Christmas Cheer? What?

“Hark how the bells,
sweet silver bells,

all seem to say,
"Throw cares away."
Christmas is here
bringing good cheer

to young and old,
meek and the bold.”

“Carol of the Bells”
by Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych
Ukraine, 1904

Christmas cheer? What? Where? The weeks leading up to Christmas are often the most difficult of the year. There's so much to do, so much money to spend, such awful weather and, ugh, the traffic. There are so many loved ones to miss, so many shifts to cover, so much loneliness and pain to feel. Satan is at his prime this time of year, making sadness prevalent where joy is expected because he longs for us to forget that his defeat began in a barn in Bethlehem over two thousand years ago.

Our holiday sadness is a reminder that the world aches for Jesus’ return just as it ached for His birth. We can't deny that we feel that aching, but (like with chronic pain!) we can refuse to let it overwhelm us because Christ IS Lord of all, and His birth that's celebrated this time of year means Satan’s death.

Feeling a significant lack of Christmas cheer? Forget "Ho, ho, ho," and shout "Get behind me, Satan!" because that’s the real Christmas Spirit.

“In the world you will have tribulation.
But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33

For more on tribulation, click here.