December 13 - We are the Reason for the Season

Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.

Isaiah 53:4-5

Thought for today: I've been listening to the song "Above all Power" and I'm struck by these lyrics: 

Crucified

Laid behind a stone

You lived to die

Rejected and alone

Like a rose

Trampled on the ground 

You took the fall

And thought of me

Above all.

Have you ever thought about how Jesus had you on His mind when He chose to come to earth as a man?  We so often consider that Jesus thought of us when He made the supreme sacrifice on Calvary. Yet, He thought of you more than His own desires when Father God asked Him to become one of us.  Being fully God, Jesus foreknew what He would suffer on this earth.  Yet, He chose to go anyway.  Imagine yourself in a battle situation where you know there is no way out alive yet you could save your comrades by accepting the assignment.   How many of us would do such a selfless act?

How then should we respond to such great love as this?   Worship.  As you go about your business this holiday season, take some time to reflect upon what Jesus did for you.  Draw close to Him, in reverence and thankfulness, for He so desires a relationship with you. You probably have heard the saying "He is the reason for the season."  While this is true, it is also true that you are the reason for the season.  Without having you and I in mind, putting us first, God would never have became man.  Let's praise Him for this wonderful love.