{"id":22796,"date":"2026-03-11T13:38:26","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T13:38:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/uncategorized\/the-truth-about-christmas\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T06:14:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T06:14:59","slug":"the-truth-about-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/health-and-wellness\/better-living\/emotional-and-mental-health\/the-truth-about-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"The Truth About Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cOh Mom, you\u2019re not going to stop, are you?\u201d comes a voice from behind me.<\/p>\n<p>I look to the rearview mirror and see the flushed face of a teenaged son.<\/p>\n<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ada4f91 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"ada4f91\" data-element_type=\"container\" id=\"home-banner-stn\">\n<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-72e6e8eb elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"72e6e8eb\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Community Newsletter<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-261bcec elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"261bcec\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Get More Inspiration Delivered to Your Inbox<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9787b46 elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget-mobile__width-inherit elementor-widget elementor-widget-wp-widget-ninja_forms_widget\" data-id=\"9787b46\" data-element_type=\"widget\" id=\"front-banner-signup\" data-widget_type=\"wp-widget-ninja_forms_widget.default\">\n<div 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Now\",\"type\":\"submit\",\"cellcid\":\"c4725\",\"processing_label\":\"Processing\",\"container_class\":\"\",\"element_class\":\"\",\"key\":\"subscribe_now_1660636976556\",\"wrap_styles_border\":\"\",\"wrap_styles_width\":120,\"wrap_styles_margin\":0,\"wrap_styles_padding\":0,\"wrap_styles_float\":\"\",\"wrap_styles_show_advanced_css\":1,\"element_styles_border\":\"\",\"element_styles_width\":120,\"element_styles_font-size\":\"\",\"element_styles_margin\":0,\"element_styles_padding\":0,\"element_styles_float\":\"\",\"element_styles_show_advanced_css\":0,\"submit_element_hover_styles_border\":\"\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_width\":\"\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_font-size\":\"\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_margin\":\"\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_padding\":\"\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_float\":\"\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_show_advanced_css\":0,\"wrap_styles_advanced\":\"\",\"element_styles_background-color\":\"#00ab84\",\"submit_element_hover_styles_background-color\":\"#00ab84\",\"drawerDisabled\":false,\"id\":28,\"beforeField\":\"\",\"afterField\":\"\",\"value\":\"\",\"label_pos\":\"above\",\"parentType\":\"textbox\",\"element_templates\":[\"submit\",\"button\",\"input\"],\"old_classname\":\"\",\"wrap_template\":\"wrap-no-label\"}];nfForms.push(form);<\/script><br \/>\n                <script id=\"nf-tmpl-cell\" type=\"text\/template\">\n            <nf-fields><\/nf-fields>\n        <\/script><\/p>\n<p>        <script id=\"nf-tmpl-row\" type=\"text\/template\">\n            <nf-cells><\/nf-cells>\n        <\/script><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cYou are,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>I do turn the corner. I have tremendous compassion for the tender spirit of a teen, and I know that on this busy street, most anyone we know could drive by. But I have to stop, and my son knows it. Sometimes the Lord speaks through the rush and hurry of my world and holds my attention soul-deep. Today He\u2019s spoken to the quiet whispers of my mama-heart. To the place where worry is loud and fear is bold.<\/p>\n<p>And He\u2019s done it from a marquee sign.<\/p>\n<p>The church is small and brick and the sign out front is simple. But I\u2019ve driven around the block twice looking for a place to park. When I find one, I slip from behind the wheel and walk to the front of the church.<\/p>\n<p>The sign reads: \u201cAutumn leaves. Jesus doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"483\" class=\" size-full wp-image-44138\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/autumn_leaves_jesus_doesnt.jpg\" style=\"width: 400px;height: 258px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/autumn_leaves_jesus_doesnt.jpg 750w, https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/autumn_leaves_jesus_doesnt-340x219.jpg 340w, https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/autumn_leaves_jesus_doesnt-600x386.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Honest. Simple. True.<\/p>\n<p>I stand on the sidewalk. Cars move fast but it seems like everything has stopped because I\u2019m humbled, moved, by grace.<\/p>\n<p>Jesus never leaves.<\/p>\n<p>This year has brought worry, maybe more than any other year. I\u2019ve wrestled and battled, and enemy attack has been strong. But in those times, when the night is still and fear moves within it, when the day has gone dark, and my heart has too, Jesus has met me.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s met me in my worry and He\u2019s banished the darkness with His light-giving truth. He\u2019s comforted my spirit and cared for my soul. He\u2019s brought hope and peace and strength that overpower all because He is Lord.<\/p>\n<p>He comes near.<\/p>\n<p>As I stand there, I understand that although the sign says nothing of Christmas, it is the perfect message for the season. It\u2019s the heartbeat of the believer, and it\u2019s the pulse that brings life.<\/p>\n<p>The babe in the manger brought salvation, and His Presence is a promise.<\/p>\n<p><em>I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. <\/em>(John 14:18, KJV)<\/p>\n<p>The strong truth of Christmas is that Jesus\u2013powerful and mighty, gentle and kind\u2013will forever be by my side. Today. Tomorrow. For eternity.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m standing in December wind when someone comes down the walk. Her smile is warm and her eyes are kind. I don\u2019t know if she\u2019s the pastor, a member of this church, or someone taking a walk. But when she sees me standing there in front of this sign, snapping a picture, I know that she understands.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s powerful,\u201d I say.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>My heart is full.<\/p>\n<p>I return to the car and my teenager smiles now too. \u201cSorry, Mom. Sometimes I worry too much.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s okay,\u201d I say. <em>Oh, sweet son, I understand.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Worry has come close this year.<\/p>\n<p>But Jesus has come closer.<\/p>\n<p>And as the sign says, he\u2019ll never, ever leave.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cOh Mom, you\u2019re not going to stop, are you?\u201d comes a voice from behind me. I look to the rearview mirror and see the flushed face of a teenaged son. Community Newsletter Get More Inspiration Delivered to Your Inbox Notice: JavaScript is required for this content. \u201cYou are,\u201d he says. I do turn the corner. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":30038,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[377],"tags":[14,72,80],"ppma_author":[491],"class_list":["post-22796","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-emotional-and-mental-health","tag-spiritual-growth","tag-stories-of-faith","tag-stories-of-hope"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.6 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Truth About Christmas - Guideposts Articles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Truth About Christmas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cOh Mom, you\u2019re not going to stop, are you?\u201d comes a voice from behind me. 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