17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

Luke 2:17-18

As a Christ-follower, Christmas is an amazing time of the year. And it’s not just because we get to celebrate Christ’s birth, the word becoming flesh, God becoming Human. Yes, that’s amazing. But, it’s amazing for another reason.

I know a lot of people hate the commercialization of Christmas. They hate that stores put out Christmas merchandise in August and September. People hate the Christmas sales, the Christmas rush and the associated pressures. I get that. I don’t care for that part of Christmas either.

But, there is something good to be found there if we look for it. A few weeks ago my family went to zoo lights at the Oregon zoo. Of course we got stuck in traffic on the way, and parking was a nightmare. But, while we were walking around the Oregon Zoo, I kept hearing Jesus and Christ. And not in the way you might think. They were playing in the lyrics of the Christmas music the zoo had playing. Christ the savior is born. Jesus Lord at thy birth.

I suppose the day may come when that’s no longer allowed. But for now, it’s an opportunity to be like the Shepherds.

When they had witnessed the birth of the savior, they didn’t just go back to their day to day operations. They couldn’t keep the news to themselves. “They spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child.” And the people were amazed.

I wonder why we don’t tell anymore. I know that society isn’t that open to people sharing their faith. But, I wonder if Christmas might be a great opportunity to use all the Christmas setting that is all around us this time of year to have some conversations with people about Jesus?

And, this time of year people tend to be more open to participating in Christmas traditions, such as candlelight Christmas Eve services and other Christmas events.

What if we followed in the Shepherds footsteps and spread the word about what we know to be true about this child everyone is singing about this time of year? And what if we invited them to come and see for themselves. No, they can’t see the baby in a manger. But they can see Jesus. They can see Him in the body of Christ that exists in every church.

You never know, next Christmas you might just find them telling people about this Jesus they met last Christmas. And there’s no one more special to give your heart to this Christmas than Jesus. He’ll never give it away.