Good morning to you. I am so happy, excited, and just plain overjoyed this morning, because we are one day away from the official start to the holiday season! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and I am so looking forward to celebrating it with family and friends. Although Thanksgiving is celebrated one day a year, I am so very thankful everyday. God is so good to us, everyday! I don't know about you, but I thank Him daily, most of the day! He is such an awesome God, and He is so worthy of all of our praise and gratitude! One day simply is not enough for me to say thank you to a Father like ours! I love, love, love the holidays. The fellowship, wonderful food, festivities of the season, the wonderful decorations...all of it! I have my seasonal fragrance smelling up the whole house, Christmas songs are already playing in the house, and of course the television is always tuned to the Hallmark channel...have to watch the Christmas movies over and over again!
Even in my excitement, I do know that for many, this is not a very exciting time of the year. Many have encountered many challenges this year...the loss of a loved one, a job loss, economic issues, relationship issues, whatever the challenge is, I know that it may have affected you to the point that you don't even want to celebrate this year. I heard on television a couple of days ago, that a survey was recently taken, and about 27% of Americans, are skipping the holidays this year...not celebrating at all! Wow, this is so sad! I am in no way downplaying the seriousness of the challenges this season for those in that survey, but I still have to focus on the true reason of the season...JESUS! If you don't have a dime in your pocket, a job to go to, the loss of a loved one, JESUS is still the reason why we celebrate! We celebrate Thanksgiving because we celebrate Jesus and who He is, and how He has blessed us. We celebrate Christmas because Jesus came in human flesh, to dwell among us, and to save us, and to give us abundant life! It's all about Him!
I know what it's like to lose a loved one around the holidays. The enemy loves to cause you to remember them and get real sad. I sat in a funeral home, on Thanksgiving night, in 1987, looking at my mother laying in a casket. I stood in a cemetery the day after Thanksgiving, watching them bury her. Thanksgiving can really be a sad time for me, if I let it be, but I don't! I choose to focus on the wonderful times that she and I shared, and I rejoice that she is with the Lord, enjoying herself! Depression is a choice! We can choose to be depressed, or we can choose to be joyful. We certainly have much to be joyful about. If you are even able to read this post, that means that you are alive, you have a computer, electrical power to operate it, eyes to see it, and the capacity to read it. You are blessed!
Cheer up, get excited! I like what David said in the Bible, in Psalm 42: he is talking to himself. He asks himself a question: "self why are you down in the dumps, why are you crying the blues? Self, I am going to fix my eyes on God, I am going to be praising again! God puts a smile on my face, He's my God! When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse all that I know about you"! He starts off asking himself why is he down, but he ends up talking to himself about how good God has been to him, and he just rehearses all that God has done in his life! When depression tries to overtake you, stop and recall how good God has been in your life! That will make you smile again! God is good to us!
You may be saying, "I don't know this God". Well, I can't think of a better time to know Him, than now!
He knows YOU, and He loves YOU! He wants to be your Savior and Lord! Jesus came, bled, and died, just for YOU! He wants you to live a life of freedom from sin, He wants to live in you...to guide you, to give you wisdom, to teach you about loving others, He just wants to pour out an abundance of love and blessings upon YOU! He wants to have a relationship with YOU. His death was for YOU...to take away your sins, to put you right with God! He is always ready to receive YOU. He has forgiven your sins, and you are reconciled back to God. All you have to do is ask Him into your heart, and Receive Him as Savior and Lord. he is ready to move in!
Pray this prayer: Dear God, I know that without Jesus I am lost. I believe that Jesus died for me, and that you raised Him from the dead for me. Jesus, come into my heart. Be my Savior and Lord. I am sorry for my sins, and I thank You for saving me and for your forgiveness! Fill me with your Holy Spirit, so that I will have power to live for you. Thank you. Amen!
That's it! Congratulations to you! Please let me know that you prayed this prayer, so that I can celebrate your new freedom in Christ, with you!
Jesus, is how you can be happy and rejoice through the holiday season! The joy of the Lord is your strength!
Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas too!
Jesus Loves YOU, and I do too!
~Gayle
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