Longing for more than Christmas nostalgia
Preparations are in full swing all around the world to celebrate the miraculous historical event of the Messiah’s birth in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. The sights, songs, and smells of the season, along with childhood memories of Christmas, are already warming many hearts. What could be better than Christmas nostalgia, right?
While the warm and fuzzy feelings of the season are certainly enjoyable, many people long for more than just a week or two of festive exhilaration. There is a universal desire to experience lasting peace, love, and joy.
What if the nostalgia of Christmas led to deep joy and strength that filled your soul all year long? Imagine the Prince of Peace transforming your entire life. When God's supernatural power begins to change you from the inside out, it far exceeds the cozy feelings of Christmas nostalgia.
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I suspect that over the past year you have experienced highs and lows, joy and sadness, victories and defeats. But to what extent was God involved in your daily life during 2021? And to what degree did you experience the power of the Holy Spirit?
The Bible describes “the peace of God that passes all human understanding” (Philippians 4:7). In order to experience the “peace of God,” you must first be at “peace with God.” (Romans 5:1). That is, you must first be in a relationship with God. Do you know Jesus Christ personally? (John 10:14). Regardless of your spiritual condition today, I want to invite you to try something.
Get alone somewhere and shut off your phone. Turn on some Christmas music or other Christian songs that inspire you. As you sit in solitude, take a deep breath. Close your eyes and quiet your heart before the Lord. If it helps, open your hands heavenward as you prepare to receive God’s healing love.
Begin to thank God for the many blessings you have received. “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name” (Psalm 100:4).
After thanking God for His goodness to you, identify those things that are weighing your heart down. Bring your burdens and your sins to the Lord in a spirit of humility and repentance. Admit your shortcomings, and ask Jesus to wash away your sins and heal your soul. Ask God to remove anything from your heart that is offensive to Him.
You could pray these words: “Jesus, you are my Creator and Savior. I need you in my life. Cleanse my soul with your forgiveness. Assure me of your love for me and help me to trust you completely. Strengthen my faith in you and in your Word. And fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit. Thank you Jesus for your Grace.”
American author and pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle Jim Cymbala said, “I’ve discovered an astonishing truth: God is attracted to weaknesses. He can’t resist those who humbly and honestly admit how desperately they need Him."
And so speak to God from your heart. Praise Him for His goodness and mercy. Worship Christ the King as your Lord and Savior. Speak directly to your Redeemer who purchased your salvation when He died on the cross.
“Thank you Jesus for going through the horrible agony you endured on the cross to pay for my sins. Help me Lord. Forgive my sins. Live in me. Use my life to your glory. Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me. Empty me of anything that offends you, and fill me with your power, wisdom, and love. Touch my heart today dear Lord.”
E.M. Bounds said, “Prayer fills man’s emptiness with God’s fullness."
You might want to offer this specific request that David prayed to God: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me” (Psalm 51:10-12).
As you bask in the presence of the Lord, trust Jesus to break the chains that bind you. And wait upon the Lord in prayer to heal your heart and mind, and to lift the pressure of those burdens you are carrying.
As you spend time every day meditating upon Scripture, the power of God will fill you with courage and wisdom. Jesus said, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).
Do you long for more than Christmas nostalgia? If so, you will be incredibly blessed to spend some quiet time with the Lord as you worship and adore the King of Kings, and admit your need for the Savior of the world.
Jesus came to Earth to rescue us from sin, death, and the devil. Are you willing to come to Christ and be delivered? Will you humble yourself before the Lord as you spend time every day with your Creator?
If you want to experience change, you will need to come directly to the One who said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).
Ralph Sockman said, “The hinge of history is on the door of a Bethlehem stable."
“She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins ... and they will call Him Immanuel — which means, ‘God with us’” (Matthew 1:21,23).
Dan Delzell is the pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Papillion, Nebraska.
