What Does Jesus Provide Us Now?

[blog_subscription_form subscribe_text=“Enter your email to subscribe to notifications from this site”]Little boys and girls are sitting on Santa’s lap this weekend, writing letters in their best hand writing and mailing those letters to the North Pole. In my family, the North Pole is actually Boise, Idaho where my parents live. The letter is written to Santa but the envelope is addressed to Papa and Nana’s. Every Christmas Santa brings one awesome present to our kiddos and their excitement is at its highest level. Usually the anticipation begins the day after Halloween, when Christmas is set up at Target and their toy catalogue is set out by the dollar section. That amazing dollar section.Christmas morning I set an alarm so that I am the first one awake, to bake cinnamon rolls and start boiling the water for our french press. When the kids wake up they bring their blankets out to the living room, we eat our cinnamon rolls and read the Christmas story before opening presents. When we finally start passing gifts around, I love it when our kids yell “OOOOOHHHHH!” as they discover what Santa left for them. “How did you know I always wanted this?” Between sipping our coffee and pushing Christmas paper to the side, we continue our slow morning playing with legos. Every Christmas morning is the same for us, but I guess that is where the magic is. With us, and us together is what I always want for Christmas. I have been blessed that in this season of our life I get what I want.The closer we get to Christmas the more I look forward to providing the gifts my boys have circled weeks ago in their Target catalogue. I remember that feeling as a kid circling items in the Big Book. Do you remember the Big Book? Formerly known as the Sears Catalogue, it was a thousand page book that would list every item in the Sears department store. EVERY ITEM. Think of it as Amazon Prime before the internet. Literally everything you ever wanted was listed. From clothes to jewelry, to toys and over-the-counter medications. All you had to do was tear out the order form, write down each Item number, fill out your personal information and send it in the mail with the correct amount of money. I remember the big book so well. Sitting on a wood barstool at our counter I would start at the beginning of the book and go all the way to the end, I looked at every page. Then I would flipped back to get to the girl section to make sure I didn’t miss anything that was targeted to my age and gender. I diligently looked at every page with the anticipation that if I circled something it would be mine.Since the Sears catalogue cancellation in 1993 I can’t imagine the deficit in letters to Santa until Target released its toy catalogue. Last month both my boys grabbed a copy. My two year old ripped the corners off while my seven year old looked over each page stopping to tell me the price of the toys he really, really wanted for Christmas. And as the circle of life has finally come around, I am now the parent that gets to provide something for Christmas that my child has circled in hopes that his life will be cooler because of it. Not only do I want something for Christmas, I get to provide something someone else wants for Christmas.Every year, every day in fact, we have the opportunity to come to God in prayer andmake our requests known. We are able to turn the pages of our bibles and circle the words and the characteristics we are believing for in our lives. John 3:16 says that “God so loved the world, He sent his only son…”God sent Jesus to us. Jesus is the provision.Jesus is the provision for all that we need in this life, for everything we highlight or circle in our bibles. What do you need this year? What are you praying and believing for?WisdomRestored RelationshipsPowerStrengthLoveJoyPeacePatienceKindnessGoodnessFaithfulnessSelf ControlComfortSound MindGraceGood CounselAnswersFriendshipBoldnessMiraclesFinancial ProvisionCommunityFreedomMental & Emotional Wholeness MercyFaithHealingForgivenessClarity of ThoughtHolinessTruth... and we can’t forget… Salvation.We can know Jesus and trust that our needs have been provided for because, more than all the things we can circle on this list above, we need God. We were created to live in right relationship with Him and it is his Son, Jesus that makes the way, and that IS the way. Jesus is the provision we need to live a fulfilling life. Jesus is the provision to living an abundant life. Jesus is the provision.

Merry Christmas Mannahouse! We love you!

Image provided by Mannahouse Creative Team