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The Perfect Christmas?

She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. -Luke 2:7

While shopping one Christmas, I entered a store with a huge sign that declared, “The Perfect Christmas.” I guess the idea was that if you bought gifts there, it would help guarantee that your Christmas would be flawless. We’d all like a “perfect” Christmas, but what does that even look like? Are we thinking about our favorite Christmas card, movie, or carol?

If we think back to the first Christmas, we find a humble couple who had traveled for miles and miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem to comply with a census.

“While they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them” (Luke 2:6-7).

Jesus’ first bed was a manger or feeding trough for animals. The guests who helped welcome the newborn were shepherds who were outcasts in that society (vv. 15-16). Doesn’t sound too perfect, does it?

The perfect part of Christmas is Jesus coming to earth to save us from our sins. “The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!” (v. 11).

Let’s not get caught up in the commercialism of Christmas, but instead remember that Christmas is about Christ. Jesus, who is perfect, came into our imperfect world to offer peace and salvation from our sins.

Nancy Gavilanes

What does the perfect Christmas look like to you? How can you celebrate Christ this Christmas?

Dear Jesus, thank You for coming and redeeming me.