All Is Well, All Is Well. Lift Up Your Voice And Sing!

I was thinking last night about this whole Christmas season. What is it to me? What does it actually mean to me? I love this season. I love the movies, the decorations, the lights, the magical feeling in the air, the feeling of nostalgia, all of it. I love how it makes me and my siblings feel like children again. No matter how old we get, we never skip pulling all of the presents out from under the tree and stacking them into our piles, counting to see who has the most (even though we know our parents spend the same amount of money on each of us..). Me and my sister still bake cookies, sleep in the same bed at least one night out of the season, still giggle like little girls. No matter how old we get, we will always act in a juvenile manner and beg to open a present every single night the week of Christmas.

While this is all fun and makes my heart warm, this is not what Christmas really means to me. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of the reason that I'm the person I am today. Without the birth of that baby boy, I would not be free of my sins and my burdens. Because of this baby, I'm saved and I'm free. Do I live up to his standards? Absolutely not. Am I perfect? Pshh. Not even close. No one is, and anyone who claims to be is living in denial. I'm a Christian because I've chosen to give Him my burdens. I'm a Christian because he offered to carry them for me. I'm not even remotely close to perfect. I can't even see perfect from where I'm standing. I'm simply a child of God who was blessed enough to be raised by parents and family members who showed me His love.

I'll never claim to be the perfect example of Christianity because, obviously, I make mistakes. I don't always live in a way that would please Christ. Truth is, most Christians are hypocrites and that's all there is to it. I don't preach to people. I don't try to shove Christianity down anyone's throat. I simply use this blog as platform to share my thoughts, and as a Christian, these kinds of thoughts come up from time to time. Sometimes I'm ashamed of my actions. Sometimes I regret decisions. But does this mean that I'm not a Christian? Not at all.

Christmas is so easily forgotten as a Christian celebration. In a society where everything must be politically correct, I choose to celebrate Christmas as a Christian. I celebrate the birth of my Saviour. Yes, I participate in secular celebration. Absolutely. There's nothing wrong with decorating a tree or telling your kids that Santa brought them presents. There's nothing wrong with buying gifts and giving to others. There's nothing wrong with hanging lights from your house. There's something wrong with focusing only on these things. There's something wrong with becoming wrapped up in these customs and forgetting to acknowledge the birth of Christ. I know that not everyone believes this, but for those of us that claim to believe this, there should be less dispute over customs surrounding this holiday.

Yes, we all know that He wasn't actually born in December or on the 25th, no one really knows the exact month or date, but we know that He was in fact born and this particular day in Winter is the one in which the world decided to celebrate this event. Yes, the month and time we chose to celebrate it is connected to Pagan holidays, but that doesn't mean we have to actually connect it to Pagan holidays. Too many people refuse to believe that He is the Son of God, but as a Christian and as someone who has a personal relationship with God, I believe that he was sent here by His Father to save us. I choose to believe that Christmas is the time to celebrate and rejoice in His birth.

If you don't agree with me, that's your choice, but, like I've said before, this is my blog and you don't have to read it :) I just wanted to share my thoughts on Christmas and how I choose to celebrate. I know that some may consider me a hypocrite because they're aware of some of my decisions or actions, but the truth is, it's no one's business but my own. And this is the reason I choose not to judge others for their actions or attempt to dispute what they say. I have no right telling anyone how to live because I know that I'm not a good example. I know that I've asked forgiveness and I know that He grants it to me. My relationship is a personal thing. Yes, I've shared more about my beliefs today than I ever have through this blog, but the fact that I've shared it at all is a big step for me.

I'm not one to bring up religious topics to others, because I don't necessarily consider myself religious. That doesn't mean that I'm any less Christian, that simply means that I am not a radical who tries to force my beliefs on others. Like I said, I consider it a personal relationship, but I wanted to speak about it given the time of year :)
This will probably be my last post until after Christmas, so I wanted to say that I love you all and I sincerely hope that you all have a wonderful and blessed Christmas!

One more thing! This is one of my favorite Christmas songs of all time. I've performed it several times and its given me great joy each time :) Listen to it!

Point of Grace- All Is Well