Christmas Redeemed

In the aftermath of Christmas, I want to reassure my readers that my Christmas was far better than I imagined it could be. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and at Christmas we celebrate his birth, the beginning of God's plan of redemption. By keeping my eyes on Him, my saviour, this Christmas has also been redeemed.

I want to share my top ten Christmas moments for 2014. As I don't generally like long blog posts, I am going to split them in two. Here are the first five, in chronological order.

1. My aunty and uncle hosted a Christmas lunch/dinner/breakfast for my mum's side of the family the Sunday before Christmas. She purchased a number of small items from a second hand shop, wrapped them and distributed them to us as we sat around the table. We were instructed to chose a gift from the basket, unwrap it and tell a story about it. We could then chose to keep it or give it to someone else, and explain why we were giving it to that particular person.

2. Images on television of babies and toddlers sleeping peacefully in the arms of their parents at the annual Carols in the Domain concert in Sydney.

3. My girlfriend and I drove around on Christmas Eve looking at

Christmas lights. The trouble that some people go to to produce such spectacular displays, and the way they welcome strangers to join together on their lawns and enjoy, still makes me smile.

4. Singing "You are the Light of the World" at church on Christmas morning. A pumping song with lots of energy, hand clapping, gestures and a simple, powerful message of hope.

5. I began a new Christmas tradition with my family many years

ago which involves a trip to the beach on Christmas Day. December is notorious in Australia for un summery weather, and Christmas Day itself is often rainy and cool. This year, we had warmth and sunshine and we swam in the ocean under the watchful eye of individual lifeguards. Yes, there were enough lifeguards on duty to rescue each and every swimmer should we have encountered any trouble in the surf.

While you wait for the next five, why not share some of your Christmas highlights.