I shared my Christmas story of Jesus’ love for each of us over at Crystal Stine’s this week and would like to share it with you as well. Please check out Crystal’s page for many more Christmas stories from talented authors this month.

Do you like to celebrate? How about decorating?

Oh my goodness how I love to celebrate and decorate! I’m quite drawn to shiny objects. My kids always joke if I was a fish I’d be the first one caught since I’d be so drawn to the shiny lure.

So you can see why Christmas is right up my alley.

My family has always gone all out for Christmas. I know what you’re thinking. We must have had tons of gifts, thousands of decorations and went to loads of parties. But, not really.

We always had some gifts, decorated a little and got together with friends and family but we had SO much more. 

Some of my best memories are of baking Jesus a birthday cake and all the kids blowing out the candles Christmas day. Or sitting around the kitchen table writing our letters to Santa. Then the joy of putting them in the fireplace so the ashes could travel to the North Pole. I still hang all the handmade ornaments we spent countless hours making to this day.

[Tweet “My favorite memory is how my dad would gather all of us around and read the Christmas story.”]

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. Luke 2:16-20 (NIV)

There was a state of anticipation and celebration in our home. We knew early on what Christmas was truly about. Not only the birth of our Savior but how awe inspiring it was and still is that He came for each of us. In other words, He would have suffered and died for one. Talk about feeling special!

[Tweet “No matter what kind of rejections we’ve dealt with there is power in fully grasping Jesus’ love.”]

I’ve also had many Christmas season’s which were a struggle. The kind where you feel completely isolated and alone. Sometimes even in a crowd of loved ones.

Living in a fallen world leads to a lot of hurting people and unfortunately they often hurt other people.

Whatever your Christmas story has been know that it’s Jesus’ story that matters, and His story includes loving you!

I’d love to share with you the first song my dad ever wrote. He was young and married with my 2 oldest sister’s still toddlers. He was working full time as a ranch hand taking care of cattle. Being the youngest he was chosen to feed and take care of the cows on Christmas Eve. It was in that setting where he penned this song on the back of a feed sack in the bright moonlight.