Christmas TV Schedule, Countdown and Quick Thought – Saturday, December 21, 2024

4 Days Until Christmas!

Song: “Away in a Manger,” by Nat King Cole
Christmas Album: “White Christmas,” by Bing Crosby
Christmas DVD: “A Charlie Brown Christmas”
Netflix Movie: “Jingle Jangle”
Amazon Prime Movie: “The Bishop’s Wife”
Disney+ Movie: “The Muppet Christmas Carol”
Hulu Movie: “Four Christmases”
Max Movie: “A Christmas Story Christmas”
Hallmark Movie: “A Dog Named Christmas”

On TV:
New programming in bold
• “Home Alone,” 11:30 a.m., Freeform
• FCS Championship Semifinal: South Dakota State at North Dakota State, noon, ABC
• College Football Playoff: SMU at Penn State, noon, TBS, TNT and True TV
• “Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas,” noon, Disney Jr.
• “Christmas By Candlelight,” noon, GAC
• “‘Tis the Season to Be Merry,” noon, Hallmark
• “Christmas at Grand Valley,” noon, HMM
• “Snow Day,” 12:30 p.m., AMC
• “Christmas Ever After,” 12:30 p.m., Lifetime
• NFL Football: Houston at Kansas City, 1 p.m., NBC
• “‘The Santa Clause,” 1 p.m., FX
• “Mickey’s Twice Upon a Christmas,” 1:05 p.m., Disney Jr.
• NCAA Division II Championship: Valdosta State vs. Ferris State, 2 p.m., ESPN2
• “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” 2 p.m., Freeform
• “A Christmas Less Traveled,” 2 p.m., GAC
• “Crown for Christmas,” 2 p.m., Hallmark
• “Christmas Under the Stars,” 2 p.m., HMM
• “Writing Around the Christmas Tree,” 2 p.m., Lifetime
• “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure,” 2:10 p.m., Disney Jr.
• “Mickey and Minnie Wish Upon a Christmas,” 2:35 p.m., Disney Jr.
• “‘The Santa Clause 2,” 3 p.m., FX
• FCS Championship Semifinal: South Dakota at Montana State, 3:30 p.m., ABC
• “A Brush With Christmas,” 4 p.m., GAC
• “The Santa Class,” 4 p.m., Hallmark
• “All I Need for Christmas,” 4 p.m., HMM
• “Christmas on the Alpaca Farm,” 4 p.m., Lifetime
• College Football Playoff: Clemson at Texas, 4 p.m., TBS, TNT and True TV
• “Frosty’s Winter Wonderland,” 4:15 p.m., BBCA
• NFL Football: Pittsburgh at Baltimore, 4:30 p.m., FOX
• “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town,” 4:35 p.m., Freeform
• “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” 4:45 p.m., AMC
• “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas,” 4:45 p.m., BBCA
• “‘The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause,” 5 p.m., FX
• “The Year Without a Santa Claus,” 5:15 p.m., BBCA
• “Frosty the Snowman,” 5:40 p.m., Freeform
• “Get Him Back for Christmas,” 6 p.m., GAC
• “Deck the Walls,” 6 p.m., Hallmark
• “Journey Back to Christmas,” 6 p.m., HMM
• “The Holiday Junkie,” 6 p.m., Lifetime
• “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” 6:15 p.m., Freeform
• “The Polar Express,” 6:30 p.m., BBCA
• “Elf,” 7 p.m., AMC
• “Home Alone,” 7 p.m., FX
• “‘The Santa Clause,” 7:20 p.m., Freeform
• “The Waltons: Homecoming,” 8 p.m., CW
• “Christmas in Scotland,” 8 p.m., GAC
• “Happy Howlidays,” 8 p.m., Hallmark
• “A Godwink Christmas: Second Chance, First Love,” 8 p.m., HMM
• “A Carpenter Christmas Romance,” 8 p.m., Lifetime
• “A Prince and Pauper Christmas,” 8 p.m., Ovation
• “It Happened on 5th Avenue,” 8 p.m., TCM
• College Football Playoff: Tennessee at Ohio State, 8:10 p.m., ABC and ESPN
• “The Year Without a Santa Claus,” 8:30 p.m., BBCA
• “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” 9 p.m., AMC
• “‘The Santa Clause 2,” 9:25 p.m., Freeform
• “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” 9:30 p.m., FX
• “The Polar Express,” 9:45 p.m., BBCA
• “A Little Women’s Christmas,” 10 p.m., GAC
• “Following Yonder Star,” 10 p.m., Hallmark
• “A Godwink Christmas: Meant for Love,” 10 p.m., HMM
• “Dear Christmas,” 10 p.m., Lifetime
• “The Case of the Christmas Diamond,” 10 p.m., Ovation
• “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” 10:15 p.m., TCM
Recipe: Eggnog

Quick Thought for Christmas

Read

Matthew 2:16-18

Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.
Matthew 2:16

Reflect

The coming of Jesus into the world is a sharp dividing line that has forced billions of people to make one simple decision: Do you believe, or not?

And that belief is not like a child’s belief in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. It’s a belief that requires action – belief in Christ means you have to either follow Him and His ways, or go your own way.

And it’s been that way since the very beginning.

We’ve already read about shepherds who were told in a field that the Savior of the world was born in a stable nearby. And a teenage girl who was told she was miraculously pregnant with that Savior. And a simple carpenter who was told that the girl’s story was true, and that he needed to go ahead and marry her. And all of those people, in spite of the seeming craziness of the story, made a decision of faith to believe what they were told, and follow the ways of the God whose messengers brought that news.

Today’s scripture is skipping ahead a little bit to when Jesus was probably two years old. The wise men arrived in Jerusalem and, when they were taken to King Herod, told him the reason for their visit – they were there to worship the new King of Israel. Herod undoubtedly knew the prophecies. Even if he wasn’t steeped in scripture, he would have been surrounded by educated advisers who were. If he was simply a skeptic, he would have dismissed the claims of the wise men out of hand.

But he also made a fateful decision that shows he believed the prophecies at some level, but thought he could beat God. He sent the wise men on their way, hoping they would lead him to the Christ child, not so he could worship it, but so he could have it killed. The wise men truly were wise – enough so that when they were warned in a dream to get out of Dodge, they did so without saying goodbye to Herod.

And Herod, instead of killing the one child in Bethlehem, killed them all. Every male child two years old or under was slaughtered, just to make sure that Herod covered his bases and got the one he was looking for. Of course, there is no beating God, and He ensured the holy family was well on their way to Egypt by the time Herod took his deadly action.

Herod had the same chance to worship Jesus as did everyone else. He heard the prophecies and was told straight up by the wise men what was going on in Bethlehem. And instead of opening his heart to Jesus, he hardened his heart and did his own thing. And that still goes on every day.

Look around you today. It’s the Christmas season, and people are scurrying everywhere to make last-minute preparations for presents under the tree and delicious treats for Christmas dinner. But as they scurry, do you see lots of signs of faith? Or are most people just zoned in on a Christmas mission, including many who will cut you off on the road or in the line at the store? The opportunity to open our hearts to Jesus this Christmas is right in front of all of us, but so many will miss that opportunity and do our own thing.

Don’t let this wonderful Christmas opportunity get away, only to discover on Christmas morning you’re left with shredded wrapping paper, torn boxes and an empty heart. In these next four days, spend as much time as possible focusing on how you can open your heart and follow Christ to the manger on Christmas.