The greatest gift on offer

Christmas is upon us - my favourite time of year! I absolutely love this period leading up to Christmas Day. Christmas trees (yes, our tree has been up since 1 December🎄😊), decorations and lights everywhere, seasonal food, a plethora of gifts for sale, Christmas adverts, the excitement of kids when they talk about Santa, Christmas carols and much more. Maybe you, like me, get all excited about Christmas. You may have already acquired all your gifts and planned exactly what you'll be cooking for Christmas dinner. Or maybe, you don't get what the fuss is all about and quite frankly, find it all a bit annoying. Whatever the case may be, you can't ignore the event. Billions of people around the world celebrate Christmas in one way or another - exchanging gifts, spending time with family, taking a much-needed break from work etc. Many celebrate it for non-religious reasons and don't want to think about faith when it comes to Christmas, but whether you accept it or not, Christmas is about what you believe and Christmas is personal to you. Do you realise that every Christmas, there is a huge gift with your name written all over it?

You may or may not know that in the Christian church calendar, the four weeks leading up to Christmas is known as Advent. It starts on the Sunday closest to November 30th and ends on Christmas Eve. The word 'Advent' comes from the Latin, Adventus, which means 'arrival'. For us Christians, Advent is a time of joyful anticipation as we look forward to celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Oh yeah, that Jesus guy again! His name keeps popping up year after year. That's because He is the most significant person in all of human history! That first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader certainly made some huge claims. The Bible says that He created everything, including you and me [Colossians 1:16]. It also tells us that Jesus is God Himself and that He made the sacrifice of coming to earth as a human, in order to give us the wonderful gift of an eternity with Him, our Creator.

You most probably enjoy receiving gifts, like many of us do at Christmas. You may have been dropping your family subtle (or not-so-subtle) hints of that latest smartphone to get you for Christmas. Perhaps you buy yourself a Christmas present, like I do sometimes, or seek out deals in the January sale. The latest iPhone with unlimited mobile data for as much Spotify, Apple music or Netflix streaming as you like? Did you know, though, that you have an incredibly more valuable Christmas gift waiting for you? Yes, you can have limitless access to the ultimate authority in the universe! Non-stop, round-the-clock access to the Creator of the universe, the 'Gee of gees', the One who calls the shots in every nook and cranny of our world. In fact, He beckons to you daily and wants to have a personal relationship with you. Jesus Christ wants you to invite Him into your heart as your Lord and Saviour [Revelation 3:20].

The truth of the matter is that God speaks to us all the time, through things we see and experience every day: the beautiful flowers that bloom in the spring and summer, the radiant sunshine and its warmth on a gloriously sunny day, a warming smile briefly flashed in your direction on a cold winter's morning on your commute to work on that packed train. However, He speaks to us mostly through His written word, the Bible. No wonder it's the bestselling book of all time! If you have never or it's been a while since you read (or heard) the Bible or prayed, this Christmastime is the perfect time to get started. Year after year, millions of copies of the Holy Bible are sold and distributed all around the world. In this digital age we live in, we also have the privilege of being able to take the Bible around with us and accessing it at the touch of a finger. Download the free Bible app today on your smartphone or other device to experience the life-transforming power of God's Word. Begin the journey to find out why this book, which was penned by over 40 different authors under the guidance of Holy Spirit and took more than 15 centuries to write, is still so popular and relevant to your life today.

Christmas is a special time like no other. It brings with it this remarkable gift that is on offer to you today - an offer of a lifetime with your Creator rather than separation from Him for all eternity. Would you turn it away without considering it?