Read: John 3:14-21

“It’s so pretty!” said five-year-old Julia as she stood at the rope barricade and stared in wonder at the shiny balls, glittering stars, and sparkling snow on a Christmas tree at the mall. “Is the snow on the Christmas tree real?”

“No,” said Julia’s older sister, Dakota. “It comes in a spray can, and you just spray it on.”

“It looks so real,” said Julia, disappointed. “Who are all the presents under the tree for?”

“They’re not real presents,” said Dakota. “They’re empty boxes wrapped to look like presents—just part of the decorations. They’re supposed to get people in the mood to buy Christmas presents.”

Julia could hardly believe that the beautifully wrapped boxes were empty. She wanted to reach over the barricade, pick one up, and shake it.

Back home, Julia told her mother about the tree. “The snow looked so real, and the presents did too, but Dakota says they’re just empty boxes. Are they really?”

“I’m afraid so,” said Mom. “Even though they’re covered in shiny paper and colorful bows, there’s nothing inside.”

“That’s sad,” said Julia. “It’s not real at all—it’s a fake Christmas!”

“In a way, it is,” said Mom. “And we wouldn’t want to celebrate a fake Christmas, would we? Not at the mall, and not at our house.”

“At our house?” Julia giggled. “We don’t wrap empty boxes and put them under the tree!”

“No,” said Mom. “But if we’re not careful, the things we do to celebrate Christmas—all the parties and gifts and decorations—can distract us from the real reason we celebrate Christmas—Jesus coming to earth to save us from sin. He’s the true gift of Christmas, and without Him, Christmas is empty, just like one of those empty boxes wrapped in pretty paper.”

“So is it bad to do those things, like give each other presents or decorate the house?” Julia asked.

“Of course not!” said Mom. “But those things are like the pretty paper we use to wrap the gifts we give each other—it’s not the gift itself. And all the fun things we do at Christmas point us to the real reason we celebrate—God sending His Son to the world to save us and give us eternal life.”

–Pauline Youd

How about you? Do you celebrate the real reason for Christmas? Or do you just focus on buying gifts or getting presents? At Christmas, we celebrate God giving us the best present ever—Himself. He sent Jesus to save us from sin so we could have eternal life with Him. If you haven’t received that gift, do it today by trusting in Jesus. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Celebrate the true gift of Christmas

Read: Matthew 2:1-12

“Mrs. Chavez read us a short story today called ‘The Gift of the Magi,’” Jenna announced at dinner.

“By O. Henry! I love that story,” exclaimed her mother.

“It’s about a young couple who were really, really poor,” Jenna told her older brother, Damon. “They really wanted to buy each other a special Christmas present, but the only valuable thing the guy owned was a gold watch, and the girl had nothing except her beautiful, long hair. So she secretly decided to cut her hair off and sell it so she could buy a chain for the watch her husband was so proud of. Meanwhile, he secretly sold his watch so he could buy expensive combs for the hair she no longer had!”

Damon laughed. “What a disaster!”

“I know, it sounds awful. But it ended up the best Christmas ever, because it made them realize how much they really loved each other.”

“Sappy.”

“Damon.” His father shook his head. “Remember the year you spent all your money on a Christmas gift for Mom? You’d been saving forever for a video game, but you sacrificed it to buy a cookbook she wanted.”

“Yeah, I remember.” Damon grinned. “It was worth it seeing your expression, Mom, when you opened the box!”

“A gift that keeps on giving,” Mom said, pointing to their dessert. “Jenna, I wonder if your story is called “The Gift of the Magi” because the magi—the wise men who visited baby Jesus—brought Him costly gifts? They brought Him gold, frankincense, and myrrh, which were special because they pointed to how Jesus was King over everything but had come to sacrifice Himself so we could have the gift of eternal life. The couple in the story made sacrifices to show their love for each other, and Jesus showed us His love by making the greatest sacrifice of all.”

“Maybe we should all think of ways we can show others God’s love this Christmas,” said Dad.

Jenna was quiet for a moment. “Maybe instead of keeping all the clothes I get this year, I could share my new sweaters and stuff with girls I know who don’t have much. What do you think, Mom?”

Mom smiled. “I think any gift you give from your heart pleases Jesus and makes His birthday extra special!”

–Debbie Meroff

How about you? Have you ever sacrificed something valuable in order to give a person you love a particular gift? Or maybe you’ve had a friend or family member make a sacrifice to give you a gift. Jesus broke every record for sacrifices when He gave His life for us! How can you share His love with others this Christmas?

Today's Key Verse: Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. Matthew 25:40 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Give joyfully like Jesus

Read: Psalm 139:14-18

When Emmalyn got home from school, she went straight to her room, flopped face-first on her bed, and began to cry.

Soon there was a knock at her door. “Emmalyn, it’s Mom. Can I come in?” Emmalyn managed to let out a muffled yes, and Mom came in and sat down on the bed. “What’s wrong?” Mom asked.

Emmalyn sniffled. “Judson noticed that I’m the only one with red hair in our class. He made jokes about redheads all day and even got the other kids to call me carrottop!” She wiped the tears from her eyes.

“Can I dye my hair a different color, Mom? Please?”

Mom was silent as she stared at Emmalyn’s bedroom wall. Emmalyn had a very special bedroom wall. Last summer her uncle had come and helped her paint a mural of a tropical scene on it. “Well,” Mom finally said, “I guess we’ll have to go to the store and pick up some hair dye. While we’re at it, we should pick up a gallon of white paint to cover up your mural.”

“What?” Emmalyn looked shocked. “Why? Uncle Joe and I worked hard on that, and it turned out really well. It’s a one-of-a-kind masterpiece!”

“Well, you want to change your hair so you can be just like your classmates, and I know none of them have a bedroom wall like yours,” said Mom. “So we should get rid of that too.”

Emmalyn stared at her mom for a few moments before she finally understood. “Oh, I get it. You’re trying to tell me that I’m a one-of-a-kind masterpiece, just like the mural on my wall.”

“That’s exactly right,” said Mom. “God made you the way you are, and He loves you—so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for you! And He created you to show His love to others in your own unique way. So don’t try to change yourself just to make other people happy—you’re beautiful just the way you are because you belong to Jesus.”

Mom gave Emmalyn a tight hug, and Emmalyn smiled as she looked at the mural on her wall and thought of herself as God’s masterpiece.

–Melissa Yeagle

How about you? Has anyone ever made fun of you for the way you look? It hurts when that happens, but remember God made you the way you are and He loves you. He made you for a special purpose—to know Jesus and share Him with others in your own unique way. Your beauty doesn’t depend on other people’s opinions about how you look. You’re beautiful because you know Jesus!

Today's Key Verse: For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: You are God’s masterpiece