Christmas is my all-time favorite holiday.  Who doesn’t enjoy sweets, presents and a cheerful disposition?!?!

As much as I’d love to celebrate Christmas all year long, my waist line would expand and even my ‘fat jeans’ would not fit anymore.  Sigh.

However for the past three weeks, I’ve been mulling over my reasons for placing Christmas at the top of my list for best holidays and I have come up with why I think it rocks…drum roll please.

GIVING

Yep, it’s because Christmas is the season of giving and that makes us all feel good!!

In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Acts 20:35

There is no doubt that Jesus was right about being blessed in our giving…and it’s not because we GET something in return.

“If you give to get something, you are really not giving; you are trading.”  Charlie ‘Tremendous’ Jones

I love the above quote from a friend’s dad!  It says it all.  Giving to receive IS NOT GIVING.

However, when we give just because it’s the right thing to do or because we want to…our lives can be changed and even made better.

In fact, back in 2013, “a huge review of 40 studies on the effect of volunteering on general health and happiness was published in the journal BMC Public Health. The results? Volunteering not only improves well-being and life satisfaction, but it’s also linked with decreased depression and a lower risk of dying early.”

Who doesn’t want to live longer and happier???

Volunteering our time and money goes way beyond the experience.  It benefits our outlook and health, lowers our stress level and fulfills our purpose.

Unfortunately, the world tells us to gather as much stuff as we can get our hands on.  If we subscribe to this way of thinking, we will learn that our greed perpetuates insatiability, which fills us with a craving for more, more, more.

We seem to miss the point on a regular basis about what really makes us joyful, content and satisfied…and it’s not money or more stuff!

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. 2Corinthians 9:6-8

I guess the real question is whether or not we trust God to provide for our EVERY NEED.

Hmmm….

Wouldn’t we give more of what we have (time, possessions, cash) if we REALLY relied on God for all things?

2015 seems like a great year to start trusting God and celebrating the spirit of Christmas all year long.  Will you join me in giving more and watching God’s miracles go above and beyond our expectations?

Celebrate Christmas again TODAY!!!

Some Wisdom for Today:  Proverbs 3:9-10 – Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.