I am almost obsessed with the Amish. And not like a fan club member or anything, but I am fascinated with the culture. The peace. The simplicity.
They are — as a whole —some of the most efficient, hard workers around. Unlike most Americans, they do their best to NOT keep up with the Joneses and mostly do the opposite of what everybody else is doing.
What strength. What faith.
I do not agree with their theology, at least some important parts, but I think they have the key to what we (the rest of us) are so desperately seeking.
Peace. Freedom. Kindness. Joy.
This time of year I find we are all so focused on getting it all and getting it all done that we are missing out on the simplicity of the season.
The reason for the season is not to get everybody the best present we can afford, send out a gazzillion cards to people we don’t really ever talk to, have the house decked out just so and cram as many family/social gatherings into the last half of December as humanly possible.
The reason is simple.
I wonder if I kept my home and my life as focused and driven as my Amish neighbors if it would be easier to settle down and get into the spirit of this special holiday.
See, I know (in my head) the reason for the season, but my body sure doesn’t act like it. I, like everybody else, get wrapped up in it all, all the worldly expectations that were forced onto this holiday to distract us from what God really wants us to celebrate.
I believe the real reason all the government buildings are closed on Dec. 25 of every year began a few thousand years ago in a simple barn. Very unimpressive in appearance. Very unlike how the world thought a king’s birth should look. So different. So simple. So peaceful.
On that first Christmas, our Lord sent us His one and only son, Jesus Christ, to earth — His Word in the flesh — to live a perfect life and then die. When He died, Jesus took the sin of this world down with him.
This act proves the love God has for us and His desire for good and peace in our lives. Who do you know who would sacrifice — kill —their only child for somebody else, let alone somebody who was a bad person.
I know I wouldn’t.
But God did.
And when His Son rose from the dead, the sting of death was no longer there.
But hope was. And the promise of peace — peace on earth and forever — is available to all who just accept the gift. The first gift on the first Christmas was Jesus.
God gave Him to you so you wouldn’t have to suffer with the expectations of this world.
He gave Him to you so you wouldn’t have to worry, and so you would know what is important in life and what is not.
God gave you Jesus so you can live and not die.
Christmastime is not all about Santa Claus. Or pretty lights and decor. Or Christmas trees.
It is about the birth of our Savior.
And there is no better gift.
They are — as a whole —some of the most efficient, hard workers around. Unlike most Americans, they do their best to NOT keep up with the Joneses and mostly do the opposite of what everybody else is doing.
What strength. What faith.
I do not agree with their theology, at least some important parts, but I think they have the key to what we (the rest of us) are so desperately seeking.
Peace. Freedom. Kindness. Joy.
This time of year I find we are all so focused on getting it all and getting it all done that we are missing out on the simplicity of the season.
The reason for the season is not to get everybody the best present we can afford, send out a gazzillion cards to people we don’t really ever talk to, have the house decked out just so and cram as many family/social gatherings into the last half of December as humanly possible.
The reason is simple.
I wonder if I kept my home and my life as focused and driven as my Amish neighbors if it would be easier to settle down and get into the spirit of this special holiday.
See, I know (in my head) the reason for the season, but my body sure doesn’t act like it. I, like everybody else, get wrapped up in it all, all the worldly expectations that were forced onto this holiday to distract us from what God really wants us to celebrate.
I believe the real reason all the government buildings are closed on Dec. 25 of every year began a few thousand years ago in a simple barn. Very unimpressive in appearance. Very unlike how the world thought a king’s birth should look. So different. So simple. So peaceful.
On that first Christmas, our Lord sent us His one and only son, Jesus Christ, to earth — His Word in the flesh — to live a perfect life and then die. When He died, Jesus took the sin of this world down with him.
This act proves the love God has for us and His desire for good and peace in our lives. Who do you know who would sacrifice — kill —their only child for somebody else, let alone somebody who was a bad person.
I know I wouldn’t.
But God did.
And when His Son rose from the dead, the sting of death was no longer there.
But hope was. And the promise of peace — peace on earth and forever — is available to all who just accept the gift. The first gift on the first Christmas was Jesus.
God gave Him to you so you wouldn’t have to suffer with the expectations of this world.
He gave Him to you so you wouldn’t have to worry, and so you would know what is important in life and what is not.
God gave you Jesus so you can live and not die.
Christmastime is not all about Santa Claus. Or pretty lights and decor. Or Christmas trees.
It is about the birth of our Savior.
And there is no better gift.
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