Originally published Thursday, 17 December 2015.
Day 17
Purchase a ticket and invite a friend to a CYT, Lamb’s Players (for SoCal locals) or Ballet Magnificat (they travel nation and worldwide) event this Christmas. Art gets to places in the heart where words don’t reach.
As a child I can remember being allowed into two events that kids weren't supposed to be allowed to attend. One was an Easter play. One was the life of Christ, danced out by Ballet Magnificat. I was maybe two when I saw the Easter play and about 6 when I saw Ballet Magnificat. I still well remember them both. I didn't stop talking about them for weeks. (And I am still talking about Ballet Magnificat because I utterly adore their ministry!) The portrayal of Christ through artistic medium reached deep soul places. So, go and take a friend to something like a play or ballet that isn't just the Nutcracker, but has some Gospel goodness! And take your children! It blessed me beyond words!
I know for some, going to watch dance might be a little out of the general "comfort" zone. But even my hubby who wouldn't normally enjoy going to the ballet, loved it. One particularly neat aspect to taking someone to something like Ballet Magnificat is that there's no words to argue with. So if you have a friend or loved one who has struggled and argued with the presentation of the Gospel via words, art moves the "conversation" past that.
May the Lord abundantly bless your efforts to share His love, truth, and grace this Christmas.
Day 16 Write a family Christmas letter and instead of rattling off this year’s promotions, accomplishments or troubles, give a testimony of God’s faithfulness and grace over you and yours. Give Him the glory for every good thing and praise Him through each trial!
Day 15 Take church invites to Laundromats, library community board, auto repair shops, local restaurants, preschools, etc.
Day 14 Neighbor gifts – add tract, sermon on cd, or note with a Bible verse. Read more here…
Day 13 Prayer walk your neighborhood. Download a prayer guide and read more here…
Day 12 Invite a friend, coworker, neighbor to church – our church makes special invites for the Christmas season and also has email/fb/twitter links to pass along church event info – ya can’t get much easier than just fb posting an invite to a church event! Statistics show it takes about 8 times for a person to be invited before they say “yes” to attending church. Keep inviting… without badgering, of course 😉
Day 11 Homeless help. Keep gift cards for fast food/ restaurants in your glove box with tracts to give to the needy people on the streets that the Lord leads you to give to–this way the help won’t get used for drugs or alcohol. Read more here…
Day 10 Care packages – take care packages to your local women’s crisis center, a homeless center or to assist a sex-trafficking care center. Read more here…
Day 9 Listen. After recently reading through the Gospels, I noticed how often Jesus listened to people. Sometimes listening is a great act of service to someone. And as you listen, you will hear heart needs that are open doors to share the Answer to all our heart needs. Without listening we might miss those doors. Read more here…
Day 8 Serve. Look for ways to serve your family above and beyond what’s “expected.” Especially if you visit family members who don’t know Jesus, pray for God to show you opportunities to serve them. Read more here…
Day 7 Pray about “adopting” a Compassion child – if you and your children select a child together, begin praying over him/her and make sacrifices together to minister to that little one, it just might be the best Christmas gift (after salvation, of course) you could give or receive! Click here to learn more about adopting a Compassion Child…
Day 6 Guard you heart from the worldliness of gifting and decorating that might steal away from Christ being your center. I’m not saying gifting and decorating aren’t a fun and sweet part of celebrating the Greatest Gift, just guard against letting the pressures and stresses of the season rob you of love, joy, peace and patience. In the middle of the hustle and bustle (and often selfishness and rudeness accompanied with long lines, busy shoppers, traffic, etc) the Holy Spirit’s love, joy, peace and patience in your life will testify of Christ to those around you. Click here to read more…
Day 5 Consider your Christmas traditions and how they might reflect Christ even more. Elves, Santas, Sugar Plum fairies and such aren’t necessarily bad; they also aren’t necessarily good even if they’re fun. Pray about how you can best honor the Lord in your celebrations. By fostering Christ honoring traditions, you are passing on a heritage that is eternal to your family. Your children and grandchildren are wired to learn from you/be influenced by you in a special way – pray for God to show you opportunities to share Him with your family. Read more here…
Day 4 Obey. A life of obedience to Christ is the best witness! Too often Christians have used the name “Christ follower” without letting the reality of that statement into the depths of their daily living. When we live so inconsistently the world around us views us as hypocrites. As the saying goes, “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words when necessary.” Our actions do indeed speak more loudly than our words! Read more here…
Day 3 Be ready. 1 Peter 3:15 tells us to have a ready answer when someone asks us why we hope in Christ. I can say from sad experience, there’s been a few times I simply wasn’t ready! Study up, pray up and if God leads, be fasted up for the opportunities God has prepared for you to share Him. Read more here…
Day 2 Care. People don’t care how much (or what) you know until they know how much you care. Ask the Lord to show you ways you can be His hands and feet to reflect His caring heart toward those who need Him this Christmas season (and always). Read more here…
Day 1 Pray. I know it sounds overly simplistic, but without our moment by moment abiding in Christ we can’t bear a single ounce of fruit! So ask God to lay specific people on your heart, write their names down and commit to pray for them everyday through this season. Read more here…
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