CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY –
The Bucket List Book
Okay, so you’ve
probably all heard the saying, “If you were on trial for being a Christian,
would there be enough evidence to convict you?”
As we go
through this Christmas season, I think we would all recognize that part of what
we love about this time of year, is all of the effort and extra lengths we go
to in order to recognize and give to others.
These are simple things we may do throughout the year, but which are
magnified during this Holiday season when we seem to be filled with a little
bit more of a giving and charitable spirit.
I well
remember the joy of getting presents as a young boy, and the happiness I
felt. I thought that nothing could be
better than receiving all those gifts on Christmas morning. But as I grew older and began raising
children of my own, I realized that I felt much more joy and satisfaction in
seeing the delight and excitement in my own children as the opened the gifts I
was giving to them. In truth, the joy of
giving is much greater than the joy of receiving.
Why do you
think that is? Why is it that the
satisfaction is so much more deep and meaningful in heartfelt giving, rather
than receiving?
I think part
of the answer lies in that fact, that when we give, we draw closer to the
Ultimate Giver of All Good Gifts, even the Lord Jesus Christ, whose miraculous
birth, exemplary life, boundless and timeless teachings, and infinite Atonement
are the source of all good things of light and truth in our lives.
So as we
emulate that same spirit of giving, (not because we are expecting anything in
return, but just because we want to show our love to others and how much they
mean to us), we come to know and recognize His great gifts to us in more deep
and meaningful ways ourselves.
That is part
of why I started writing this blog.
Initially, it began as a simple way to share some funny thoughts,
stories from my childhood, or ponderings about life. But as I found myself writing about my life,
I began to realize more clearly how the Lord’s hand and guiding and protective
influence was woven through everything I had done. I began to see parallels between what was
happening in my life and the grand and eternal truths of His gospel, not only
as evidence of His existence, but also in how deeply and personally He cares
about each and every one of us. And as I
began to recognize His hand more regularly in these blog postings, I was moved
to share more of His message and truths with others… to pass along the gift so to speak.
And I can
honestly say, that as I have done so, I have felt a deeper joy and happiness,
just like I did when I was focused on the giving of gifts, instead of just
receiving them. That is one of the
reasons I have never attached advertisements to my blog site or any of its
posts.
Now for the
bucket list part… and how does this all tie into Christmas Every Day? Well, I have been a hobby writer for years
now. Actually I have written at least 5
full novel-length manuscripts, all of which are fictional but have an
underlying spiritual or religious theme to them. Most of them are sitting in various stages of
rough draft or revision, with time and lack of attention relegating them to the
back-burners of my life for some time now.
But just
recently, within the last few weeks, I had the strong and sudden impression and
prompting that I needed to review and submit on of my stories for actual publication,
and that book is called “The Second
Christmas”
So, I
digitally dusted it off so to speak, made some review revisions, and then submitted
it for publication. As result, as of
Dec. 15th, just 4 days ago, it is now listed and available for
purchase on Amazon.com!
It is purposely
written as a short novel, to allow its message to be provided at a more
affordable cost, as well as to allow a broader scope of readers to experience
its story. Whether you are an avid or occasional reader with less time to
invest, this "short novel" format was intentional to allow more
people the opportunity to experience its message or to be able to share it with
others.
As I
submitted it and heard back that it was ready for publication and sale, I
honestly had no aspirations for making money or to receive any personal notice or
recognition. In fact, purposely didn’t
include an author biography or anything like that. My intent was simply to share the Gift of the
message that the story contains, and I got down on my knees and told the Lord
so and left it in His hands.
Since then,
I have felt prompted to create a Facebook page and do some minor promotion to
help spread that message through simple digital and social marketing
means. Again, not for any motivation
than to share the message of the story.
And that is why I am writing this blog about it as well. Not only to say that I can check it of my “Bucket
List”, but also to have another means to share the story with others, in hopes
that it might benefit for inspire them in some way, as any of my other blog
posts may occasionally do.
It is a
short story, with a bit of emotion wrapped into it, which follows the fictionally
created lives of two actual characters from the Bible, who lived at the time of
Jesus. As the back book cover states:
I hope you
will enjoy it yourself as well as want to share its message of Christ's love
with others. It is a message not only for Christmas, but applicable for every
day of the year.
If you are interested in
checking it out, please go to: The
Second Christmas by Eric Andreasen
If you are
moved by or like the story, then please share it with others and give it a
positive rating on the Amazon site - (pass the gift along and share it with others). For
me, it is all about nothing more than sharing the Gift that is Jesus Christ, and
all that He has to offer us in the way of Peace, Joy and Happiness in this
life, and unimaginable blessings in the life yet to come!
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