Christmas!

It's the season of giving, loving and caring! It's the season of bringing in those who do not know what Christmas is all about. If you fall into this category, this piece is for you.

But first, what Christmas is NOT about:

It's not about Santa Claus and reindeers or Christmas trees and socks over the fireplace or turkey dinner and ginger breadman or jingle bells and snowman, and the list goes on.

It's not about spending time with family, although it's a good time to do so because of the holidays.

It's not about going church to sing carols, if you don't know the meanings of the songs.

There's no magic about Christmas.

What then? Christmas is not about all these things that the media has been showing us? Yea, that's right. If the word itself says anything, Christmas is about Christ -- Jesus' birth to this earth and its significance.

Personally, I have never been fascinated much by the manner of Jesus' birth besides that the angel announced it to shepherd and they came to worship Him at the manger. But on what it really means to have Christ born for us, born to die -- I feel that has more stories to tell, more real stories and more essence than a fat old man name Santa.

It's the story of stories. It's a triumphant story: the bad guy supposedly won but it was the good guy ultimately. It's a story of ultimate sacrifice: an innocent Child born of a virgin with the purpose of dying for the world. It's a story of suspense: Jesus was crucified when He was at the height of His ministry and for a moment it seemed that all hope was lost -- but no, He came back to life. It's the story of grace: unworthy sinners given pardon and redemption with the coming of the Saviour of the world.

It's a story for you and me, a story that everyone is in, and everyone is the main character. It's a story of love: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. This was what He was born to do, that anyone who believes in Him will not be eternally separated from God, but that he will be living this life to the fullest, having an intimate relationship with God, and to be with Him forever in heaven.

And so, this was what our Christmas celebration is about. Praise God, though we have little time to prepare, it was great! We had our celebration at KL International Hotel this year. It all went well: Pre-event outside the hall, song presentations, Deborah and Bong Yang shared testimonies of their life, skit performance, sharing... We had a good time, although some parts were a bit messed up. We had a large crowd with different nationalities. Our friends were supportive and happy at the end. And a friend of mine said she is now certain of the love of Christ and wants to receive Him as Saviour. Hallelujah! Seeds are sown, weeds are thrown!