You have made the first lines of your likeness upon our character; go on with this work of sacred art until we shall be like you in all respects. We wish that we had greater power in private prayer, that we were more often wrestling with the covenant angel. We long for the Word of God to be more sweet to us, more intensely precious—that we had a deeper hunger and thirst after it. Oh, that our knowledge of the truth was more clear and our grip of it more steadfast.
Teach us, oh Lord, to know the reason of the hope that is in us, and to be able to defend the faith against all objections. Plow deep in us, great Lord; and let the roots of your grace strike into the roots of our being, until it shall be no longer I who live, but “Christ that who in me.”
Amen.

VERSE OF THE DAY (COMMENTARY BY SPURGEON)

‘But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity.’ (2 Peter 3:18)

There cannot be any grace at all except as we know Christ, and there can be no growth in grace except as we grow in our knowledge of Christ. We may always test whether we are growing by this question: Do I know more of Christ today than I did yesterday? Do I live nearer to Christ today than I did a little while ago? For increase in the knowledge of Christ is the evidence as well as the cause of true growth in grace.”

It’s hard to believe Charles Spurgeon was only 57 when he entered into glory. He did so much in his abbreviated lifetime, more so than what most do who live way longer. But this is an example of why he is the prince of preachers.

May these words go deep into your heart and soul and resonate as they remind you of the hope that is yours in Christ Jesus.

“Almighty God,
give us grace to cast away the works of darkness,
and put on the armor of light,
now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility;

that in the last day,
when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead,
we may rise to the life immortal;

through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God,
now and for ever.

Amen.”

It’s Advent season again. That means that Christmas is 24 days away.

It seems like it was Christmas a year ago that I blinked and suddenly it was February. I blinked again and it was summer. I blinked again and it was October. One more blink and here we are. Basically, time flies.

It’s my favorite time of the year. Everything is decorated and Christmas music is blasting out of just about every speaker everywhere you go. Artists who normally don’t go near Jesus or Christianity are suddenly singing about the birth of the Messiah in a little town of Bethlehem and all those angels we have heard on high.

It’s a time when my family gets out all the vintage ornaments and decorations and all the memories come flooding back. I remember both my grandmothers, my uncles, and all those who won’t be here this Christmas, and for a little while I can see all their faces and remember their voices.

Plus, this is a yearly reminder that God really did break through into history and become a baby. I listen to my favorite Christmas song, Labor of Love, and hear the words that it was not a silent night and there was blood on the ground, but that the baby in Mary’s womb was the maker of the moon and the author of the faith that could make the mountains move.

That line still gives me good chills even now.

But it’s easy to focus on all the gifts I haven’t bought yet or all the decorating still undone. I can even jump ahead to how depressing it will be to take it all down for another year in a few weeks. But maybe if I slow down and savor the season, I can hear the wordless cries of the infant in the manger who will bear my sins on a cross one day. I can see in my mind the spotless lamb who will one day be the conquering Lion of Judah.

I can remember that the real reason for Christmas doesn’t end on December 25 or even January 6, but is alive and well all the days of the year, well into 2025 and beyond.

Well, I don’t know if I’m a pet sitting guru or not, but I certainly got my share the last few days. I’ve been taking care of five dogs and four cats (and thankfully no other kinds of critters). It was hard work but worth it — and I have loved every minute of it.

I’m still a bit astonished that people trust me with their precious fur babies to look after them. I still wonder sometimes how I got to the point where people think I’m a mature responsible adult. Like when did that happen?

But I’m grateful. With Thanksgiving just past and this season of Advent starting, I can give thanks for opportunities to help out people who are traveling by providing a safe place for their pups and kitties. I make them feel at home by staying with them (sometimes overnight if needed) and making sure they get all their food and water and meds and treats and such.

It really is a blessing. This time, I’ve dealt with everything from a big ol’ dog that’s about the size of a small horse to a puppy with the energy of ten football players combined. They’re all so different with their own unique personalities. That’s what makes it so great.

I think all good things like this are truly a gift from God. I don’t take for granted any of it. I wouldn’t skip it even if it meant sleeping in a little later in the morning and having more free time. Seeing those contented puppy faces makes it all worth it.

Again, I’m grateful for this opportunity and hope there will be more in the future.

This is another guest blog post of sorts. Basically, I liked the post that Dr. Mike Glenn, former pastor of Brentwood Baptist Church, wrote that I decided to share it with you. Here it is:

“The other day, my granddaughters were asking me why I hadn’t put up our family Christmas tree. “It’s not time yet,” I told them. “We have to have Thanksgiving first.”

‘Can’t we just skip Thanksgiving,’ they asked. I can’t blame them. They wanted to hurry up and get to presents under the tree along with all the Christmas candy and treats. Compared to all that, Thanksgiving is a little boring. After all, what do we do on Thanksgiving? We drive long distances and eat too much and then, we watch football on TV until we’re too tired to stay awake. Along the way, we trade stories with family and maybe, if we’re lucky, we can play a little touch football in the front yard. It’s pretty evident why most of us want to hurry up and get to Christmas.

What should we do on Thanksgiving? Well, we should give thanks. All of us should find a little time and space to thank God for all of His blessings during the previous year. We should remember that all of life is a gift. Every breath, every thought, every heartbeat is a gift from the Giver of Life Himself. We are always and forever in debt to His goodness.

Once, as Jesus was walking along the road, He was confronted by ten lepers who begged for Jesus to heal them. He told them to go show themselves to their priest and as they ran, they were healed. In the story, only one of the healed lepers returns to Jesus and says thanks. Here’s what makes that story interesting. When the man returns, Jesus tells him his faith has made him well.

Wait a minute? Weren’t all ten healed? Yes. Then why did Jesus say this man has been made well? What about the other nine? Is there a difference between being healed and being well?

Maybe. After all, there’s a difference between being forgiven and being restored. Being forgiven means we’re no longer responsible for repairing our transgression. Being restored means the relationship has been mended as it was before the transgression occurred.

Likewise, being healed means we’re no longer limited or held back by our woundedness. Being made well means we’re no longer held back and we’re celebrating a new level of understanding and commitment to Christ. The leper who returned rejoined his friends with a much deeper relationship with Jesus. He is, after all, the one who returned to speak to Jesus and the one who heard Jesus speak to him.

The others were healed. He was made well.

Giving thanks is hard. It puts us in a vulnerable position. We have to admit we’re receiving something we didn’t earn and don’t deserve. Being grateful means we are now obligated to respond to God’s goodness by being good ourselves – to God and each other. Maybe that’s why we want to skip Thanksgiving and move on to Christmas.

Thanksgiving is hard, but it’s only in thanksgiving that we’re made well – whole and complete. Skipping thanksgiving is more than just moving on to Christmas. It’s missing a vital element of life itself – the moment we get to talk to Jesus and hear Jesus talk to us.

There’s a difference between being healed and being well. Don’t miss it by skipping Thanksgiving.

The blog is a little shorter this week. I’ll give you a few minutes to be thankful. Be well. Be thankful. Happy Thanksgiving.”

This is a guest post from the late legendary Henri Nouwen:

“Nothing is sweet or easy about community. Community is a fellowship of people who do not hide their joys and sorrows but make them visible to each other as a gesture of hope.

In community we say: ‘Life is full of gains and losses, joys and sorrows, ups and downs—but we do not have to live it alone. We want to drink our cup together and thus celebrate the truth that the wounds of our individual lives, which seem intolerable when lived alone, become sources of healing when we live them as part of a fellowship of mutual care.’

Community is like a large mosaic. Each little piece seems so insignificant. One piece is bright red, another cold blue or dull green, another warm purple, another sharp yellow, another shining gold. Some look precious, others ordinary. Some look valuable, others worthless. Some look gaudy, others delicate. We can do little with them as individual stones except compare them and judge their beauty and value. When, however, all these little stones are brought together in one big mosaic, portraying the face of Christ, who would ever question the importance of any one of them? If one of them, even the least spectacular one, is missing, the face is incomplete. Together in the one mosaic, each little stone is indispensable and makes a unique contribution to the glory of God. That’s community, a fellowship of little people who together make God visible in the world.”