Ihs Together Eca International

From the book The Sole Balm by Elmon Krupnik The Reason for the Season As we are now in the midst of the Christmas season, my schedule is full of Christmas parties and events.  I always enjoy the Christmas decorations, which we usually put out right after Thanksgiving so that we can enjoy them a long time.  There is also all of the Christmas shopping to find everyone the “perfect” gift.  My wife even had enough courage to go out the day after Thanksgiving this year.  However, in all of the excitement and activities, it is easy to lose sight of the real meaning of Christmas.  We celebrate Christmas because it is the celebration of Christ’s birth, the best gift of all.  God sent His Son as a gift to us, that through His Son’s death and resurrection, we could receive the gift of God’s grace and salvation. Through the price paid by Christ, we are able to experience God’s forgiveness. “God demonstrated His love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  When we have experienced the forgiven