This Christmas, let's be thankful for how much we have and how little we need to truly celebrate Jesus' gift.

Joy in Christ can permeate the darkest of days and supersede the greatest of times. I pray that we would come to deeply know and experience this joy today and in the days to come.

And yet, in the midst of a year filled with much hate, division, tragedy and death – the hope, peace, joy and love of Christ are so apparent and real to me. The name Immanuel means "God with us." Psalm 23 says: "even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are WITH me." This is why God sent His son Jesus to earth – so that even in our darkest days, we would truly know and experience the hope, peace, joy and love of Immanuel, God with us.

The beautiful news about Christmas is that God loved us so much He wasn’t willing to leave us in our tragic and desperate state. He chose to rescue us with the gift of His Son, Jesus. The incarnation means that God the Son took on flesh so He could rescue us. At Christmas we celebrate a God who chose to give us mercy, forgiveness, and grace when He would have been perfectly just to pour out His wrath on us. Accepting both the bad and good news makes the birth of Jesus, our Savior, even more glorious.

Everything becomes sacred and everything becomes opportunity for thanksgiving when we slow down and look closer. A pile of dirty laundry - the reminder of another day passing and another day that God has not left us or forsaken us! Floors that never stay clean - the reminder of many friends and family who have gathered near! The list goes on.