Does Christmas feel hard this year? You may be putting on a brave face for others, but inside you feel sorrowful, lonely, or maybe even depressed because of the circumstances in your life. However, you can find Christmas hope this year despite what you are going through.
God sees your pain. He sees how hard things are for you right now. You can remember who he is and how much he loves you. Christmas doesn’t have to feel hard.
Focusing on Jesus, the reason for the season, and the story of his birth can give you the hope filled Christmas you desire. Here you will find 3 key points to help you find hope in the Christmas story.
What Does the Bible Say About Christmas?
The spiritual significance of Christmas is that it’s the time that Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Jesus is God. He is the fulfillment of the scriptures. He died for you when you were a sinner, taking your sins away. He loves you like no other can. He is the Word, the bread of life.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6, ESV)
This is one of the Christmas verses about hope to remind you who Christ is and what Christ is all about. This is the answer to the question: “why is Christmas important to Christians?” Why Christmas is important is that it is a sacred time, one of great celebration at the birth of a baby… one who was God and who changed it all.
Your circumstances don’t need to take away your enjoyment of Christmas. Be in awe of Jesus, having reverence toward him because of what he did for you by coming to earth. He did it because he loves you. This is the message of hope for Christmas—hope that Jesus came down to earth to save you.
How to Celebrate Christmas as a Christian
Even though Christmas feels hard and you don’t want to be jolly this year, the importance of celebrating Christmas should outweigh this because Christ is worthy to always be praised for what he did for you.
When he came down to earth as a baby, it was to take your sins away. He carried it all for you, even though he didn’t have any of his own. His death was excruciating. (Luke 23:44-46)
Celebrating him will help you during this time. It will take your focus off your own circumstances and on to him. You don’t have to celebrate Christmas as the world says to: by going to every social event and baking cookies. You can simply:
- Read your Bible (specifically the Christmas stories in the gospels)
- Memorize and/or meditate on Christmas Bible verses
- Worship him through a Christmas hope song (about his birth)
- Make time to listen to him, journaling what he says
- Take a retreat with him
- Pray, sharing your deep and honest feelings with him
- Complete a Christmas devotional
This makes Christmas about celebrating Jesus and honoring him for what he did—making sure your heart is right—not about anything you did. This brings hope back when you focus on him and only him.
Jesus is the Christmas hope message. Focusing on him should be on the top of your “Reasons to celebrate Christmas” list, because he is the only reason: nothing comes before Christ.
Christmas Hope
When Christmas is hard and you feel hopeless because of your circumstances, hope can be found in the Bible. Having Christmas hope is focusing on Christ. He is the message of hope for Christmas. His birth gave hope to a fallen world.
Below you will find 3 key points from the Christmas story in Matthew to help you have hope for Christmas. He loves you.
1. God’s Plans Always Come About
God’s will always comes about. His plans are always good. He is in control. You can see all these powerful truths in the story of the birth of Christ, despite Mary’s circumstances being difficult.
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’” (Matthew 1:18-21, ESV)
God always took care of Mary and his plans were good for her. His will always comes about and he is always in control. Nothing can stop it.
These circumstances surrounding the birth of Jesus for Mary show you that God’s good plans will continue to take place for you, too—no matter what is happening right now—when you follow him.
This brings hope because his plans for you are always good. He will take care of you and work all things out. His power is great; what he has ordained for your life is good. Keep focusing on him, following him, and abiding in him. Take time to rejoice in this about the Christmas story: that he is in control and his will always wins out.
2. God Always Keeps His Promises
In this difficult time, remember that God always keeps his promises in the Bible. The Christmas story shows you this, as you see what he said he would do in the Old Testament fulfilled.
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel’ (which means, God with us).” (Matthew 1:22-23, ESV)
This is the hope of Christmas: that he came as a baby and everything changed for you.
Related Post: 10 Promises of God With Bible Verses, For When You’re Disappointed
Remember that God is a promise keeper: he will take away despair and sorrow to allow you to know that Jesus is with you in it all and will never leave you, no matter what.
He is your help, refuge and strength. He weeps with you. He provided your salvation with love. You don’t have to feel lonely or sorrowful—instead, find renewed hope because of this truth. He is such a good God.
3. God Will Keep You Safe
Whatever circumstances are making this Christmas hard, you can have hope for the holidays because God will keep you safe as his child. You don’t have to fear anything: just follow him.
He sent an angel to tell Joseph in a dream where to go, always protecting them:
“But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, ‘Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.’” (Matthew 2:19-20, ESV)
God was there at every point, taking care of it all for Jesus, Mary and Joseph—and this is true for your life, too. He is a good shepherd who leads his people well to keep them safe.
This brings Christmas hope. Hope that you are not alone and that he will help you know what to do next and keep going. In it all, he will protect you from harm. He sees the bigger picture; his power is great. Keep trusting him. His will for you is good. He will use your circumstances for good.
When Christmas feels hard, you can have hope at Christmas when you focus on the real meaning of Christmas: him. He did everything because he loves you. He is your Christmas hope. The hope of Christmas is solely found in him and what he did for you. You can remember who he is and how much he loves you through the Christmas story to find renewed hope in Christ this year.
Three key points to focus on from the Christmas story are that God’s plans always come about, that God is with you, and that God will always keep you safe. The Christmas message of hope is one to always be remembered, so focus on it. Jesus is our hope, always. The benefits of celebrating Christmas by focusing on Christ alone are the hope, joy and peace he brings to your life in your hard circumstances.
