Many people dread the beginning of the Christmas season. People get grumpy. Traffic gets hairy. Plus the stresses and pressures of the holidays put people in bad moods.
But I think we miss out on the hope of Christmas when we only look at the negative. I see three main things from the Christmas story that, if we could apply them to our lives, could revolutionize each of our lives this Christmas season. We’d experience more influence, more love, and more peace.
Here are the three truths.
1. Political change was not what we needed.
The prophecies seemed to indicate Jesus would be a political leader. That’s what people were looking for from a Messiah. But that’s not who Jesus was. In fact, He didn’t even preoccupy himself with the messed up government that was in power. Liberties were low. Taxation was a mess. But Jesus didn’t worry about any of it.
Let’s remember that Jesus is the solution we needed and the one we still need – not any political leader. When we focus on Jesus over our political affiliation, it’s easier to break down the barriers that separate us from other people. We can start having influence, even among people we might not agree with.
2. Jesus was born in a position below what his status deserved.
Yes, Jesus was born in an inhospitable environment and laid in a manger. That was below His kingly position. But He also humbled himself by putting on earthly flesh – far below His position as God.
If we can humble ourselves and choose to give up our rights, we’ll experience more peace. When we let that person cut in front of us in traffic… When we smile at that grumpy person, even after they take the last bag of frozen green beans… When we choose to consider others more highly than ourselves…
That’s when we act like Jesus. That’s when we follow His example. And we spread His love to the world around us.
3. Peace was born into chaos.
Finally, in all the craziness of the season, remember that Peace itself came when things were darkest. In the time when Jesus was born, Israel experienced an occupation from a foreign government, citizen displacement, and terrorism. But the hope of peace was born in the middle of all of that. That same peace can be manifest in our own craziness. Choose to look for Jesus’ peace this season.
I believe if we could internalize these three truths and truly apply them to our lives, we’d experience a new brand of peace in our lives. We could find the opportunity of the Christmas season instead of dreading it.