will i have christmas?
I will "remove from your midst the proud braggarts." —Zephaniah 3:11
"I will leave as a remnant in your midst a people humble and lowly." —Zephaniah 3:12
To deprive yourself of Christmas:
- be rebellious (Zep 3:1),
- accept "no correction" (Zep 3:2),
- be a proud braggart (see Zep 3:11),
- "exalt yourself" (Zep 3:11),
- have "a deceitful tongue" (Zep 3:13), and
- refuse to repent.
To meet Christ in a new way this Christmas:
- trust in the Lord (Zep 3:2),
- draw near to God (Zep 3:2),
- "change and purify" your lips (Zep 3:9),
- "call upon the name of the Lord" (Zep 3:9),
- "serve Him with one accord" (Zep 3:9),
- bring Him offerings (Zep 3:10),
- be "humble and lowly" (Zep 3:12),
- "take refuge in the name of the Lord" (Zep 3:12),
- "do no wrong" (Zep 3:13),
- pasture and care for God's people (see Zep 3:13), and
- repent and believe in Him (see Mt 21:32).
Prepare the way of the Lord (Mt 3:3; Is 40:3).
Prayer: Father, prepare me for the best Christmas ever.
Promise: "When John came preaching a way of holiness, you put no faith in him." —Mt 21:32
Praise: Raul, a Baptist deacon, received the gift of praising God in tongues while stuck in a traffic jam listening to a Catholic radio program. Later, his pastor and several members of his congregation also received this gift.
Nihil Obstat: Reverend Robert J. Buschmiller, June 11, 1998
Imprimatur: †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, July 20, 1998