SENDING CARDS
Sending Christmas cards may soon be a thing of the past. I look at it as a way to say, “Hi. I’m still alive. I hope you are, too, and I wish you God’s best for the holiday season.” I once had a tradition where people received my Christmas card the day after Thanksgiving. I did it because I moved so much. I wanted them to have my new address! One year, I received a lady’s Christmas card in September. Inside, she wrote, “By God, you weren’t going to beat me this year!”

FUNNIEST CARD
The funniest card I ever received was in 2020. On the cover, it showed a Christmas tree made from stacked toilet paper rolls. (Leftover from the COVID pandemic. Thanks, Patty.)

MEANINGFUL CARD
There was one card that a friend of mine and I sent back and forth for twenty-nine years. It was the same card. We would find an open spot and sign our name with the year. I calculated that the card had traveled back and forth across America some 22,000 miles. The tradition ended when I lost the card in Chicago. I felt as if I had lost my friend. Two years later, I did.

FAVORITE CARD said:
If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent an educator.
If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist.
If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist.
But since our greatest need was forgiveness, God sent us a Savior!

That card said it all. It shared what our greatest need was and what God did about it. If you have not accepted God’s gift of salvation, then it should be the first gift you open this Christmas. In fact, you can open it early and do it now! God is still meeting needs today. He is capable of meeting yours if you let him. Ask, and then believe that He will answer in the best way possible. He knows all the details. The ones we see and the ones we don’t.

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
Phil. 4:19 (NIV)

You may find yourself struggling this holiday season. It’s hard to be concerned with world issues when your issues feel as big as the world. Remember this: God sees you, loves you, and knows what your needs are. Give him a chance to show himself strong in your life.

And back to Christmas cards, take the time to send someone a card. Perhaps they are someone who doesn’t expect to be remembered this holiday season. I assure you, it will meet at least one need in their life.

Copyright © 2023 Mark Brady