The truest desires of our hearts often can’t be bought and placed under the Christmas tree, but they can become a reality because of Jesus Christ.
I have a very distinct memory of asking my dad what he wanted for Christmas one year. He simply said, “I just want you to be happy.” To my eight-year-old brain, the response was puzzling. How was I supposed to wrap “happiness” and place it under the tree? Since then, I’ve realized that the gifts I truly want to receive or give simply can’t be bought. Enduring joy, peace, happiness, grace, forgiveness—these gifts are only possible through Jesus Christ.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland’s 2020 Christmas Devotional address (“The Dreams of Bethlehem”) has helped me understand just how significant the Savior’s birth was in making these gifts possible for all humankind. Elder Holland says, “And so it was this night of wondering awe, where truly ‘the hopes and fears of all the years’ were met in the dreams of Bethlehem.”
Image by Gareth Harper
Elder Holland also shared a poem called “The Miracle Dreams,” which describes the impact that Christ’s birth would have on those he would one day heal. One stanza of the poem references how Christ would eventually deliver the ten lepers not only from physical pain but from the emotional pain of being social outcasts:
That night when o’er the new-born Babe
The tender Mary rose to lean,
A loathsome leper smiled in sleep,
And dreamed [that] he was clean.
Our “hopes…of all the years” may take many forms, like a father’s wish for a daughter’s happiness or an outcast’s wish for inclusion and healing. But because of Jesus Christ, our enduring hopes and dreams will someday become a reality.
As we prepare gifts for our loved ones this Christmas, we might remember that the best Christmas gifts will come through Christ—his goodness, mercy, and grace. Maybe that can help us better focus on the true reason for this glorious, special season and carry that purpose with us the whole year through.
Read Elder Jeffrey R. Holland’s complete Christmas Devotional address, “The Dreams of Bethlehem,” for the complete poem and more inspiration for finding the best—and most meaningful—Christmas gifts this season.
Source: ChurchofJesusChrist.org
—Sarah Griffin Anderson, Latter-day Saint Insights
FEATURE IMAGE BY KIRA AUF DER HEIDE
Find more insights
Take a look at Nicole Terry’s article “Searching for the Spirit of Christmas” to learn how to make your Christmas more joyful.
Read “Love is the Perfect Christmas Gift” by Abigail Tree to learn how love can make all the difference this Christmas, especially for those who feel lonely or forgotten.