I was up and out of the house reasonably early one morning, walking to a nearby plaza for a few items. As I retraced my steps, I met my wife — and my five-year-old granddaughter, whom I had not seen for two days — walking up the street, heading out on their own errands. At about thirty metres' distance, my granddaughter broke away from her grandmother, and ran with open arms and genuine joy on her face toward me. Her enthusiastic love prompted me to run toward her with open arms, and I caught her up in a big mutual hug.

As we parted, it occurred to me that likely a very similar event will unfold when a Christian approaches the gates of heaven. There will be an overwhelming rush of enthusiastic love and joy that will envelope and catch us up. It also occurred to me that we don't have to wait until we leave this life for that enthusiastic love to embrace us. It happens every time we feel God's presence, whether in prayer, study, or doing the things Christ would have us do: genuine, unconditional, enthusiastic love.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we know that nothing we can do will earn Your love, and that it is a gift given without condition. We thank You for that love, and pray that today we will be able to share that love with the enthusiasm of a child. Amen.

During the first week of Advent last year, friends passed along to me a couple of e-mail messages that made me think for a bit. The first one was titled 50 Good Reasons Why Jesus is Better than Santa Claus. The other one was a very sentimental poem about a parent finding a letter to Santa on the floor of the child's room when they came in to check on them at night. This letter was a list of requests by the child for Santa to make things better in the world by ending hunger and poverty and war and so on.

I thought that was quite touching, until I realized that this was really a prayer to Santa Claus. Then I got upset. Why do people portray Santa as god-like, able to answer those kinds of prayers? Do they think that Santa can answer any prayer? After all, Santa is only a fictitious, jolly, old, fat man who brings "good" children toys once a year and hides out the rest of the time at the North Pole. I know that Santa is worshipped by the retailers, and I know that a large number of people are moved to help their less fortunate neighbours in a way that disguises Christ's love in a non-committal, warm, and fuzzy feeling for the season.

Last Advent, Bruce Dinsmore wrote a devotional in which his neighbour described his Halloween decorations as "harmless fun for kids" and "neighbourhood fun". I imagine those are the same reasons too many of us push Jesus off to the side in favour of the fat guy in the red suit. He's more "fun". Well that "fun" began with a genuine saint trying to care for street children. Saint Nicholas' legend was combined with a poem that caught a nation's fancy and has been exploited ever since by non-Christians, and embraced by Christians "for fun". It has insidiously wormed its way into our culture to the extent that now it's cute and acceptable to write poetry exalting Santa as a powerful supernatural being. It is interesting that his suit is red.

"What can we do?" you ask. Let's down play Santa in our Christmas celebration and elevate Christ. Eliminate Santa and his reindeer from our yards and have nativity scenes or a simple cross. We need to put Christ back in CHRISTmas. Jesus is still the reason for the season.

Prayer: O Lord our God and Saviour, thank You for the gift of Your son, whose birth we celebrate, and whose second coming we anticipate at this time of year. Help us to give each other the gift of love that You so freely gave to us. Help us not to confuse that gift with the presents under our Christmas tree. Amen.

A short time ago I went outside for my almost daily walk for exercise purposes, and found that the temperature had dropped considerably and about two centimetres of snow had fallen overnight. The drop in the temperature froze what had been left of earlier rain, and the snow successfully covered these frozen slippery patches. I discovered this in the most menial manner. I slipped. Oh! Thereafter I began to look for places where others out walking earlier had left their telltale slide marks in the snow. I thought I was pretty clever, until I slid where no-one previously had. Oops! I continued on my way with less confidence and more care. Still, I found hidden patches of ice and at one point was unable to stop my slide until I was on one knee. Whoa! I sort of laughed at myself, slightly embarrassed at the spectacle I must have made, had anyone been watching. On this occasion I was fortunate that I did not fall and hurt myself (ow!) or require assistance to get up.

Later, I started to think about how that daily walk was typical of my walk through life with Christ. Like my commitment to an (almost) daily exercise programme, I made a commitment to our Saviour. Like my series of adventures with the ice that day, my Christian life has been full of slips (oh!), slides (oops!) near falls (whoa!), and tumbles (ow!). Some of them would have gone unnoticed by most observers. Others were temporary glitches that would be embarrassing if observed by others, and, of course, there were times that, without someone else's help, I would have been left lying by the side of the road. Some of those slips I made in life came early and caught me unawares. As I matured as a Christian and as a person, I saw where others had slipped up and I was able to avoid those areas. I thought I was being careful with my life, but unfortunately I didn't know where all the traps are that Satan has set for me. I know that God has seen all of my "slips" large and small. I know that the times I fell hard, it was His help that put me back on my feet and headed me on the proper trail. I know, too, that in the future I will continue to slip and slide, tumble and fall, but I know that each time Christ's love will be there to catch and comfort me. All I need do is reach out to Him.

Prayer: O Lord, our God and Saviour, help us on our walk through life with You. Keep us from slipping and falling into the ways of the world. Guide us through the areas where we have weaknesses and are prone to slip away from You. Lift us up, and strengthen us, so we may stride confidently on the paths You have chosen for us. Amen.