We Will NEVER Cancel Christmas!

And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!” Nehemiah 8:10 NLT

We’ve just experienced a Thanksgiving like no other. Mayors, Governors, and local authorities were threatening fines and even imprisonment if there were too many people gathered around dinner tables.

Some “dictators” gave tirades telling us to cancel a holiday that focused on giving thanks to God for the blessings we continue to enjoy, even while these tyrants are actively trying to restrict our freedoms.

I hope you found a way to enjoy Thanksgiving with the ones you love and care about, and most importantly, with the One who gave us life and provisions.

Now we see the next surge of politicians trying to get us to cancel Christmas!

Naught!

Please join me in agreeing that’s not going to happen on our watch!

No one can cancel Jesus. No one can eliminate the celebration of His birth. Many have tried, but none succeeded and they won’t this year either!

Maybe your Christmas will look a little different and you won’t have the usual parties or travel, but Christmas is going to happen on December 25!

We need to let the world know our Savior is having a birthday.

We must celebrate Christmas for the same reason it’s been celebrated for 2020 years . . .

 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 NLT

The government tried to mess with the birth of Jesus 2020 years ago too when Joseph and Mary had to leave home and travel to Bethlehem for a census. That must have been frustrating for Mary nine months pregnant. Then to have no place to sleep except in a smelly stable when her water broke and she knew her time had come.

Talk about inconvenient. Not your typical birth. Not what Mary planned or dreamed about, but no government edict could stop her baby boy from coming into this world just as God planned.

And no government edict is going to stop us from joyfully celebrating the birth of the Savior of the world, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

In fact, Christmas should have even more meaning to us this year as we realize how close we’ve come to losing something we’ve always taken for granted: worshipping Jesus in our church. I’m so happy to see pastors fighting back over this injustice and not giving up until they reach the Supreme Court, where last week there was a victory.

People need the joy of the Lord right now and Christians are the Lord’s ambassadors to a world that is trying with all its might to go dark. To deem good evil and evil good. To take away people’s free will and force them into bondage with threats of jail if they don’t submit and obey, even for simply leaving their home.

I’m going to make one rant point here—none of the people indiscriminately reeling these mandates are basing their rulings on science! The science does not substantiate them. They’re desperate and see a chance to grab power like they’ve never been able to lord over people before.

California is a perfect example. If the ridiculous forced lockdowns, closures of businesses, and mask mandates, rules, rules, rules were working, why are cases going up. Why would their Governor break all his own rules to eat in a small room in a pricey restaurant with no mask and no social distancing with a group of “health officials” if he (and they) thought the mandates were effective?

It’s not just hypocrisy, it’s power gone insanely out of control.

7 Ways to Experience a Joyful 2020 Christmas Season

Christians need to counter the insanity of the world right now with a vocal, joyful, and purposeful approach to Christmas this year.

Here are a few ways we’re keeping normalcy and focus in our Christmas, and please let me know what you’re doing.

1. Wish everyone you meet in person or on the phone a “Merry Christmas” or a “Blessed Christmas.”

2. Play Christian Christmas music in your home, phone, and car.

3. Put up decorations that signify the Christmas spirit to you even if you’re not having parties or guests. It brings normalcy to the season and your soul. If you have children or grandchildren, they need to know the scrooge of COVID or election fraud is not going to change Christmas at your house.

4. If you typically string lights outside, or inside, hang those lights. I love Christmas lights and hubby puts them on a timer so they’re on when I wake up in the morning and after I go to bed at night.

5. If you enjoy baking Christmas goodies, then by all means, fire up the oven and start baking.

6. Remember those who are living alone or elderly. Discover ways to brighten their lives.

7. Spend more time with Jesus. Start everyday reading the Christmas story from the Book of Matthew or Luke or in a Christmas devotional. It helps focus the day’s activities around the ONLY reason we celebrate Christmas. It reminds us that Jesus doesn’t want us stressed or in a frenzy.

Jesus came into the world for one reason, to offer those who believe in Him eternal life, not to add a burden to our life but to lighten our load: “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. Isaiah 41:10 NLT

T’was the month of Christmas,
And all through the town,
People wore masks,
That covered their frown.

The frown had begun
Way back in the Spring,
When a global pandemic
Changed everything.

Airplanes were grounded,
Travel was banned.
Borders were closed
Across air, sea, and land.

As the world entered lockdown
To flatten the curve,
The economy halted,
And folks lost their nerve.

From March to July
We rode the first wave,
People stayed home,
They tried to behave.

When summer emerged
The lockdown was lifted.
But away from caution,
Many folks drifted.

Now it’s December
And cases are spiking,
Wave two has arrived,
Much to our disliking.

It’s true that this year
Has had sadness a plenty,
We’ll never forget
The year 2020.

And just ‘round the corner –
The holiday season,
But why be merry?
Is there even one reason?

To decorate the house
And put up the tree,
Who will see it,
No one but me.

But outside my window
The snow gently falls,
And I think to myself,
Let’s deck the halls!

So, I gather the ribbon,
The garland and bows,
As I play those old carols,
My happiness grows.

Christmas is not cancelled
And neither is hope.
If we lean on each other,
I know we can cope.

So open your Bible
And read the timeless story
Of a baby’s birth, so eventful,
When God came down to earth in humble glory!

(Adapted, edited, and enhanced from an Anonymous poem)