Now that that's out of the way, Let's get down to business. Naturally, there are two things that come to mind when it comes to Christmas. First one is "Jesus is the reason for the season." I am not sure how many of us really believe that, but that's my opinion and those thoughts are going to stay in my head for right now. Second thing is, you guessed it, Santa Clause. The second option there covers a wide range of stuff, but I believe it is at the core of something MUCH BIGGER!
Just to be clear, Jesus is the reason for every season. They don't exist without Him. Santa Clause gets his particular time of the year. Thanks to large big box retailers, Santa Clause's season seems to comes earlier and earlier every year. Why is Santa Clause so important? Let's face facts. It is impossible for one person to get to the house of every single "Christmas celebrating" person in the entire world in one night. Not to mention, deer that fly is something that is EXTREMELY difficult to explain. Now that we've established the fact that the Santa Claus concept is hogwash, I have a question. Why are we continually repeating this LIE ([Click here for the definition of a lie] because that's what it is) when we know that it is not true?
That is the crux point of what I am trying to say. Christians and non-Christians, people in general, have been sold so many lies that it is difficult to determine the truth. Want proof? Talk to a politician. Turn on the news and listen to them talk. They both have good points about their position on any particular topic, but you don't really know which one is lying and which one is telling the truth (hint: the answer is both and both), unless you are deceived into thinking that one side is right all the time. Which is also a LIE!!!!
Satan comes to steal kill and destroy. I personally believe that his greatest weapon is the art of the lie. I have written before about the lies that he told Woman in the garden with one statement. Santa Claus is a lie that takes away from the true meaning of Christmas time as well as any other time (I also find it fascinating that Santa and Satan have the same letters in it). There are also Jesus based lies that we've been fed, and we're eating them like all that food at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. For instance, we feel for some reason that we need to all of the sudden be generous and feed the poor at Christmas time. Those people are still poor and hungry in June and July when some of us are lavishly spending on vacations to Vegas, where NOTHING good happens by the way. For some reason, November to December is like guilt season instead of Christmas.
Wading through all the lies and deception, while not believing a bit of it, you ultimately stub your toe on one sobering fact: While this world is moving at a blistering speed, Jesus is really the only way to live. He talked about getting away from your slave driver, addiction, infatuation, etc. and that being the way to eternal life. Consider Saul's conversion, the rich young ruler, the prostitute that washed Jesus' feet. Their conversion came when they turned their back on their slave drivers and put their focus on Jesus.
The enemy's plan is to distract us from the very simple and very effective way of living. Looking back on the Santa Claus example: yes, there was a man referred to as Nikolaos of Myra, or St. Nicholas. According to Legend, St. Nicholas provided a dowry for 3 sisters when their father was too poor to provide it. The film "Santa Clause is Coming To Town" depicts him going to great lengths to provide toys for poor children. The entire legend goes back to generosity! Where did it become about some cookie munching deer wrangler with a never ending knapsack? We have been deceived and distracted. Distraction will derail someone's mission as fast as failure. Sometimes, distraction can seem like failure.
You hear it all through the end of the year in America that "this is the season of giving". BULL!!! Every season is the season of giving. It is called the season of giving because they know that as much as people are spending in the midst of the distractions, they will feel guilty because of how much they are spending on themselves. #1 people are using guilt to make people generous. #2 people need to feel guilty before they will be generous. #3 We need a specific season to be generous. Do you see how heavily we've been distracted?
Grace and Peace be with you Always!
The enemy's plan is to distract us from the very simple and very effective way of living. Looking back on the Santa Claus example: yes, there was a man referred to as Nikolaos of Myra, or St. Nicholas. According to Legend, St. Nicholas provided a dowry for 3 sisters when their father was too poor to provide it. The film "Santa Clause is Coming To Town" depicts him going to great lengths to provide toys for poor children. The entire legend goes back to generosity! Where did it become about some cookie munching deer wrangler with a never ending knapsack? We have been deceived and distracted. Distraction will derail someone's mission as fast as failure. Sometimes, distraction can seem like failure.
You hear it all through the end of the year in America that "this is the season of giving". BULL!!! Every season is the season of giving. It is called the season of giving because they know that as much as people are spending in the midst of the distractions, they will feel guilty because of how much they are spending on themselves. #1 people are using guilt to make people generous. #2 people need to feel guilty before they will be generous. #3 We need a specific season to be generous. Do you see how heavily we've been distracted?
Grace and Peace be with you Always!
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