Christmas Countdown and Quick Thought – Saturday, December 5, 2020

20 Days Until Christmas!

Song: “Deck the Halls” by Mannheim Steamroller
Christmas Album: “Someday at Christmas” by Jackie Evancho
Christmas DVD: “Four Christmases”
Netflix Movie: “Christmas With a View”
Amazon Prime Movie: “A Bride for Christmas”
Disney+ Movie: “Beauty and the Best: The Enchanted Christmas”
Hulu Movie: “Holly’s Holiday”
Hallmark Movie: “Engaging Father Christmas”
On TV:
• Syracuse at Notre Dame, 2:30 p.m., NBC
• “Jack Frost,” 2:45 p.m., AMC
• “A Golden Christmas 2,” 3 p.m., ION
• Syracuse at Notre Dame, 2:30 p.m., NBC
• “Almost Christmas,” 2:30 p.m., FX
• “Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” 3:55 p.m., Freeform
• “Little Drummer Boy, Book II,” 4 p.m., AMC
• “A Throwback Holiday,” 4 p.m., BET
• “Christmas Waltz,” 4 p.m., Hallmark
• “A Taste of Christmas,” 4 p.m., Lifetime
• “Jingle All the Way,” 4 p.m., TBS
• “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” 4:30 p.m., AMC
• “Snow Day,” 4:30 p.m., Sundance
• “Frosty’s Winter Wonderland,” 5 p.m., AMC
• “A Golden Christmas 3,” 5 p.m., ION
• “The Preacher’s Wife,” 5 p.m., OWN
• “Rudolph’s Shiny New Year,” 5:30 p.m., AMC
• “It Happened On 5th Avenue,” 5:45 p.m., TMC
• “Christmas Belles,” 6 p.m., BET
• “If I Only Had Christmas,” 6 p.m., Hallmark
• “The Christmas Aunt,” 6 p.m., Lifetime
• “A Christmas Story,” 6 p.m., TBS
• “Jack Frost,” 6:30 p.m., Sundance
• “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town,” 6:35 p.m., Freeform
• “The Year Without a Santa Claus,” 6:45 p.m., AMC
• “12 Pups of Christmas,” 7 p.m., ION
• “Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors,” 7 p.m., CMT
• “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” 7:40 p.m., Freeform
• “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” 8 p.m. and 10:15 p.m., AMC
• “A Christmas Surprise,” 8 p.m., BET
• “Christmas in Evergreen: Bells are Ringing,” 8 p.m., Hallmark
• “Let’s Meet Again on Christmas Eve,” 8 p.m., Lifetime
• “Secrets in the Snow,” 8 p.m., LMN
• “Frosty the Snowman,” 8:45 p.m., Freeform
• “A Royal Christmas Engagement,” 9 p.m., ION
• “Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors: Circle of Love,” 9 p.m., CMT
• “The Polar Express,” 9 p.m. and 11 p.m., Sundance
• “The Santa Clause,” 9:20 p.m., Freeform
• “Toy Story That Time Forgot,” 9:30 p.m., Disney
• “One Crazy Christmas,” 10 p.m., BET
• “Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy,” 10 p.m., Hallmark
• “Christmas on Wheels,” 10:05 p.m., Lifetime
• “A Beauty and the Beast Christmas,” 11 p.m., ION
• “Unlikely Angel,” 11 p.m., CMT
• “The Santa Clause 2,” 11:30 p.m., Freeform
Recipe: Green Bean Casserole

Quick Thought for Christmas

Read

Philippians 2:1-10

“And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth…”
Philippians 2:8-10

Reflect
Who is the richest most powerful person that comes to your mind? These days, it might be Bill Gates or Donald Trump. Let’s go with Bill. (He is one of the richest men in the world, and he’s a lot less recognizable than the Donald…)

There are times when I’d like $100. Put a capital B on the end of that and you have Bill Gates. Yes, he’s worth close to $100 billion. The man wants for nothing. He lives in a 66,000-foot mansion called Xanadu 2.0 that has an underwater music system and artwork that changes on the wall at the touch of a button. He’s on top of the world and will be for the rest of his life.

Now, imagine that Bill Gates decides to do away with all of that. One day he simply disappears, leaving a note that he is going away to live a simpler life. He uses some of his money to give himself a new face and invite a new persona. Several months later, this new man appears – Tom Smith. He has a job making just enough to make ends meet. He eats junk food. He drives an old used car.

Who would do that? I doubt Bill Gates would, and I wouldn’t either.

But that’s what Jesus did. He gave up the greatest riches ever known, even Heaven itself, to come and live among us. And it wasn’t just a social experiment. He did it so that at the end of a perfect life, He could give that life up so that we would have a way to spend eternity with Him. His sacrifices – both in Heaven and on Earth – are our ticket to Heaven.

When you look at the manger this Christmas, take a look both backward and forward. Look at where that baby’s journey started and ended. It started at the right hand of God in Heaven. And it ended nailed to a rough-hewn cross. Those are some sacrifices worth taking to heart, and definitely worth thanking God for.