The Gift of Christmas

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:14

I wonder what the strangest Christmas gift is that you’ve ever received. I once gave my wife an interior design experience along with the receipt (thankfully) as it kindly went straight back. For me, as a child my favourite ever gift was a remote-controlled monster truck! Now as a father of four, I usually end up with socks or chocolates! Sometimes a gift is money, passed around from one bank account to the next, along with a text saying, “I’ve put £10 into your account for Christmas enjoy!!” Whatever you give or receive this Christmas it’s fair to say that’s lots of weird and wonderful gifts are given. 
 
When it’s all over, the gift wrapping will be stuffed into a recycling box or a bin and taken away. Imagine what it’s like to put on some gloves and go through the bin, post-Christmas. We might find leftover bits of tinsel, some Christmas wrapping paper, the crumbs from an old mince pie. We might find a Christmas card that has sadly slipped into the bin. We might find Christmas string, sticky tape and maybe even broken Christmas tree baubles, all evidence of a good Christmas. Or is it?

Imagine however, finding an unopened gift at the bottom of the bin. Imagine as you begin to open it, to your surprise, inside is Jesus. A wooden, carving of Jesus in a manger. Why would somebody throw out Jesus at Christmas time? Why would somebody not even begin to unwrap and open the gift that was given to us all?

I wonder whether this is what many people do at Christmas. Whether Jesus has become a gimmick and is seen as a religious irrelevance…unless you’re watching a cute nativity play. Is Jesus a gift that we don’t even pick up or unwrap? Does he get lost amongst all the tinsel, Christmas baubles, the Michael Bublé Spotify playlist and wine? Is there something or someone at the very heart of Christmas, the true gift of Christmas that is yet to be unwrapped, discovered and enjoyed? Jesus is God’s gift to the world and to us the gift of Christmas is Jesus. 
 
This is the message that Hope want to help churches and Christians to share this Christmas. We have lots of Christmas resources available on the Hope shop and our Christmas page Hope Together : Christmas at Hope  I want to draw your attention to one resource in particular, ‘The Gift of Christmas’ which comes with free to download resources so that it can be used as the basis of a Christmas service, in a school or in an intergenerational setting e.g. Messy Church.
 
The Gift of Christmas is a beautifully illustrated Christmas gift book that unpacks the traditions of Christmas from Christmas puddings to Carol singing. Encouraging the reader to see the essential heart of Christmas and inviting them to discover the true experience of Christmas – a relationship with Jesus Christ. 
 
I hope all your Christmas plans go well and you enjoy some festive fun
 
Paul Sawrey
Scotland Project lead