“Guard your hearts, above all else, for everything you do flows from it.”

Proverbs 4:23

When I went on my first Mission Trip, it was to Haiti in December of 2015. It was happenstance that it was in December. But the four years following that, I ventured to Haiti in December on purpose. Because when I left Texas, it was all about the Christmas frenzy. But when I got to Haiti, it was all about Jezi (Jesus)! I spent a week each year with the poorest people in the world whose hope didn’t depend on the gifts under the tree and whose joy didn’t come from decorations or how many parties they could work in between their already busy schedules. No – their hope and joy came from the very Person that should be celebrated 365 days of the year! The change of atmosphere, just by leaving America, made a huge impression on my heart and it forever changed Christmas for me.

Now don’t get me wrong, yes, I still celebrate with family and friends. I still decorate and buy small deliberate gifts. And I’m not saying that gifts, decorations and parties are bad things. But what I realized is how easy it is to go through the motions of Christmas and leave Christ in the cradle when it’s over.

Jesus warns us in Matthew 15:7-8 against the hypocrisy of “honoring him with our lips but not our hearts, and worshipping him with man-made ideas”. And Solomon challenges us in Proverbs 4:23 to “Guard our hearts, above all else, for everything you do flows from it”.

So now that Christmas 2024 is in the books, how will we move into the next season? Will the excitement of God’s greatest Gift soon wane? Will our hearts grow with Him throughout the year? Will our attitudes, our actions, and our words celebrate Christmas every day?

Everything you do flows from the condition of your heart. Every word. Every deed. Every thought. Everything! So, let’s practice guarding our hearts this year.

• Let’s celebrate and share His good and perfect gifts every day.
• Let’s practice serving the least of these (the poor, the broken, the vulnerable, the marginalized) all year long.
• Let’s constantly worship our King with wonder, joy, excitement and eagerness.
• Let’s recognize the miracles of Jesus, and praise God for His power and glory.
• Let’s check our hearts for places that need to be restored or transformed.
• Let’s seek a deeper personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
• Let’s ponder the things that Jesus’s very own mother pondered.

Let’s guard our hearts against saying goodbye to Christmas by practicing more of  Christ every day. And let’s not leave Christ in the cradle this year, but instead, seek a tender and responsive heart for a right Christmas Spirit all year long.

#SaturdaySoulSearch