by Desiree Bustamante

No matter how you celebrate Christmas this year, Jesus is still the newborn King!

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

I’ve heard this often: Christmas will look different this year. It’s just not going to be the same. Truthfully, each year is unique. One year a snowstorm prevents you from driving to another state to see loved ones, another year someone is absent, the next year someone is added to your celebration. Maybe there are fewer presents under the tree than last year or maybe more.

If you talk to someone who lived during the Depression, the Spanish Flu or both world wars, they admit times were disheartening. Yet they are proud of how resourceful they became, especially for celebrations. Many of our parents started life together with very little and have shared stories of their meager resources, but their love for each other made times joyful.

“Let us hold tightly without wavering to the
hope we affirm,
for God can be trusted to keep his promise.
Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.
And let us not neglect our meeting together,
as some people do,
but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”
Hebrews 10:23-25 New Living Translation

We may have to meet virtually this Christmas without access to all the fun traditions we are used to, but we can unite in the celebration of the birth of Jesus. We can love each other well, reach out to those who need help or encouragement and hold tightly to the hope we have in the Savior of the world. Let your worship of Christ the newborn King be the one tradition that remains constant every year. The salvation and hope brought into the world by His birth will always be assured, now and forevermore!

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado