GoodNews Florida

buy one, FR ne get o EE COMBO Validon itemofequalor lesservalue.Ex One timeuseonly.Notvalidwithanyotheroff Ft.Lauderdale: 17thStreet,PembrokePinesandP Expires: 12/1/17 CODE: 841 ,k MEAL cludesbeverageswithsaladsorbowls. aklandP ers.ValidatPDQFt.Lauderdale:O ar ompanoBeach locationsONLY. -481-319 ARK AKL ALE: O UDERD A L PDQ FT AND P :AT VISIT US CH ANO BEA PDQ POMP S PDQ PEMBROKE PINE TREET ALE: 17TH S UDERD A. L PDQ FT . space left after all the Christmas stuff, we just try to recover the original meaning? Not every- thing that has become stuff has to stay that way. Recovering meaning The best example of all is also the biggest one of the sea- son. There’s a reason we give gifts; we received a gift. There’s a reason to wrap them up; our Savior put on human nature and his divine nature was hard to see. There’s a reason to try hard to give just the right gift; Christ was exactly what we needed. And there’s a reason to give freely and generously, with- out worrying about a return; Christ was given to us com- pletely undeserved. What could be more fitting than giving gifts freely, generously and joyfully as a part of celebrating the greatest gift ever given? Presents don’t need to be “stuff” at Christmas. They don’t have to be a distraction from the real meaning of Christmas, things that take up the space of our time and money without real meaning, purpose or value. With a little work, a little remem- bering and a few words with each one, maybe we can make gifts part of getting Christ back into Christmas, instead of just getting stuff for Christmas. Presents are just one part of Christmas, of course. All of this celebration started off as celebration of him, his birth and his miraculous works of grace in the cross, resurrection and rule in heaven. That’s good news and worth bringing into every gift, every string of lights, the parties, the turkey dinners, fam- ily gatherings and maybe, somehow, even fruit cakes. When Jesus is one more thing on top of all that “stuff,” his birth can feel more like a burden of guilt than a gift that took bur- dens away. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Jesus doesn’t need to fit into the cracks and breaks. He can be all in all be- cause he probably already was. I’m going to try to redeem some Christmas stuff this year. Maybe you can, too. Dr. Tim Sansbury is vice president of administration and assistant professor of philosophy and theology at Knox Theological Seminary. He can be reached at [email protected] .