After a couple of low-key Christmases in a row, due to health restrictions prompted by the pandemic, many of us have shifted to simpler, more intimate celebrations. Doing so has brought us back to the true message of Christmas: showing thankfulness and appreciation for God’s gift of His Son that night. And expressing that appreciation in acts of love to our fellow men and women.

Christmas is ultimately a celebration of God’s love for each of us. The best way we can celebrate Christmas is by giving Jesus our love and gratitude. It is also a time when we can stop and remember those who are often forgotten and reach out to help those in need.

These are the things that not only make God happy, but also help us find deep satisfaction. Christmas is not made special by presents, decorations, and parties, but by what we give to Jesus and to others. Giving from our hearts demonstrates true appreciation for all God has given us.

A prayer for Christmas

Jesus, You are God and man, King and servant of all. You left Your eternal throne in heaven and took on mortality. You became one of us, so that You could save us. I am overwhelmed with emotion when I think of how You humbly came into our world and changed it forever.

When You were born among us, You brought us the greatest gifts imaginable—salvation, eternal life, peace, hope, love. Who would ever have thought such things would come in the form of a tiny baby, born to commoners, wrapped in rags, and laid to sleep in a feeding trough?

Thank You that because of Christmas, I’m never alone. Whether or not I am blessed with family and friends, whether I face good times or hard times, I always have You and Your love, because I have You in my heart. Thank You for choosing to experience both the joys and sorrows of Earth. Thank You for enduring the tears, pain, frustration, loneliness, exhaustion, and death so that You could truly understand us. Never has there been a more perfect love than Yours!