As a child, the magic of Christmas was wrapped up in the mystery of a jolly old man who I had heard so much about, and received countless treasures from, but had never actually caught a glimpse of. The year he became real to me was the year I hung suspended dangerously between being old enough to know better and young enough to sustain a tangible fear of not believing. On one had, common sense told me that reindeer simply could not fly at supersonic speeds, and our family’s small chimney would not accommodate an XXL belly, let alone two 10-speed bicycles. On the other hand, my simple mind had me convinced that if I did not believe in a thing, it would not exist – my believing was what made it real. (Unfortunately, some still suffer from this childlike line of thinking.)
This particular year, my brother and I were oddly prompted by our parents to wake up and spy on Santa. I remember the four of us huddled in the hallway as the appearance of a bearded man wearing red and white satin shattered my unbelief with every bite of our yearly cookie offering. It was an embarrassing number of years down the line before I was able to truly stand on the fact that the bearded man was most likely one my jolly uncles and that I may as well have eaten those cookies myself. That night, however, my faith had been renewed because my eyes had been opened to the reality of the man of Christmas.
Now, years later, I am comforted by the fact that the true “man of Christmas” is not a fictitious character who frightens little children at shopping malls and gives material gifts to all those fortunate enough to have a chimney. The true “man of Christmas” is Christ himself, who offers the gift of eternal life to all people. In order to accept the gift and be affirmed in our faith, we must open our eyes and look to Jesus. Ask God to open your eyes and enlighten you with a fresh perspective of the true Man of Christmas. If you have not accepted the gift He offers, you don’t have to wait until Christmas – His offer stands firm year-round.
Psalms 119:18
18 Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law.
John 9:26
26 So they said to him, "What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?"
Ephesians 1:18
18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
Father, this Christmas season, I pray that You would open the eyes of my heart to the magic of the gift offered up by your son, Jesus. Make Him real to me. Allow me to experience Him like never before. Remove all that blinds me and open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law.
Amen.
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