Job 33:4
“The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
Psalm 139:14
“I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.”
One of my favorite Christmas songs is “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. At first blush, this song seems rather carnal and materialistic, but the original intention was a vivid example of our lives hidden in Christ.
Although we can complain that Christmas items are out at stores right after Thanksgiving, the early church began the Christmas celebration a month out and then the timing for the commemoration of the Twelve days of Christmas was celebrated from December 25th through January 6th, leading up to the Epiphany.
These Twelve Days of Christmas are purported by some to be an esoteric code for Christians to remember their beliefs, to others a traditional song reminding us of the Wise men who came and brought gifts all those years ago, and to still others, a secular song with no inherent meaning at all.
But for the early church to set aside a month to celebrate the birth of God is a reminder to us that we can also benefit from this tradition. Not a month just to be busy, but time to reflect on the significance of what Christ did for us.
Arriving at a perfectly historically accurate understanding of the purpose of the “Twelve Days of Christmas” might be impossible, but perhaps a new tradition is in order. As a catalyst for sincere praise in this season of giving, over the next twelve days this blog will reflect on twelve amazing gifts that God has given us as we lead up to Christmas. Day one . . .
On the 1st day of Christmas, our Creator gave to us “Life“. The complexity of the creation of mankind blows my mind. From the tiniest cell packed with DNA, to the hairs on our head, eye color, stature, personality – to every detail God lovingly placed in each of His children – our God is awesome, a genius; thoughtful and loving.
This gift of life is often painful, challenging, joyful; a wild mix of emotions. But to feel is to live. Each day a gift, whether it was a day filled with trouble that sent us running to our Father, or a day filled with bliss that caused us to be filled with gratitude, every day has a purpose in the scope of eternity. The “good”, the “bad”, however each moment is assessed by man – ALL of it is used by God miraculously woven into our lives for His glory and our good.
As we come to kneel before our King this Christmas and consider afresh this gift of life, what is the greatest gift we bring now to our Creator, but to offer our lives back to Him in worship?
Lord, thank You for life. Sometimes it hurts so terribly bad and we wonder how You could ever take such a mess and make it beautiful, but somehow You do. Lord, thank You for every day of this life and help us to offer each day back to You in sincere gratitude and worship.