I used to get in the spirit of Christmas by watching a couple of movies: A Christmas Carol, a Christmas story, its a Wonderful life, Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, but last year, after watching these movies, I didnt feel in the Christmas spirit. So this year I started watching my movies and realized, its not the movies, its the company or lack thereof. As a kid, Christmas was always a family ordeal. Family relatives coming to visit, presents under the tree, a big family feast with stories around great food. Listening to grandma and grandpa, Uncles and Aunts, cousins, playing with family. I was in the spirit of Christmas because the spirit was contageous. Grandpa or my dad would read from the bible about the birth of Christ to remind us what the holiday was about.

Today, it seems that the season is not about the birth of the savior Jesus Christ anymore but the savior of the economies bottom line. How often do you see a commercial about the perfect Christmas present, from jewelry to refridgerators to cars to, believe it or not, manure spreaders to make your lawn greener this upcoming summer. I thought the season was to celebrate the birth of the the savior of mankind from sin. So I don’t feel the spirit of Christmas because our nation has chased Christ out of our schools, courtrooms, our homes, our hearts and now the very holiday set aside for Christ himself.

In a Christmas Carol, in the end, Scrooge promises to keep Christmas in his heart everyday. But, like many others, I have forgotten to keep the Spirit of Christ in my heart. I have become numb because of all the merchandizing around our Saviors birth.

I was watching something called Tack room bible talk, and I was reminded of Isaiah chapter 1 where God told his people that he has had enough of their iniquity. Read chapter 1:4 ‘woe to the sinful nation, whose guilt is great, a brood of evildoers , children given to corruption”sounds like America to me. The chosen Gentile nation that used to put God first and was blessed by it. It goes on to say that, to paraphrase it, God is angry because the children and that nation has forsaken God. Look at verse 9 where God compares that nation to Sodom and Gomorrah. He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, a stern warning don’t you think? The purpose of the sacrifice was to realize the sin you have committed and continue to commit. What is the condition of your heart? Remember when Christ himself over turned the change tables in John 2: 15 and 16 …”make not my Fathers house a house of merchandise”. What is the condition of your heart?

In verse 11 God says that he has had enough. In verse 13, God says not to enter his house to pray, give burnt offerings or sing. God is saying that he ‘hates’ (verse 14) an unclean heart. What is the condition of your heart?

Remember Scrooge? He had a heart for merchandise. His heart had become as cold as the snow that covered the streets and as black as the coal in his scuttle.

In Isaiah 1:16, God says that before you even attempt to worship him, to make yourselves clean. Repent, put away (eliminate) the evil of your doings. Learn to do good, seek justice, rebuke evildoers, defend the fatherless, care for the widows. What is the condition of your heart?

In 2 Chronicles 7:14 it reads “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land”

God sets up conditions. There are things we must do first before he acts. We need to clean our hearts.

I have been scared for myself, my family and for mankind. Narrow is the gate and straight is the path. A miss of 12 inches is still a miss, but with deadly consequences for your soul. It is not like a Nintendo game where you get 3 chances and can start over. You get one chance, make it count.

For me, this Christmas, I have made a prayer, like that of Jabez (1 Chronicles 4:10), but mine is “Lord, don’t let me be the cause of someone not knowing you”.

I miss the days of my youth. Time with family around a big table with a Christmas feast. Time with people that are no longer here. Laughter and the joy of family, the spirit of Christmas that was contageous. The sound of grandpa reading about the birth of Jesus, grandma and mom cooking a feast and Uncles and Aunts telling about their lives. It is not about presents, but presence. Giving of yourself to others because of what Jesus did for us. If you can’t get in the true spirit, then anything you do, God will not honor.

What is the condition of your heart. Does God know you? Will God honor your praise and worship?