Baby Jesus is on display.  Well, he is somewhere around here.  Maybe Jesus is under the Christmas tree.  Hopefully, he was not trampled under foot of one of the reindeer.  Has anyone seen Jesus?

In America’s capitalization and commercialization of his birth, it is easy to lose Jesus, to not only forget the reason but the person altogether.  We can lose him in the festivities, lose sight of him in the ribbons, bows and wrapping paper.  With so many people to plan for, we can forget to make room for Jesus.

The noise of commercial after commercial about discounts and “sales you won’t find anywhere else” can easily drown him out.  It might seem like a better deal, a better option. We sit in front of the television and decide not to talk to him at all.

In your life, where is Christ and how do you know that he is there?  Did you see him, greet him personally?  Did you make eye contact with him or rush past him to get out of the rain or the cold, to get ahead of your schedule or to get ahead in life?  Because Christ does slow us down.

Dying to self for the sake of Christ is a slow process.  The Apostle Paul says that it is a daily funeral, daily digging and dying, every day digging and dying (First Corinthians 15.31).  How many grave markers do you have?  Thinking about death might seem strange when we are celebrating the birth of Christ.  But, it shouldn’t because Christ came to die.  He came into the world to save sinners (First Timothy 1.15).

Where Christ is, there is a cross.  This is the cost of discipleship.  But, there is also the power of his resurrection.  This is the way to abundant life.

As we reflect on the God who came to us in Person, without substitute or hesitation, remember to look for Christ, to seek his presence in your life, to not only follow in his foot steps but to look for his footprints, to mark the trail of the Divine in your life.  This is my prayer for you and for me.