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December 18, 2010
Christmas evokes many positive emotions among many of us Christians. Our feelings of compassion, generosity, kindness, love, understanding, patience and much more become stronger and often yearn for immediate expression.
Soldiers fighting in wars are overcome with nostalgia and extreme sadness as their thoughts carry them back to their loved ones back home. An extreme longing to go home to be with their families makes them oblivious of the dangers lurking around them.
Because it’s this time of the year when families come together and celebrate the occasion, we tend to be more sensitive and in tune with our feelings and sentiments. Thus, a recently lost loved one is missed much more terribly now than at any other time of the year.
It is also the time we feel a stronger urge to reach out to people in need, eager to share God’s blessings. So, it is not surprising to find some individuals and organizations asking for donation, in cash or in kind. Those who don’t have extra money to spare find it worthwhile to volunteer in soup kitchens, shelters and the like.
For us, Filipino Americans, it is often our poor relatives and friends or church members who are the first beneficiaries of our charity. Ham and “queso de bola” for their “Noche Buena,” a sack of rice, toys and clothes for kids, etc. are gifts we often send their way. Indeed, countless “Balikbayan boxes” and millions of remittances from all over the world where millions of Overseas Filipinos work and live, find their merry way into the Philippines.
More than the material gifts, however, there’s a greater present we can give this Christmas. It is the gift of forgiveness, which is the essence of Jesus’ birth. God gave us His only begotten Son to die on the cross so that by His blood, our sins are washed away, completely removed and forgiven. It is His example that we must try to emulate.
Christmas is the perfect time to let go of our anger and feeling of contempt against anyone. In the same way that we have received God’s forgiveness, so we must also forgive others. Unless we have forgiven, there will always be a feeling of uneasiness inside us. True happiness and peace will only come from a heart that bears no grudge or bitterness against others.
Forgiveness will release all the negative spirit within us and make us free again. It is God’s greatest gift to us. It might as well be our greatest gift to those who need it.
Merry Christmas!