A Moment to Remember the Reason for the Season - A Reading of the Christmas Story
Dec 19, 2023Episode 123
Treefrog Marketing
Amidst the hustle and bustle, it's time to pause and embrace the true essence of the Christmas season.
Today, we're stepping away from the marketing buzz to focus on something different.
Join me in reading the Christmas story from the book of Luke. Let's immerse ourselves in the captivating narrative that brings hope and joy through the birth of Jesus.
This story serves as a powerful reminder—a reminder that transcends our to-do lists and business obligations. It prompts us to recognize a purpose greater than business success. Our true calling lies in bringing glory to God, loving others sincerely, and sharing the gospel.
From all of us at Treefrog Marketing, we wish you a Merry Christmas filled with warmth, joy, and the company of loved ones. And as we bid farewell to this year, we look forward to continuing this journey together. Tune in next week for more valuable insights to propel your business forward.
Wishing you a season of peace, love, and meaningful connections!
Specifically, this episode highlights the following themes:
Finding meaning in the Christmas story
The true spirit of Christmas in your personal and business life
Balancing time constraints during the holiday season
Amidst the hustle and bustle, it's time to pause and embrace the true essence of the Christmas season.
Today, we're stepping away from the marketing buzz to focus on something different.
Join me in reading the Christmas story from the book of Luke. Let's immerse ourselves in the captivating narrative that brings hope and joy through the birth of Jesus.
This story serves as a powerful reminder—a reminder that transcends our to-do lists and business obligations. It prompts us to recognize a purpose greater than business success. Our true calling lies in bringing glory to God, loving others sincerely, and sharing the gospel.
From all of us at Treefrog Marketing, we wish you a Merry Christmas filled with warmth, joy, and the company of loved ones. And as we bid farewell to this year, we look forward to continuing this journey together. Tune in next week for more valuable insights to propel your business forward.
Wishing you a season of peace, love, and meaningful connections!
Specifically, this episode highlights the following themes:
Finding meaning in the Christmas story
The true spirit of Christmas in your personal and business life
Balancing time constraints during the holiday season
If you're familiar with Jesus, you know that the Christmas story is really just the beginning of his story, and that he went on to preach about the kingdom of God, heal countless people, and demonstrate the difference between faith and religion and ultimately die for our sins and raise from the dead so that our sins could be forgiven, so that we can someday spend eternity with our heavenly father. You're listening to the Priority Pursuit Podcast, a podcast dedicated to helping small business owners and leaders define, maintain and pursue both their personal and business priorities so they can build lives and businesses they love. I'm your host, Kelly Rice, and today we are taking a break from talking about marketing strategies and tactics and instead I want to invite you to take a few minutes to just breathe, refrain from thinking about your business, your personal to do lists, and remember why we celebrate this special time of year. Now, the holidays are a busy time for almost everyone, however, I would agree that you're probably busier than most. After all, as a small business owner or leader, your Q Four has likely been consumed with holiday sales trying to work ahead so that you can actually take time off. Handling end of your tax responsibilities, making sure your employees and clients feel valued and appreciated, running from activity to activity like your kids Christmas programs or your best friend's Christmas party, as well as trying to be mentally present when you're with your family and friends so that you can actually celebrate those holidays with the ones that you love most. So if that resonates with you, that's pretty much my life too. So basically between your business responsibilities and your personal responsibilities, I know that you have a lot on your plate. This is because I personally live in the same chaos and I know that if I just move from scheduled tasks to scheduled tasks and I don't stop and really think about why we're celebrating the Christmas season, it flies by. But for me in my business, Christmas is a time where we choose to celebrate the hope and love that the birth of Jesus brings. So if you are feeling that you want to be more present in this season, like I do, I'd love for you to take a few minutes to just breathe and refrain from thinking about your business and personal to. Do lists and join me in reading the Christmas story which is found in Luke chapter one, verses 26 through 56, and chapter two, verses one through 38. And the story begins and in the 6th month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin, Espoused, to a man whose name was Joseph of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came into her and said, hail thou, hail thou that are highly favored. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, fear not, Mary, for thou hast favor with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb and bring forth a son and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever in his kingdom. There shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, how shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore also the holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And behold thy cousin Elizabeth. She hath also conceived a son in her old age. And this is the 6th month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, behold the handmaiden of the Lord. Be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. And Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste into a city of Judah and entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elizabeth. And it came to pass that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost. And she spake out with a loud voice and said, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord shall come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe believed in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed. For there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. For he hath regarded the lowest state of his handmaiden. For behold, for henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things and holy is his name and his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He hath showed strength with his arm. He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things. The rich he hath sent empty away. He hath hoped his servant Israel in remembrance of his mercy, as he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed forever. And Mary abode with her about three months and returned her own house and it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyreneus was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, everyone into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was out of the house and lineage of David to be taxed with Mary, his exposed wife, being great with child. And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them. And the glory of the Lord shone round them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of joy which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of heavenly hosts praising God and saying, glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from the men into heaven, the shepherd said one to another, let us now go even unto Bethlehem and see this thing which has come to pass which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph and a babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child and all that they heard. It wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all of these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen. And it was told unto them. And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called Jesus, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification, according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of the Lord every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord. A pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And the same man was just and devout waiting for the consolation of Israel. And the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost that he should not see death before he hath seen the Lord's Christ. And he came by Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him after the custom of the law, then he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, lord, now let us thou, thy servant, depart in peace according to thy word. For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, for thou hast prepared before the face of all people a light to lighten the gentiles in the glory of thy people Israel. And Joseph and his mother marveled at the things which were spoken of him. And Simeon blessed them and said unto Mary, his mother, behold, this child is set for the fall, and rising again of many in Israel. And for a sign which shall be spoken against, yea assured shall pierce through thine own soul also, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed. And there was one Anna, a prophetess, a daughter of Fanuel sorry, of the tribe of Asher. She was of great age and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity. And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fasting and prayers, day and night. And she, coming in that instant, gave thanks likewise unto the Lord and spake of him to all that looked for redemption in Jerusalem. Now, if you're familiar with Jesus, you know that the Christmas story is really just the beginning of his story. And that he went on to preach about the kingdom of God, heal countless people, and demonstrate the difference between faith and religion, and ultimately die for our sins and raise from the dead so that our sins could be forgiven, so that we can someday spend eternity with our Heavenly Father. And for me, as I read this story and reflect on Jesus's life and ministry, what comes to mind is how insignificant my to do list is in comparison. I mean, as a small business owner myself, who is also a wife and a daughter and a friend and a mother of three, I know this time of year can be insane and intense. And don't get me wrong, my business and your business and our and our team's livelihoods are very important. And your business can even be a means of serving God and others. However, we are not put on this earth just to run successful businesses. We were put here to bring God glory, to be in a relationship with Him, to love others well, to share the gospel, and to someday spend eternity with God. And this is all because of Jesus. And while we should remember and celebrate and be thankful for God's plan and purpose, for each of us every day, christmas is about remembering the fact that God chose to send his only Son to Earth because he loves us and he wants both to have a relationship with Him and to spend eternity with Him. So in the midst of the holiday hustle and bustle, take time to reflect on why we celebrate Christmas. Remember why you're here, remember what your priorities are, be present, and make sure you're loving others how Jesus tells us to. Because that's what Christmas is about. Not shopping sprees, Black Friday deals, holiday campaigns, Elf on the shelf, pinterest worthy parties, profit margins, or anything else that we associate with Christmas or quarter four. And it's my prayer for you that you will enjoy this special time of year, because, again, God calls us to do more than just run successful small businesses. But next week, we will be back to discussing business growth systems and marketing tactics, as per usual. But for now, Merry Christmas from all of us at Treefrog Marketing, and thank you so much for tuning in to another episode of Priority Pursuit. If you enjoyed this episode, I hope you'll take a moment to share it with your small business friends and that you'll join us next week for even more marketing, boundary and priority driven tactics that you can use to build a life in small businesses that you love.