There's only one reason for Christmas!

Perhaps it's because of the somewhat austere times in which we live, but it seems to me that there is a little less hype about Christmas this year. One thing which I have seen about though is the call to reclaim Christmas for its real reason, rather than glorifying the various pagan rituals and commercial hype that have come to personify the Spirit of Xmas for so many people.


Despite the fact that there are so few Christmas cards available in the shops that depict any concept of the reason for the festival, you can still get cards with a Christian message if you look in the right places. If you choose instead to purchase non-religious cards then you are compounding the reason for the stores to give them the preferential treatment that they do. On the other hand, if you make a point of letting the store management know that you will not be purchasing Christmas Cards from them because they don't reflect the real reason for Christmas, then you are potentially helping to bring about a change of mind. 


Of course, you need to realise that the stores are not interested in anything other than increasing their profits, and so they will sell what they get the most demand for. Don't be fooled by the playing of Christmas Carols over the airwaves as you shop, whether in the Shopping Mall or the shops themselves, for it's just a cynical ploy to help them relieve you of your hard-earned cash.


Many older folk are astounded by the amounts of money spent on presents these days, especially those for children, in comparison with the presents when they were children. In those days excitement was at fever-pitch with the opening of your stocking on Christmas morning as you discovered the orange and nuts, perhaps a small toy and a colouring book and even a few sweets. Presents would usually be opened together around the decorated tree, and would be simple by today's standards. Things like the latest comic annual or a box of crayons or paints, a doll or a dinky car, or something of that ilk were the choices for the day. Parents usually gave one present to you, not half a dozen.


An important feature on THE DAY was the church service, being either a trip to the local chapel or church or else on the radio at home if you were house-bound. Later, of course, the television relayed church services as well to a welcoming audience.


Nowadays, in a nation that has been increasingly secularised and whose focus is on personal materialistic goals, there seems to be little room for the baby in the manger. Various spokespeople advise us that it is wrong to turn Christmas into a Christian celebration when it's all about the family getting together for a good time. Many Authorities, including the government, introduce an assortment of bans to try and 'prevent Christians from hi-jacking Christmas.' 


It's time that every true Christian --- and by that I mean people who acknowledge Jesus Christ to be the Lord of their lives, not necessarily simply because they go to church --- spoke up to proclaim the real reason for Christ-mas.

• Wish people the blessings of the Christmas season.
• Share the story of the birth of Jesus, explaining that He is the Messiah whom God sent to redeem the world to Himself.
• Explain that it is only through Jesus that you can eventually be with God for eternity by sharing Jesus' own words on the subject (John 14:6). 
• Above all, emphasise the fact that without Jesus there simply is no Christ-mas.

 He is the reason for the season!