Stressmas, Impersonalmas, Checklistmas, Consumermas, Trafficjamas, Gotta-but-everyone-a-gift-even-if-they-don't-want-it-mas
Remember Christmas? That time when we celebrate the birth of a savior who came to turn empires with a revolutionary love that is still changing the world this very minute?
Americans spend an average of $450 Billion a year each Christmas. That's about $900 per family. Most of which gets returned anyway. Most of which is put on the credit card. Most of which isn't paid off even by the time the next Christmas rolls around. Told you. Gasp!
Freedom. Restoration. Joy. For everyone (including little old you). This is what was on Jesus' agenda. This was his gift to the world. This is what we all long for, and why we are called to worship Jesus during the Christmas season in big, bold, world-changing ways.
That's why HeartLand Church is presenting a Sacrificial Christmas this year. Simply put,
we want to celebrate Christmas the way it
was intended:
We want to put an end to feeling like Christmas won't work if we don't buy everything on the list. We are actively resisting a culture that guilts us into overspending. We want to love in ways that are loud, messy, uncool and with zero net return.
So how do we do that? The process is easier than returning that egg timer you got last year...
It starts with Jesus. It ends with Jesus. This is the holistic approach God had in mind for Christmas. It's a season where we are called to put down our burdens and lift a song up to our God. It's a season where love wins, peace reigns, and a king is celebrated with each breath. It's the party of the year. Entering the story of Christmas means entering this season with an overwhelming passion to worship Jesus to the fullest.
Before you think we're going all Scrooge on you, keep reading. How often have you spent money on Christmas presents for no other reason than obligation? How many times have you received a gift out of that same obligation? Thanks, but no thanks, right? We're asking people to consider spending less this Christmas. Sounds insignificant, yet many who have taken this small sacrifice have experienced something nothing less than a miracle: They have been more available to celebrate Christ during the Christmas season.
God's gift to us was a relationship built on love. So it's no wonder why we're drawn to the idea that Christmas should be a time to love our friends and family in the most memorable ways possible. Time is the real gift Christmas offers us, and no matter how hard we look, it can't be found at the mall. Time to make a gift that turns into the next family heirloom. Time to write mom a letter. Time to take the kids sledding. Time to bake really good cookies and sing really bad Christmas carols. Time to make love visible through relational giving. Sounds a lot better than getting a sweater two sizes too big, right?
When Jesus loved, He loved in ways never imagined before. Though rich, he became poor to love the poor, the forgotten, the overlooked and the sick. He played to the margins. By spending less at Christmas we have the opportunity to join Him in giving resources to those who need help the most. To open our storehouses and share with those who need it.
Water is a basic survival need for all of mankind. In Kenya, there is a crisis, because clean water is scarce. The H2O 4K project works with people in Kenya to make clean, running
water accessible...to turn what is now considered a privilege into a
readily available resource. H2O 4K was formed to help end the water crisis in certain communities, and to ignite others to join us in this fight! We must unite together in order to solve this injustice, and they cannot do it without your help.
According to the World Water Council, 1.1 billion people live without clean drinking water; 2.6 billion people lack adequate sanitation. 1.8 million People die every year from diarrheal diseases and 3,900 children die every day from water born disease.
Jesus deeply cared for people in need and this was evident in His earthly ministry. He illustrated this in Matthew 10:42 when He said, “And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water ...” This is an opportunity to partner with His passion to help those in need.
"If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping in a room with a mosquito." Every African knows this is true because mosquitoes carry malaria—a tropical disease that kills over 750,000 children each year. That’s one child every 30 seconds. In Africa, mosquitoes make a huge difference in the lives of poor families and children. And it all starts with a tiny bite.
Malaria starts with a fever. If not treated quickly, malaria can overwhelm the body or even infect the brain and cause a coma. At this point, malaria becomes fatal. There are 350-500 million cases of malaria worldwide each year. Malaria causes 20 percent of ALL childhood deaths in sub-Saharan Africa and 90 percent of malaria deaths occur in Africa—nearly 1 million people each year and Malaria kills 3,000 children each day.
Insecticide treated bed nets are one of the most effective strategies to stop the spread of Malaria. Each bed net costs $10 to buy, distribute and teach someone how to use it - about the cost of a CD or a movie ticket, and will protect a child for about 3 years. When a bed net is treated with insecticide it is effective in blocking mosquitoes from transmitting malaria. How effective? The nets can reduce the mortality rate from malaria by 20 percent.
HeartLand Church is asking each famliy to give sacrificially of their Christmas budget to H2O 4K and Biteback. If you own a business, we ask that you consider making this movement a part of your annual charitable donation. Let's take a stand together and show the world that Christ is here, still loving, still caring for those in need.
For more information or to tell us your Sacrificial Christmas story, email sc@heartlandchurch.cc
For more info about the specific projects go to:
www.biteback.net/
www.410bridge.org/h2o4k/
