Christmas Is Near

Christians celebrate December 25th as the birthday of Jesus. Although it is not known exactly which day Jesus was born, the December date has been traditionally chosen for centuries. The biblical story tells us that angels appeared to shepherds in the fields announcing the birth of Jesus. Also, Magi, wise men of the East, came to visit the baby Jesus by following a star. They came bearing gifts to the one they called the "King of the Jews" after the baby Jesus was born in Bethlehem. "Merry Christmas" is the saying for this time of the year.

Prayer Is One Of The Most Important Things To Do

As people, there are limitations as to what we can do for ourselves or for others. With God's help we can see things done which would not otherwise happen. The Bible encourages us to pray to our heavenly Father always. If we need help looking for: work, for finances, for medical care, for the salvation of others or whatever else then pray to God for those things. Jesus told us that our heavenly Father already knows what we need (not always what we want) so we can ask him for those needs. But God is not some magic Genie to grant our every wish. We also need to pray for other people and not just our own concerns. Believe in faith that God can answer your prayers and you will see many of them answered. The Bible calls prayer a spiritual weapon and so it is not just a common thing even though it can be be done often. If you have a spiritual weapon then that also means that there are enemies to fight and so we will hear some more on this later.

Religion Verses God

The difference between religion and Christianity is how they came to be. Religion is basically man's view about how to reach God while Christianity is God's revelation about Himself reaching out to man. In the beginning from the time of God's creation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, God revealed himself to man. From that time forward for several generations, people knew about Him from some of those people who talked about Him and from some personal encounters with Him as well. By the time of the world flood in Noah's time, many people had decided not to follow God and followed their own ideas or certain religions that had been established. The Bible tells us that at that time the world was filled with man's wickedness and violence. From a beginning of holiness and peace there was now chaos. Today it is the same, wherever God is not truly worshiped, there is violence and war and no real peace. More wars have been begun and fought in this last century then at any time in the past around the world. When Jesus returns, He said it would be like the days of Noah, which means violence and no real peace because most people will not be following God although they could still be religious.

The Economy Remains Slow And We Must Pray For Things To Improve

While it is not true that we cannot always be in prosperity it is true that God can bless us to meet our needs and give to help others. Christians must take care of their own first, their families, and other Christians, and then help others. Our churches need our financial help to keep ministering spiritually and physically to others. There are many other ministries worthy of help as well but we must seek wisely what to do with what we have. Sometimes it will take a lesson learned to deal with the lack of finances we may encounter or have a surplus of. In all things, we need to seek what should be the priorities in our lives and then we can best live a blessed life.