By Misty Strieff Prine
“As we celebrate the Christmas season, the greatest gift wasn’t placed under a tree, but He was hung on a tree.” – Unknown.
Christmas is quickly approaching. It will be here in the blink of an eye. We live in a society where Christmas has become so commercialized that we tend to get so consumed in running out to buy that perfect gift for someone, just for the sake of getting one most times, that we lose sight of the beautiful gift that we all were given so many years ago. God sent His one and only Son to this wretched world to die for you and for me on Calvary's rugged cross. Salvation is a gift that came at a heavy price. Jesus could have called 10,000 angels to take Him off the cross, but He stayed the course God had planned for Him. Why? Because when He was hanging on that cross with the thorns on His brow, the nails in His feet and hands, and being mocked, ridiculed, and humiliated, His mind was not on giving up...it was on me and you. That's right. Not one single soldier on that day killed Jesus...He willingly gave His life.
His journey began at a season we have come to celebrate as Christmas, when God sent Jesus to earth, being born of a virgin and was laid in the humblest of places, a manger bed. He was not wrapped in silk and luxury and laid in a fancy crib in a palace. Instead, He was laid in swaddling clothes and laid upon straw in a manger...humbly but mighty just the same. His journey while walking this earth was filled with miracles and unconditional love for us...which led Him eventually to the cross of Calvary for you and for me. He provided the ultimate blood sacrifice for us all. But that is not where it ends. Yes, He died but on that third day, the stone was rolled away and He arose from that tomb, and He is very much alive today! He lives in our hearts, and He walks beside us each day. He never gives up on us when many times we give up on ourselves. He loves us that much! The true gift of salvation, however, must be accepted. We must come to the realization that we are lost without Him. We are sinners and we are far from perfect. All we must do is humble ourselves, call upon His name and ask Him to forgive us and come into our hearts and save us. That's it. In that moment, our past is forgiven, and our future is secured. You see, love came down at Christmas! That is a gift that you cannot put a price on and one that brings true joy and peace. May we never lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas and the One and only perfect gift that was given to all of us.
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