"All To Him I Owe!"

"He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes." (Psalms 105:37)
I don't know what this Christmas might mean for you, but for me, this year it is all about giving back and feeling the joy about all that I have been given. It is really not about families, although we get to share time with each other and try to make merry; we could do that any day of the year, and most of us do. It is about celebrating the gift of a Savior, the one who came to live among us, experience our way of living this life, and then give Himself for a sacrifice for all the ways we mess things up. He not only died for our sins, but He brought our dead lives to life; giving us treasures that are beyond anyone's ability to even imagine, treasure that is not even attainable in this life here on earth. As I spent a little while yesterday at the site where my son's body is placed, I couldn't help but take a little walk around and look at some of the graves that have been freshly filled. It was a little odd feeling, to say the least; but it reminded me that everyone has someone they miss this time of year. There is an empty chair at the table, or a particular ornament out of place; maybe even a special food that was made especially for that someone. At one freshly filled grave, like last month fresh, all that there was placed next to the grave was an empty coffee cup. Not quite sure what that meant, except maybe the person loved coffee. I left a miniature live Christmas Tree at my son's grave site; a live tree to celebrate the fact that he is alive! That word "feeble," which is easily confused with lame or sick, is actually a word that means to stumble or totter. It also means to decay or fail; something that we might think about when we are thinking of our dead who have been buried in the ground. Well, don't! The body that is there was only a shell or a tent; it was only a brief vessel that housed an eternal soul, a soul that is now alive, and more alive than ever before. This is what Christmas means to me this year, that God has given me life, eternal life that cannot be measured or exchanged or taken away or messed with; it is secure in Christ Jesus and He is not here anymore, so guess what: I can't even take it back from Him! Even if I wanted to, I don't think that He would let me! That word "feeble" also means "to cause to fail," which I am pretty sure guarantees that I will get there...
"Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us unto his family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. That is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding." (Ephesians 1:4-8) NLT