MAKE THE MOST OF CHRISTMAS

The Christmas season is a busy one, but it provides some good opportunities to point people to Jesus.

Here are seven tips that will help you to use the season to explain the reason:

1. Give Christmas cards. Buy interesting and thought-provoking Christmas cards to give to work colleagues. Write something affirming in the card and tell the person that you are thankful to God for them.

2. Give a gospel gift. Combine a box of chocolates with a Christian book*1 or one of the Gospels with the Christmas story in it (Matthew or Luke).

3. Ask others about their Christmas traditions. Use this conversation starter: “What do you normally do on Christmas day?” Then ask (as a natural follow-on), “Does Christmas have any religious significance for you?” Think about how you would explain the significance of Christmas to a non-Christian.

4. Email your colleagues a Christmas quiz*². This might stimulate some interest in the ‘real’ Christmas. There are many myths that people believe are part of the Christmas story that are actually not in the Bible. For example, the Bible does not say that there were three wise men. This implication is drawn from the fact that three gifts were given. You could provide links to the Christmas story in Matthew and Luke so people can read the source documents themselves after their curiosity is aroused. Here's one we use

5. Invite someone to a Christmas event*³. This might be a lunchtime talk, a carols event, or your church’s Christmas services.

6. Organize your own Christmas event at work*⁴. Book a meeting room, organize a speaker, talk title and food, and invite people! Maybe your church pastor might come in to speak for you. Outreach events at work have been done many times before and they work well.

7. Include others in your Christmas Day lunch. Some people at work might have families overseas or might come from families that are dysfunctional and/or don’t celebrate Christmas. Invite them to join you and your family on Christmas Day for lunch.

Action: Which of these ideas can you put into practice? Add them to your ‘To Do’ list.

Pray: Ask God to give you opportunities for good conversations this Christmas season with workmates, friends and relatives.

Notes
My thanks goes to Tho Luu, who provided some of the ideas for this rocket.

*1 For example, A Fresh Start by John Chapman (Matthias Media). In recent years there have also been some good Christmas-themed evangelistic books published, such as A Very Different Christmas by Rico Tice (The Good Book Company) and The Curious Sign by Scott Blackwell (Matthias Media).

*2 For example, ‘The Real Christmas Quiz’ from BibleQuizzes.org.uk (viewed 5 October 2016): www.biblequizzes.org.uk/quiz.php?therealchristmasquiz

*3 If you’re in Australia, look out for lunchtime events organized by City Bible Forum.

*4 Again, if you’re in Australia, the staff at City Bible Forum might be able to help you find a speaker.

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