Christmas Archives

Is America asking for Jesus this Christmas?

Most of us work hard to give Christmas gifts that others will want. I hope the gifts under my own Christmas tree will give joy and happiness to the people I love. I love the Lord and what the Christmas holiday represents for his children. I’m sad for the people who try to celebrate Christmas without the indwelling joy of Christ. If I could give a gift to America, I would give the gift God chose to give that first Christmas.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Jesus is the most valuable Christmas gift ever given, a gift all of us can freely give. The only catch is that we must receive the gift ourselves before giving it away.

A recent article that Christians should know about

The Wall Street Journal published an important article on December 1 of this year. The article was titled Sales of Bibles Are Booming, Fueled by First-Time Buyers and New Versions.

The article stated that “Bible sales are up 22% in the U.S. through the end of October, compared with the same period last year, according to book tracker Circana BookScan.” I founded and now serve the Foundations brand of the Denison Ministries. This brand is focused on teaching biblical truth and helping others to learn how to study and apply God’s word to their lives. Needless to say, the Wall Street Journal article caught my eye!

The article quoted Jeff Crosby, president of the Christian Publishers Association, who explained the increase in Bible sales, saying, “People are experiencing anxiety themselves, or they’re worried for their children and grandchildren. It’s related to artificial intelligence, election cycles…and all of that feeds a desire for assurance that we’re going to be OK.” The article also stated, “The demand for Bibles is rising despite evidence that the country is growing increasingly secularized.”

Is the country growing increasingly secularized, or are America’s citizens increasingly coming to realize they need God?

What causes people to seek God’s word?

America has been through a season of stress this past year. Regardless of which side you take in our political system, this year’s election campaigns were filled with angst, threats of disaster, and a sense that if your candidate didn’t win, the future looked disastrous. Americans have learned to question and doubt the news reports we see on television.

Are Americans looking for truth in the midst of doubts and stress? The Bible is known as a book of truth. Jesus described himself as “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).

Last September, we watched the news footage of the horrible storms that hit places like North Carolina. A U.S. News article said, “The Carolinas braced for a storm that forecasters warned could bring heavy rain — as much as 6 to 8 inches in some spots. But one narrow band got a ‘firehose’ that dumped as much as 20 inches in a so-called 1,000-year flood that shocked many with its intensity.” Psalm 107:28 says, “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.”

Some television news reported that people weren’t getting the help they needed, and other stations reported all that would be done to care for people, many of whom had lost everything they owned and someone or something they loved. While the reporters were arguing about the truth, groups like The Samaritan’s Purse jumped in to be the truth and bring immediate, much-needed help. Compassion for people in need led to increased funds that were used, and are still being used, to help America’s citizens physically and spiritually. I don’t think we can overestimate Franklin Graham’s influence on our nation as he spoke God’s truth on our national news programs.

The election sent a clear message to everyone on both sides of the political war, as did the news footage about the terrible storm. Anyone who watched the news wanted something different because the people of our country deserve the help they need. Christians understand the government will never provide for a person’s greatest need. That is the real purpose of this blog post.

Christians know what America needs most this Christmas

Increased Bible sales point to an increased interest in God’s message to the world. When people realize they need truth, they look for truth. It’s our job as Christians to be watchful and ready to help them find the biblical truth that Jesus was born to provide.

The baby in the manger was and is God Incarnate. He was and is Immanuel, God with us. I like the way William Barclay described Jesus. He said, “God was always like Jesus.” I’ve often said that the baby in the manger was God, with skin on him. People often struggle to understand the God of the Old Testament. They simply need to understand that God has always been the Jesus they see in the New Testament.

Our country has bought a lot more Bibles this year, but will they read them? Will the average American understand the rich, eternal teaching of the words they are reading? Will they read the word of God and then live with biblical choices?

God’s word is powerful truth, but that truth is more likely gained through study, not simply reading. That’s why I wanted to start the Foundations brand at Denison Ministries. Before I ever owned the promise of my salvation in Christ, I owned a few Bibles. God’s word is written to help people know God. God’s creation speaks to his reality every moment of every day. Paul said God’s “invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made” (Romans 1:20). Paul goes on to say that’s why people are “without excuse” for not knowing there is a God.

If you read this blog post, you probably know that God exists, and you probably want to know God as well as you possibly can. Sanctification requires a willing heart and careful study of God’s word. Even Paul said, “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:8).

My “end of year” request

Christmas and New Year’s Day fall on Wednesdays this year. This blog post is the last lengthy post I will write this year. I believe America is seeking to know the God whom the apostle Paul wanted to know and the Lord Jesus whom God gave to a world he so loved more than two thousand years ago. I pray all of us will look for the chance to give the gift that matters most this Christmas and continue to give that gift throughout the new year to come.

It’s difficult to know what we should expect in 2025, but every Christian should look at the increase in Bible sales and recognize the felt need in our country today. We can all share the gospel message with the people God brings across our path. Will you “count everything as loss” compared to the “surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus” as Lord?

I promise to commit our work at the Foundations ministry for that very purpose. I’ll send some wishes in the next two weeks, but this week, I wanted to answer my own question and say, “Yes, America is asking for Jesus this Christmas.” We at the Foundations brand want to help people know that the baby in the manger was the God of the universe and still is today.

We would be truly grateful if you helped us continue to help others know Jesus and study biblical truth. Thank you for caring, giving, and helping us provide God’s word of truth to the people of this world.

Two weeks before Bethlehem

Christmas is two weeks away. The Christmas season is about a week shorter this year because of a late Thanksgiving. Unlike the Thursday for Thanksgiving, Christmas is always celebrated on December 25, regardless of the day. I’ve never heard anyone say, “Maybe we should move Christmas back a week this year.” I’ve never heard anyone say, “We should celebrate Christmas on a Saturday or in the spring this year.”

The Christmas season has become a retail calendar with Black Friday sales that last a month. Christmas is about warm clothes, warm fires, snowflakes, candy canes, Christmas lights, and an ever-increasing number of inflatables. None of that sounds like something we should celebrate in the spring. Texans can’t even imagine snowflakes in the spring and with our winds the inflatables would be at least five houses down the road. I think the December 25 date is unchangeable in our culture, at least for now.

What were Mary and Joseph doing two weeks before Bethlehem?

Much of our time is measured by our clocks and calendars. Mary and Joseph had a deadline, too, that first Christmas. The Roman government had set a time for the census, and it didn’t matter that Mary was expecting her baby any day. The trip to Bethlehem was about 90 miles, and Mary and Joseph had to plan for all the possibilities.

Nothing is ever said in Scripture about Mary’s family. I know times were different in the first century, but some things are common to every generation. If Mary’s mom were still alive, she would have been concerned about her young daughter making that trip. She would have wanted to make sure she had packed everything she might need for the trip, the baby’s birth, and the extra time and supplies it would take her to travel those ninety miles.

If all the planning was Joseph’s responsibility, I imagine he was getting a ton of advice from the women of Nazareth about carefully planning for all possibilities. The two weeks before Christmas were tough for Mary and Joseph. It kind of puts all of our Christmas preparations in perspective, doesn’t it?

Is it time to make some adjustments to your Christmas plans?

Do the weather reports indicate that Christmas travel might mean spending the holiday in an airport or hotel this year? Is there someone you can’t or shouldn’t leave behind? Has your life become a little too busy and stressed because it is only fourteen days until Christmas?

Are the kids too focused on gifts and not focused enough on school? Are we too focused on the calendar instead of Christ? It happens every year until we decide to change the way we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

When Satan can’t have your soul, he settles for your time. When he can’t make you bad, he tries to make you busy. When your eternity belongs to God, Satan will settle for influencing your time on earth.

I wrote about Mary and Martha last week. Have you become worried and anxious about many things? If so, choose to delete a few things so you can sit quietly at the manger and spend time with the best part of Christmas.

Two weeks became two years or more

Joseph and Mary would have packed plenty of supplies and carried all their money. They would have done their best to stay with others in a group, but there’s a good chance Mary’s pregnancy slowed them down. It isn’t surprising that they arrived in Bethlehem and found there was “no room in the inn.”

Joseph and Mary’s plans were made with care but not with certainty. That young and newly married couple had no way of knowing that they would not return to their home in Nazareth for more than two years. They would not have packed or planned for the months they remained in Bethlehem or their future escape to Egypt.

Jeremiah 29:11 is a well-known, often-quoted verse. God told the prophet, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). Joseph and Mary were faithful, righteous children of God. They would have been aware of the uncertainties but also known to trust God’s promises.

The rest of God’s message for Mary and Joseph

Mary and Joseph had both experienced the miraculous, and their faith and trust in God would have been strengthened as a result. Two weeks before Bethlehem, their knowledge of God’s promise to Jeremiah would have comforted their thoughts.

God had promised Jeremiah that his plans were for his children’s good, not their harm. The rest of God’s message to Jeremiah was just as important as the words found in verse 11. God also said, “Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile” (Jeremiah 29:13–14).

I wonder if Joseph and Mary talked about those words as they fled in the night toward Egypt, praying for their safety and the safety of their infant son. I wonder if Mary and Joseph were able to get word to their families and friends back in Nazareth.

Times were so different in the first century, yet the things that matter most apply to every generation.

It’s two weeks until “Bethlehem”

What plans have you made that need to be adjusted to choose God’s plan for your Christmas? His plan is to prosper you, not to harm you. His plan is best for your hope and your future. He has promised to hear you when you pray. He has promised to come to you and provide what you need. He has promised to anticipate the needs you don’t even know to pray for today.

Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Those gifts from the magi were essentially the provision they needed to travel and live in a foreign country until it was safe to come home.

God knows what you need today for the Christmas you will celebrate in two weeks. Are you having the “Mary Christmas” we talked about last week, or is the Martha within trying to take over?

I hope you will plan to sit at the feet of Jesus and trust the God who always provides for his kids. His plan for your Christmas is best. Do you need to be still and invite him to come and provide it?

Call on him in prayer, then trust that the baby in the manger has listened.

Wishing you a Mary Christmas

Thanksgiving came late this year, so it feels like Christmas is just around the corner. Between grocery shopping, cooking, and enjoying our crowd last week, I was late getting to this blog post. I prayed for the Lord to give me his thoughts as we drove to church.

Traffic was low, and we arrived early. I struck up a conversation with a woman who mentioned a really good Christmas message she had heard once. The speaker talked about having a “Mary” Christmas instead of a “Martha” holiday. The wheels started turning, and I realized I needed these thoughts today, so maybe you do, too!

I want all of us to have a “Mary” Christmas in this “Martha” world!

Is this a Mary or Martha kind of week?

Typically, when Thanksgiving runs late in November, the next week is crazy busy. School is out in just a few weeks. Travel plans, shopping, parties, Christmas cards, and all the other details start piling up. Those are all good things, but sometimes they come at the expense of the better things.

You know the story. Martha was in the kitchen trying to figure out how to feed the extra mouth that had been added to the table. She had probably planned to serve leftovers; now, the company required a better meal and more effort. Luke tells the now-familiar story:

“Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:38–42).

How do we, like Mary, choose the “good portion” this Christmas season?

Are you distracted with much serving?

Consider yet another Mary. This was a favorite verse among our church staff:

Mary had a little lamb who would have been a sheep.

But she joined the local megachurch and died from lack of sleep.

It’s so easy to get overbooked with the good things of the Christmas season that sometimes we can miss the moments spent at the Lord’s feet. How do we balance the need to serve with our need to worship?

Answer: Make sure you spend time at the Lord’s feet before you head out to serve.

This one thought could make a big difference in our Christmas season. We are going to attend parties. We are going to give gifts. We are going to see friends, enjoy conversations, and do a LOT of planning and preparations. We can do all those things with a Martha attitude or a Mary perspective.

Martha was “troubled and anxious about many things.” So, what did Jesus tell her?

Only one thing is necessary

If Martha had understood what mattered most to Jesus, she would have worried less about what to serve. Jesus would have preferred to eat leftovers if it meant he would have the chance to speak a word of spiritual encouragement to a friend.

The food will be consumed, the dishes will be washed, and the next meal will soon happen. The gifts will be purchased, wrapped, and then put away or used until broken, worn out, or set aside. Almost everything about our Christmas season is only for a season.

The “one thing” that is “necessary” is the One whose priorities have eternal outcomes.

The one thing is the One

Mary chose the “good portion” because she chose to make Jesus her priority.

Every day of the Christmas season should require a cup of coffee, tea, or cocoa by the fire at the feet of Jesus. Scripture says, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). I usually teach that verse saying, “Be still and know he is God. If we don’t get still, other things become gods.” Christmas is a season that will simply come and go unless we use the season to serve Jesus as we serve others.

How does Jesus want to spend time with you as you serve others this Christmas season?

As you wrap a gift, pray for the person who will receive it.
As you cook a meal, pray for the conversations you can have around the table.
As you prepare for a party, ask the Lord for the chance to be a spiritual encouragement to someone there.
As you shop, pray for and then seek the opportunity to shop for someone who can’t shop for themselves.
Instead of storing leftovers, consider taking them to an elderly neighbor.
As you drive or stand in line, let someone who is rushed get ahead of you.
As you give, pray for the opportunity to give Jesus too.

The “one thing that is necessary” is time with the One who calls you to his feet. We need to know what Jesus wants to do in our lives this Christmas. We need to know how we can best serve him and impact others during this holiday season.

Will you have a Mary Christmas or a Martha Christmas?

That’s an easier question to answer than to live.

Things need to be accomplished, but we will do them differently if we spend some time at the feet of Jesus first. People need to be helped, thought about, and prayed for. The Martha moments will mean we are troubled and anxious about many things. The Mary moments will be spent with an ear toward Jesus, doing our tasks with his spiritual priorities in our hearts and minds.

Christians who choose to have a Mary Christmas will have a merry Christmas. We need only to choose the “good portion” that will “not be taken away.” The priorities of Jesus have an eternal purpose.

Will you choose to serve the One, the Christ of Christmas, this Christmas season?

The gift Jesus gave his mom

Jesus didn’t celebrate Christmas, and neither did the early Christians. Jesus wasn’t born in the winter either. There are several theories as to why we celebrate Christmas on December 25, but the most common belief dates the holiday back to the third century.

The Roman Empire marked the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, by celebrating the “rebirth” of the Unconquered Sun (Sol Invictus) on December 25. People feasted, exchanged gifts, and celebrated the birthday of a deity called Mithra, a god of light and loyalty.

The church in Rome began formally celebrating the birth of Christ on December 25 in 336 AD. Rome was ruled by the emperor Constantine, whose mother was a strong Christian. It is believed that Constantine hoped to distract Rome’s citizens from the pagan celebration on that same day. Constantine’s efforts were not widely accepted, and Christmas did not become a major Christian holiday until the ninth century.

How did Jesus celebrate his birthday?

There is an easy answer to that question: he didn’t. Jesus was likely born in the spring, but birthdays weren’t remembered or celebrated by the Jewish people. There was one spring, however, when Jesus gave others, including his mom Mary, gifts for his birthday.

Jesus had been crucified and was near death on the cross when he uttered the words, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). I’ve often heard that those words mark the moment when Jesus took on the sins of the world, our sins, and as a result experienced separation from his heavenly Father. But, I also like to consider those words as a gift of hope for his mother Mary and encouragement for his best friend John.

Matthew 27:46 is a direct quote from the first words in the twenty-second psalm, a psalm of David. David’s psalms would have been memorized and sung by the Jewish people of the first century. Jesus would have known this psalm very well. We know Mary and John were at the cross because Jesus instructed John to care for his mother. It is a safe assumption to think that both Mary and John were deeply grieving all they were witnessing. Jesus loved these two people and, even in his own pain, would have felt theirs as well.

So, Jesus gave his mom and his best friend a gift on the cross. He said, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani,” the first line of a well-known psalm. Jesus knew his beloved mom and friend would know the rest of that favorite psalm of King David.

The gift Jesus gave

If you have time, read all of Psalm 22 with this perspective. Consider what these words would have meant to the two people who were sitting at the foot of the cross. Jesus knew he was about to die and gave the gift of hope to these two people he cared about. Psalm 22 is a reminder that God delivers his people and can always be trusted, even in the most difficult of times.

I like to picture Mary reciting that psalm to herself in the days that followed Jesus’ death. What did she feel when she came to the words, “Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts. On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother’s womb you have been my God” (Psalm 22:9–10)? Had Jesus thanked Mary from the cross for all she had done to give him life and raise him in the knowledge of God?

I like to picture John as he remembered the psalm Jesus quoted from the cross. How did John feel when he considered the words at the end of the psalm? David’s psalm begins with the words Jesus cried out to Mary and John, but the final stanza of the psalm says, “All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive. Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it” (Psalm 22:29–31).

The gift Jesus gave his mom from the cross was the gift of hope and the gift of knowing that both of them had fulfilled their highest purpose on earth. Mary gave birth to Israel’s Messiah.

John had been called to be a follower of Jesus and would ultimately suffer for preaching the gospel. Yet John understood the “rest of the story” could be found in the final words of Psalm 22. “Posterity shall serve him” and “they shall proclaim his righteousness” to all people.

How would Jesus celebrate Christmas?

This is a big, busy, important week of the year. In the busyness let’s remember why we celebrate. Jesus celebrated the season of his birth by accepting a cross for the sins of the world. Jesus gave the gifts of love and hope to those at the cross. Jesus gave Mary and John, and maybe himself, the gift of encouragement as well. There is no greater joy for a child of God than to be blessed and rewarded for fulfilling our eternal, kingdom purpose.

Jesus celebrated the season of his birth by gifting the world with his perfect sacrifice for every sin and the promise of eternal life. We who have received the gift of Christ have received everything Jesus was born to give.

Merry Christmas!

I hope you have a blessed and merry Christmas this year, filled with the joy and laughter of those you love. It is fun to give and fun to receive—but let’s remember to honor the One who gave everything so that we can celebrate with the hope of an eternity filled with everlasting joy, peace, and comfort.

Merry Christmas to all of you, and blessings for the coming year!

Scheduling Christmas with God

I’m not sure I ever told you all this, but I do most of my writing in the early hours of the day. I’ve always been an early riser and during the Christmas season that is especially true. I even have the timer on the Christmas tree set to come on twice a day, at 5 a.m. and 5 p.m. If my fireplace had a timer, I’d probably set that on the same schedule.

I love the lights of Christmas, but I love them the most in the early morning hours.

I might have been a psalmist

I often wake up thinking about the Lord . . . (and coffee.) I love that the lights on my Christmas tree light the way to the kitchen and the coffee pot. My computer enables me to read Scripture and prayer lists and to write blog posts while I sit in the darkness and enjoy the beauty of the Christmas lights. For me, these moments are a favorite celebration of the holiday.

The Bible says quite a bit about the morning hours and the importance of using the morning to start our day with God. We are supposed to walk through our day with him, but that’s easier to do if we share the first part of the day at his feet. Jesus got up early in the morning to spend time with his Father. He is the perfect example of how we should begin our days too.

The psalmists said a lot about seeking God in the morning. I am typing this blog post in the early darkness of the morning while enjoying their ancient wisdom for keeping life filled with God. As this Christmas season begins, let’s allow their wisdom to touch our lives and holiday season this year.

God is our audience of One

Psalm 5:3 says, “O Lᴏʀᴅ, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.” The quiet beauty of morning is the perfect time to talk to God. The Creator God of the universe is listening to you—right now.

What amount of time and attention will you give to your Father this morning? What activity can wait until you have spoken to him? We will likely sacrifice a few of our plans for the day if we ask God to plan the day for us.

Your Christmas season will be different if you will give God your voice in the morning, prepare to listen, and then watch for his answers throughout the day.

Trust God to lift you up

Sometimes I wake up thinking about a long list of activities for the day. One of my favorite things about growing older is that more and more of my schedule is optional. I well remember the rush of keeping kids on their schedules while planning the rest of my life around theirs.

Those were great days, but there is a serenity to these days that is pure joy too. The great goal for this Christmas season is to live it on God’s schedule. Psalm 143:8 says, “Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.”

People will always matter more than plans. People sometimes fit into our schedule, and sometimes they will need to interrupt it. We can trust God to guide us and strengthen us to serve him by serving others.

Every morning’s sunrise is a reminder of God’s steadfast love. He has given us another day, and he has a trustworthy plan for how we can live it well. How can we carefully walk his plan for today?

We hear from him in the morning, and we trust his voice, his word. It is to God we lift up our souls. God wants to do more than direct our activity. He wants to provide for our joy and our strength and give us his love and compassion for others.

This Christmas season will be different if we lift up our souls to God and trust him to fill us with his goodness.

We can be satisfied with God

The Christmas season can pull and tug us in many different directions. There have been some holiday seasons that lacked the genuine Christmas joy. So much of our expectations and wishes for the holiday are authored by movies, social media, and the lives of others. The genuine joy of Christmas will come from the moments you spend with Christ and the moments you spend serving others in his name.

In the early morning, it is only about your relationship with the Lord. The psalmist wrote, “Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days” (Psalm 90:14). The joy and beauty of the season are in the genuine celebrations of his blessings.

God will satisfy us this Christmas season with his love. We need only give him our worship. His “steadfast love” will be the joy of each day and our great blessing for the holiday.

Joy comes in the morning

Psalm 30:5 is rarely quoted fully yet is a perfect message for us to begin our Christmas season considering. We often hear the phrase “joy comes with the morning” but rarely do we hear why that matters.

No Christmas season is perfect. No Christmas season is lived in a flawless fashion. We are human beings surrounded by other human beings. Traffic is tough. People are edgy and rushed. Gifts are sometimes hard to come by and difficult to afford.

Some parties are fun while others are an obligation. Sometimes the lights on the tree stop glowing and need a new bulb to work again. There will be a few moments this Christmas season that don’t inspire the “fa la la” in us! Sometimes anger is justified, but often it is simply a natural, human response to stressful situations. It’s then our goal to return to a right relationship with God.

Psalm 30:5 is our gift of wisdom for those times. God’s anger is always righteous, but his example is the perfect one for us to follow as well. The psalmist wrote, “For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5). God doesn’t hold onto his anger, and we shouldn’t either. We can seek God’s favor, knowing it is our promised gift of Christmas.

Let’s schedule this Christmas with God

Each new morning is a chance to sit with our audience of One and seek his voice. We can trust our heavenly Father to forgive our mistakes and lift us up for the new day. We can count our blessings and be satisfied with the genuine joy of the Lord each day. We can rush through a day or two and trust that the Lord will guide us back to a quiet morning with him.

Joy comes in the morning. Will you give your Christmas mornings to the One who authors our joy? Will you do the same tomorrow?

A Christmas gift

Christmas is almost here.

Even as I type, I am picturing my blog readers doing so many different things.

Maybe you are sitting in an airport waiting for your flight.

Maybe you are checking emails right before you start completing the to-do list for the day.

Maybe you are remembering past Christmas seasons and wishing this one was more like those.

Whatever your day and your Christmas look like this year, you can know that I pray your Christmas day will be filled with the holy Presence of Christ.

A gift for you

I would like to give you a Christmas gift that I, and several of us at the ministry, have been working on.

When you have a moment, I want you to go to the App Store on your cell phone and download my gift to you: the new (and free) Foundations Bible app!

My Christmas gift to you is something that will last all year and is called Wisdom Matters.

The readings don’t officially begin until January 1, but I wanted my readers to have advanced notice!

What is Wisdom Matters?

I did some checking and found that almost everyone checks their phone at night before going to bed. Wisdom Matters is an evening devotional I would love for you to have at the end of each day.

In fact, the “tagline” says, “At the end of the day . . . Wisdom Matters.”

God called me to write and record Wisdom Matters because we need to end our days going to sleep with an important thought about God. Wisdom Matters is a devotional written to help us know God at deeper levels by offering us a meditation from his word each evening.

In many ways, writing these devotions has been a blessing for me. On a personal level, this year has been intense, and dwelling on the timeless wisdom and truth of God’s word has been therapeutic. I was fascinated as I wrote how absolutely relevant God’s word remains thousands of years later. Wisdom matters most because it is timeless, God-authored truth.

We don’t lack “words” in our world, and information is always one “google” away. But how do we process the information we learn? Do facts alone drive our decisions, or does God have a higher plan?

I have often said, “In a sea of information, wisdom matters.”

I want you, my readers, to know about Wisdom Matters first. Please receive this gift from me this Christmas.

Beginning January 1, a new devotion will arrive on your phone around 8 p.m. CST, and maybe you can get in the habit of making God’s word part of your final thoughts for the day.

I believe he will speak his thoughts and even author a dream or two if you do. He has certainly been speaking to my heart as I write these!

I wish you a blessed and Merry Christmas

Whatever your Christmas season looks like this year, know that I, and all of us who serve the Foundations ministry, want to wish you a joy-filled and Christ-centered Christmas. Jesus truly is the most wonderful gift we could ever receive!

James 1:17 reminds us that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

“Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).

We truly wish you a blessed and merry Christmas!

A new reason to love Chick-fil-A

I love Chick-fil-A.

The food is great, the service is almost always better than anyone else’s, and they are absolutely clear about the fact they are a faith-based business.

I was in college when Chick-fil-A wanted to open a place in the mall where I worked. Their opening caused a big stir.

The mall owners tried to insist they remain open on Sundays like everyone else, yet Chick-fil-A was dark every Sunday when I got to work. The store owners were all saying they would never last if they stayed closed, yet the lines at Chick-Fil-A are always much longer than at any other spot.

It doesn’t look like they will be out of business anytime soon.

I love Chick-fil-A because they represent something every Christian should know and trust: When God is blessing our choices, success will likely follow! Chick-fil-A, Hobby Lobby, In-N-Out Burger, and so many other faith-based businesses stand as examples for us. When our priorities honor God, we can accomplish more than we can imagine.

I saw a Christmas ad from Chick-fil-A that prompted this blog post. It spoke of their Christmas movie for 2022 and provided a QR code people could use to watch it. I found it online instead and I’ve included the link for all of you. (Let’s just say I’ve not yet mastered that whole QR code idea.)

So, in case the Christmas peppermint shake wasn’t enough, there is a new reason to love this favorite fast-food restaurant. The movie takes about seven minutes to watch and is worth it. I hope all of you can find a child, grandchild, or friend to share this with. The message is compelling and could provide some great conversation at dinnertime, carpool time, or anytime!

Here is this year’s Chick-fil-A Christmas movie, The Snow Globe.

I hope you enjoyed it!

What did you think?

I wish we were able to share our thoughts right now. What stood out most to you?

Here are some of my thoughts:

The emphasis on the clock and the value of time itself was an important point. Time, especially during the holidays, just seems to disappear if we aren’t careful. The snow globe is a timeless tradition at Christmas and there is a reason for that. It doesn’t need batteries or even a list of instructions. It just needs to be used with an imagination to be enjoyed.
I love that the child was supposed to think and imagine how she could help others. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if kids grew up with that goal? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if that was our goal for the holiday season as well?
The movie wasn’t about a complex plan or organized effort to accomplish a big event. It was simply about a young girl living with an awareness of the people God had placed in her life. Most evangelism and service will be accomplished through the moments God guides us to experience. It is the everyday, normal interactions we have with others that can most serve God’s purpose.
Finally, at the end, the child learns that her small acts of service at Christmastime were just the beginning. Serving others is a lifelong commitment for the sake of others and for the sake of our own joy. We just need to put on our aprons, our armor (Ephesians 6:1–20), and get to work.

All of us can be a blessing

If God handed us one of those special snow globes, who would we see inside?

Would we close our eyes and hear God’s thoughts as we imagine possible ways to help?

Would we get busy right away to bring God’s ideas to reality?

I don’t know most of my readers . . . yet. I wish I could pour all of you a cup of hot chocolate and enjoy a great conversation about the impact this little seven-minute film could have in the life of a child, especially in the life of anyone who is a child of God.

We should live and teach the benefits of knowing our God-given ability to be a blessing in the life of the people we meet each day. You + God = a blessing for someone else.

I love Chick-fil-A for wanting to provide our Christmas season with this short film. I hope you will share this blog post or the link provided so that as many people as possible can see that film. It is a message for our culture, but it is especially a message provided for the sake of the people who will act on what they see.

As the Apostle Peter said, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10).

Whose life will be blessed this week because Chick-fil-A serves God as well as great fast food?

Whose life will you bless because you are a good steward of God’s grace?

Take some time to think with God and imagine the possibilities.

Have a wonderful week looking around at the people God brings across your path. I am imagining all the blessings that he might inspire through all of you.

Joy to our world, the Lord is come. We all have a reason to rejoice today and serve our King.

The word of the year: Gaslighting

Merriam-Webster has a formula for choosing their word of the year. It involves the number of times a word is searched on their site throughout the year, eliminating words that are frequently searched for spelling or punctuation.

The word gaslighting was chosen as the 2022 word of the year because it was a term most searched for its meaning.

What does the word mean, and why should that be a subject for this week’s blog post?

What does gaslighting mean?

Merriam-Webster’s broad definition of gaslighting is: “The act or practice of grossly misleading someone especially for one’s own advantage.”

Interestingly, the definition read most often was this: “the psychological manipulation of a person, usually over an extended period of time, that causes the victim to question the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, uncertainty of one’s emotional or mental stability, and a dependency on the perpetrator.”

What caused gaslighting to be the word of the year?

A HuffPost article reported that the word gaslighting had a 1740 percent increase in lookups for the term throughout the year. Why was that?

Usually, a specific event sparks a search, but, in the case of gaslighting, the increase happened each month throughout the year. Gaslighting isn’t a new word. It is actually traced back to a play written in the 1940s. (For more on the history of gaslighting, see “What does gaslighting mean? Is gaslighting in the Bible?”

Why then has the word made a comeback, and why should Christians pay attention?

The HuffPost article explained the rise in interest saying, “During Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and then during his time in the White House, the media frequently used the term ‘gaslighting’ to describe his habit of making claims that were patently not true. The United States government also used the word this year to characterize Russia’s propaganda and misinformation strategy during its invasion of Ukraine.”

Could it be that people are interested in the word gaslighting because our various forms of media and communication have become less trustworthy?

People are feeling “misled” by the television news and by their political leaders. People feel like they can no longer trust what they hear and question what they have grown up believing.

Why should the church pay attention?

The church should pay attention because there is great news to consider. Barna has been studying the church and cultural trends for more than four decades now. They have discovered a surprising trend.

Millennials and the next generation, called Gen Z, are returning to church. The Barna article reported, “Although Millennials (and, emerging behind them, Gen Z) are known for declines in religiosity, data show that, since 2019, the percentage of Millennials reporting weekly church attendance has increased from 21 percent to 39 percent.”

Churches have a reputation for telling the truth that our culture can be drawn toward these days, especially the younger generations. People want to trust those who lead. The church plays an important role in the trends and values of our culture.

We should be wise about the influence of our witness.

Wisdom is timeless truth

King Solomon was blessed by God with the gift of wisdom. He had great wisdom because that blessing is what Solomon most wanted (1 Kings 3:1–15). I’ve always been a fan of the book of Ecclesiastes because it was likely written by King Solomon at the end of his very fascinating, amazing life. During his reign, the nation of Israel rose to be the world power.

Ecclesiastes 7 is one of the most practical chapters in the Bible (although I’m not a huge fan of Solomon’s take on women!). Ecclesiastes 7 discusses the difference between living wisely and living with folly. Verse 12 of that chapter says, “For the protection of wisdom is like the protection of money, and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.”

I love the phrase “the protection of wisdom.” Sometimes we forget that God wants to be our protector. We look for protection in so many ways these days. We think we are “okay” if our bank accounts, our doctors, or our politicians say we are. We feel safer when we set our alarms or live in a safe neighborhood. Yet, we also know those protections are temporary and not guaranteed. Solomon understood that and said, “Wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.” God’s wisdom is our best protection.

Wisdom is the opposite of gaslighting. Gaslighting misleads and deceives while God’s wisdom is a guide to pure, certain truth.

Social media has contributed to gaslighting in our world. How many pictures on Facebook showed the tantrums, spills, or burnt food that happened on Thanksgiving Day? We view pictures of happy faces knowing there are some “real” stories behind those smiles.

Gaslighting is about misleading people, and there is a lot of that in our culture today. I considered making a list, but you are able to make your own. Consider the many ways our culture has been “mis-led” by using words to rephrase and misrepresent the truth. Consider the various forms of social media and how people who consume “pictures” can be abused or misled.

Solomon, on the other hand, speaks proverbs that give wisdom, not misdirection. Gaslighting has been around for a long time; Solomon just used the word folly to describe the bad behaviors. In the last verse of Ecclesiastes 7 he writes, “See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes” (v. 29).

God created us to live wisely, with his truth. God created us to be people of value and godly character. He wanted us to have a culture of truth and integrity rather than schemes like gaslighting.

Our daily choice

I think Jesus would like the opportunity to “manipulate” our thoughts for a godly advantage. Truthfully, when we made Jesus our Lord, we gave him the right to influence our thoughts and actions. We should want to think of ourselves like the Lord would “cause us” to think about ourselves. The thoughts Jesus would convince us to think would be authored by our Creator, who absolutely knows what is best for our lives. Jesus taught us to make one decision that will dramatically change our lives and witness.

Jesus told his disciples in his Sermon on the Mount how to live each day with a godly perspective. He said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19–21).

We live in a culture that searched for the term gaslighting most often. What does that tell us about the way many people are feeling today?

People want to find truth they can trust.

How does the influence of Jesus’ message to his disciples provide an answer for the angst in our culture?

Jesus said our hearts will be drawn to whatever we treasure. That is the wisdom of Christ, and it will always be truth for our lives and our choices.

Godliness is the opposite of gaslighting.

Just imagine if godliness became Merriam-Webster’s word someday!

That’s a hope-filled goal for God’s people.

The quiet moments of Christmas

Quiet moments are rare these days, especially at Christmas. We live during a time in history when there is always something available to divert our attention. Have you noticed kids rarely say “I’m bored” anymore? Adults don’t say it very often either. We can always glance at a screen and find something interesting to fill our thoughts.

God said, “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” (Psalm 46:10). There is something about complete silence that fills our thoughts with the greatness of God.

WebMD has an interesting article saying, “Even just five minutes of sitting quietly can have a transformative effect on your entire day.” The article paraphrases a quote from Blaise Pascal saying, “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.”

How would a few moments of silence change our day?

Scripture says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Could it be that when people do not take time to be still, they forget there truly is a God? Is the pace and noise in our world one of the reasons for our statistics these days?

The WebMD article encouraged five minutes of silence and then discussed all of the many things that can distract us from that time. The article suggested people focus on their breathing to gain a sense of silence. God would suggest we focus on the One who gave us the air and the ability to breathe.

How would it change our day if we spent at least five minutes quietly thinking about God and all he has done for us?

How would those moments change your relationship with your Creator?

How would those moments change whom you spoke with or helped today?

Five minutes with the Lord

People will spend an hour waiting for their children to see Santa this week. People will wait in long lines to check out just so they can purchase a gift for someone they care about. How long would you have waited in line at the Bethlehem manger if it meant you could have glimpsed the baby Jesus?

Habakkuk 2:20 says, “But the Lᴏʀᴅ is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.” When Jesus died on the cross, the veil in the temple was torn from top to bottom. The veil was the thickness of a man’s hand. Only God could have “torn” it that way. God wanted us to know that, because of Jesus, we could come into his holy Presence. Christians can spend our “five minutes” of silence each day at the feet of the Creator God.

We can be still and know God. We can recognize his perfect greatness and exalt him as our King. We can realize that he is our Abba Father and we are his children.

If I could spend five minutes with my dad today, I would do whatever was necessary to be there. That five minutes would not feel like enough time, but I would do it every day if I could. Who would you love to spend five minutes with each day?

We have the gift of God’s presence anytime we seek him. Words aren’t even necessary. We can just enter the holy temple and sit at his feet. He invited us to do that the moment his Son died for us. The God of the universe wants you to know him and spend time with him.

Just do it

Silence is a spiritual exercise. It doesn’t help to think about it; it only helps if you “just do it.” I’ve written before about becoming a “Nike Christian.” Sometimes the greatest weakness we have is that we “know” enough about God and we believe that means we actually “know” him.

We can know God if we take the time to “be still and know” that he is God. Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). If we spend our moments of quiet for the sake of purifying our hearts and minds, we can enter the temple and “see God” with our hearts and minds.

Paul taught that Christians should make their lives a “living sacrifice” in Romans 12:1. The next verse helps us understand how to do that: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2).

How would our minds be renewed and our lives be transformed if we stepped away from the world, even for just a few minutes each day, to sit quietly at the feet of our holy God?

Don’t just think about it—do it.

Silence is strength for your soul

God told Isaiah to tell the people, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength, but you were unwilling” (Isaiah 30:15).

It must be difficult for God to know he has our greatest help and is willing to give us all that we need. Yet he honors our free wills, even when we refuse his blessings.

How will your Christmas season change with quiet rest?

This might be the perfect time of year to discover a daily time of pure quiet rest in the Presence of God. We could develop a new habit that would carry us through the holiday rush and lead us into the next year knowing God in deeper ways.

Will you choose now to spend five minutes of pure silence at the feet of God?

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Now, in complete reverent silence, climb the steps to the Holy of Holies and enter through the torn veil. God is there and waiting for you, his child.

Be still, and know he is your God. Keep complete silence before him. You aren’t there to “ask” as much as you are there to listen. Remain at his feet, undistracted for at least five minutes. That time will change you as a result.

Keep returning to the temple each day and that time with God will become your favorite time of the day. Remember: it is in “returning and rest” that God can accomplish his work in your life. Quietness and trust will become your great strength. And don’t we need that for the rest of the day!

The only question left is will you just do it?

The God of the universe, your Father, is waiting for your visit. Start with five minutes of complete silence each day and he will take it from there. He is a good Father and wants to bless and guide your life.

God is worthy of our time, our praise, and our attention.

Will you freely give all that he deserves?

Why should we consider Christmas before Halloween?

The kids are planning their costumes for Halloween. The news is already discussing the shortage of turkeys and the cost of this year’s Thanksgiving meal. The airlines are scheduling holiday travel and the big box stores are already lining their aisles with Christmas trees. We have reached that time of year when one holiday merges right into the next.

It is the “most wonderful time of the year” in many ways.

That said, there are many people who have arrived in this country who will want to celebrate Christmas but might not have a home or the means to do that this year. The entire population of Ukraine is likely to have the most difficult Christmas season of their lives.

Every Christmas season has its own unique stories, but every Christmas season is truly about the original Christmas story. That is why we should consider Christmas now, before Halloween.

These holidays are something most people have in common

Embedded in this long holiday season will be a political election that promises controversy. Some of the issues making our news may also gather around our Thanksgiving tables and Christmas celebrations.

It will be easy to know the things we disagree about, but what do we have in common?

I was outside of a Trader Joe’s supermarket this week and saw a sign that stated their company values. It said things like integrity, kindness, courtesy, quality, friendly, helpful, and top quality. It struck me when I looked at the sign how much most people have in common. Who doesn’t appreciate high standards and great character?

We all have a lot of differences these days, and it was good to realize that we also have a whole lot in common.

The holiday season is a great time to remember that most of us share similar goals in life, even if we believe there are different paths to reaching those goals. It might help if we would focus more on what we have in common than what we consider to be our differences.

“Happy” Halloween?

I like the pumpkins but not the skeletons. I enjoy the kids in cute costumes but not the adults who scare the kids with what they chose to wear. I probably wouldn’t mind Halloween if it were celebrated as it was intended, the eve of All Saints’ Day. The saints are worth celebrating, not Satan.

A verse for Halloween: “O you who love the Lᴏʀᴅ, hate evil! He preserves the lives of his saints; he delivers them from the hand of the wicked” (Psalm 97:10). A happy Halloween is remembering we live to honor the saints and celebrating the fact Christians are delivered from all things evil or wicked.

A day for thanksgiving

I have always loved Thanksgiving. I love the food, the football, and the idea that we should take a day to be truly thankful for the lives we are blessed to live. I am thankful for my family, my friends, and mostly for the faith we share. God deserves our praise and our expressions of gratitude. It is good for our souls to be thankful.

My favorite verse for Thanksgiving is: “Oh give thanks to the Lᴏʀᴅ, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” (1 Chronicles 16:34).

God is good and deserves our deepest gratitude.

A Christmas about Christ

Every year I am determined to celebrate Christmas with greater simplicity. I sometimes wish for the holidays I see pictured in movies. Busy schedules, various cities, and diverse families often don’t blend during the holidays. In many ways, Christmas seems more about scheduling than celebrating.

But one thing holds firm. Christmas is the story of Christ.

Christmas is about “Joy to the World” that arrived on one “O Holy Night.”

Christmas is about the “Angels from the Realms of Glory” who announced that “Love Came Down at Christmas.”

Christmas is about how “Good Christian Men, Rejoice” and the time “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.”

Mostly, Christmas is about “The First Noel” and the “Sweet Little Jesus Boy” that “The Little Drummer Boy” worshiped.

Every Christmas is celebrated with important traditions that just need a few adjustments each year. Even in changing seasons, the theme of Christmas will always be the same: “O Come All Ye Faithful” to praise, sing, and pray, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”

Why should we consider Christmas before Halloween?

This year’s Advent Book is a second printing of The Songs Tell the Story, first published for Christmas 2019. I wrote it as a reminder that the great hymns of Christmas tell us the true and timeless story of our Christmas season.

We sold out early in 2019, and many people expressed a desire to purchase more copies than we had to share. This year, we are taking preorders so that, hopefully, everyone who wants a copy can receive one. As always, many of our donors will be sent a copy as our gift, but if you would like additional copies, you can preorder those now.

Why should we consider Christmas before Halloween?

Because, while all the holidays are special, Christmas and Easter are truly “holy-days” for Christians.

Our ministry wants to help you keep your Christmas holiday focused on the pure story of our Savior’s birth. The Songs Tell the Story is something you and your family can share this Christmas season, and we hope it will bless your holiday.

The Apostle John said that Jesus, “the true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world” (John 1:9). Jesus is the “light of the world,” and sharing the celebration of his birth is something most people have in common. I hope this year’s Advent book, The Songs Tell the Story, will help you spend time with Christ each day of your holiday season.

Let the holiday season begin! And may the holiday be a holy-day.

Preorder The Songs Tell the Story here.

P. S. While supplies last, you may request both the adult and children’s editions of The Songs Tell the Story for your donation of $50 or more.