PRAYER PROMPT ••• Last night, I got an email from AT&T.
No surprise there.
They bombard me with emails.
Usually, I delete them and go on my way.
But this one caught my attention because of the title: “Celebrate the season with HBO for life.”
I’m not looking for a good deal on HBO, but I read it because I thought it was a terrible marketing slogan.
I have an advertising background and have written my fair share of marketing taglines.
I understood the use of the “seasons,” because it has the double-entendre of referencing the Christmas season and “seasons” of episodes you can watch if you buy their HBO package.
But overall, I thought the text served nothing more than to validate how polluted and commercialized Christmas has become.
It sounded cheap and shallow.
Maybe it’s because I watch very little TV.
I don’t know.
But it seemed a good opportunity to talk about gifts.
I’m sure most of us are going to exchange gifts with family and friends.
It’s a wonderful thing to do.
But as Christians, we have a prime opportunity during Christmas to share the gift of Jesus.
I’m not talking about the whole “Merry Christmas” vs. “Happy Holidays” debate.
I’m talking about de-emphasizing what’s wrapped under the tree and emphasizing the reason we even celebrate: Jesus.
Thanks to the wonders of social media, we can share, “Celebrate Christmas with the gift of eternal life through Jesus,” with everyone!
Or verses like my favorites from Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Or Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Scripture is all about the gift God offers: eternal life through Jesus.
There are plenty of gifts out there we can give this Christmas, including endless hours of HBO.
But none of them truly last for life.
To share the gift of eternity with Jesus?
That is the gift that will have a lasting impact.
Today, as you pray, thank Jesus for His ultimate gift, and ask the Holy Spirit to encourage you to share it with others.
