How to Have a Merry Christmas
by Diana Scothorn
This is the season to be merry! Unfortunately, this is the time of year the devil will try to steal our joy and peace. Many people experience mixed emotions during the Christmas season.
Although Christmas is a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus, loss, and loneliness, as well as financial stress, intensify the pressure.
Life, in general, presents many demands, but during the Christmas Season, there are increased demands. The greater the demand, the greater the urgency to get the job done. I have found the most significant way to get results in any season is to get myself off my mind!
When I find myself in a situation where “I” need immediate attention or help to withstand the weight of “my” pressure, ultimately, my eyes are on “me” and “my needs and feelings.
God has shown me repeatedly if I will…
…focus on others’ needs, He will place Himself in the center of my needs, which is a great exchange!
It’s so easy to get caught in the “me trap.” When we carry the burden on our shoulders, Jesus has no way to carry it for us. Matthew 11:29-30 tells us, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
God wants us to be centered around Jesus and others.
Most of the time, when I’m having difficulty accomplishing what I want, I find I’m the biggest obstacle in my way. When our problems become more prominent than God, we have a real problem.
The devil is strategic about placing a strain on our life. Strain means to make an excessive demand or to impair, injure, or weaken by over-exertion. Satan will put unnecessary demands causing over-exertion to accomplish something that Jesus has already finished.
When the devil puts demands on my schedule, I have learned to put a demand on God’s Word. The underlying factor is when I have “me” on my mind, I do not have Jesus on my mind!
When I focus on “me,” I see much work I need to finish. When I get myself out of the way and my eyes back on Jesus, I see it’s finished work, and with that in mind, we can rest this season because Jesus has already carried our load.
Although the devil has no right to put demands on our life, it is our right as born-again Christians to put a demand on God’s word. When Jesus is the center of our world, the weight of the demands of this world will not stand a chance under the Authority of the Word of Almighty God!
That is something to be merry about! So have yourself a very Merry Christmas!
~Diana
Diana Scothorn published author of “Daily Dose with Diana“, has a heart for helping women succeed, with a focus on a strong, spiritual, mental, and physical core. Diana’s background in the health and fitness world began with one of the most iconic names in fitness, Richard Simons. Overseeing ladies’ health clubs for 10-plus years allowed Diana to step into a passion for marketplace ministry even before ministering the gospel in business was widely accepted.
She’s been married to her prince charming, Stewart, going on 12 years, and they enjoy spending time with their 4 kids and 8 grandchildren. Both are ordained ministers of the Gospel, serve on the board of several well-known ministries, and are also co-owners of, The Benefit Link, Inc., a marketplace ministry business, which has been number one in the field for over 25 years and is licensed in all 50 States, serving senior citizens in need of compassion, prayer, and guidance when facing the challenges of the Medicare maze.
Diana’s been featured in Society Magazine’s Successful Business Women of the Year for 2018, 2019, and 2020. As an international speaker, Diana has traveled abroad for over 10 years, along with her husband, to help support missions throughout Europe and South America, focusing on funding the Kingdom and advancing the gospel.
Connect with Diana on Instagram and Facebook, where she has “Diana’s Daily Devotionals” encouraging and inspiring women to live daily in victory.
