The Reason for the Season
There’s a well-known catchphrase, Jesus is the reason for the Season. We hear it so often that it can feel a little trite and we can relegate it to just another thing in the checklist of Christmas: decorate the tree, send cards, buy presents, prepare food, buy Christmas crackers, make Christmas pudding, book a beach holiday.
We get so busy in the lead-up and in making sure things are ready to go that there can be little time to stop, reflect and consider why is Jesus the reason for the season? Or, in fact, to just stop and take time to think at all. So let’s pause. Stop. Think. Why do we say, “Jesus is the reason for the season”? Well, the Bible tells us that, because of God’s great love for us, He gave a life-altering gift to us. Hardly a throwaway catchphrase. That’s a profound reason in its own right.
“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, His one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in Him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.” (John 3:16/MSG)
Amazing to think that the Creator of all sees us, knows us, and reaches out offering an incredibly important gift of His love for us!
Let me throw another common variation at you. Jesus is the reason for the season of hope. It often feels like the world is somewhat lacking in this area. People are rushing, racing, longing for more or for better, seeking answers, seeking direction, needing something that gives purpose or something secure to hold on to.
But then why is Jesus the reason for hope – that optimism we all long for, that knowledge that, even in the midst of tough circumstances, there is a bigger picture? The Christmas story shows us that hope is actually a person, that whilst Jesus’ birth (His name actually means ‘rescue’) was a statement of good news for everyone, no matter who they were. From shepherds, to wise men, and to generations past and present, that first Christmas was literally hope birthed into being.
Why is Jesus the reason for hope this season? Because in a complex, messy world, Jesus was not just the physical reminder of our deep need for God, but also showed us the way back to God as representative of both the truth of His likeness and a belief that our restoration is absolutely possible.
For Carey, Jesus is the reason for the season because He is the hope we hold as our foundation and why we choose to celebrate this Christmas. His story, although ancient, is interwoven within the fabric of who we are and what we seek to be and do – a bigger picture of a much bigger story.
As you celebrate Christmas this year I hope you get time to pause, stop, and think. What might a hope-filled whole and lasting life mean for you this season?
– Miss Tracy Holmes, Director of Education
