Devotions with Holly Woodbridge

Teaching Moments from Unlikely Sources –
A pondering by Holly Woodbridge

There is a t-shirt around that I have been wanting to buy for the Christmas season. It says: Dance like Frosty, Shine like Rudolph, Give Like Santa, and Love like Jesus. It’s really cute. And believe it or not, there is truth in it.

Dance Like Frosty - In Psalm 30:11, the psalmist says, “You turned my wailing into dancing.” Psalm 149:3 encourages, “Let them praise his name with dancing!” Psalm 150:4 then urges, “Praise him with tambourine and dancing!”

This Christmas, let loose with praise, folks. We have great reason to celebrate, Immanuel- GOD with US! This is Dance-worthy NEWS! And if you get stuck, just picture Frosty.

Shine like Rudolph -  You know, like “This little light of mine.” Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

This Christmas, let’s be like Rudolph and be people who shine the way to Jesus for our fellow travelers on this rock, called earth. It’s pretty dark out there - so go ahead and SHINE!!!!

Give Like Santa- 2 Corinthians 9:7 “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Acts 20:35 “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

This Christmas, let’s be cheerful givers, that is what we are called to be, givers of time, givers of encouragement, givers of resources, givers of talents. Go ahead let go - give freely, give joyfully, you know, like Santa.

Love like Jesus - John 15:9-17 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”

This Christmas, in the dazzle and the frenzy all around us, let’s make a deliberate choice to love like Jesus, with everything, you know like the Birthday Boy, our Savior, our Lord.  Because as The Grinch Story concluded “Maybe Christmas (he thought) doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more.”

P.S. Keep unwrapping this Great Gift that has been given. And guess what? You don’t have to quit at Christmas. The gift of life with Jesus can be unwrapped ALL YEAR LONG.