As the Christmas season draws to an end, many of us find ourselves suffering from a certain amount of post-Christmas depression. It seems that all of our efforts went into making this Christmas the merriest and best and when it is over, we feel a sense of loss or feel somewhat let down. As we begin to take our Christmas decorations down, our houses do not appear as bright and cherry as they did before. There seems to be a sense of darkness with the absence of all of the lights that once occupied our homes. Many times, we feel this sense of darkness in our own lives. We begin to feel a little lackluster, and it seems that there is not as much to look forward to as there recently was. When we think about the coming months, all we can really focus on is the long winter ahead, and there doesn’t seem to be much of anything exciting to look forward to.

This is a very common emotion that most of us feel to varying degrees, but this is an emotion that God does not want us to experience. As I have said before, God wants us to feel as if everyday is Christmas. God wants us to carry the spirit of Christmas with us all throughout the year. One way that we can keep the Christmas spirit alive is by doing something to help our fellowman. God is constantly urging us to do something good for someone, and we should answer the call instead of resisting the urge and ignoring the thoughts of goodwill that enter our minds on a daily basis.

Imagine for a moment, if you will, what the world would be like if we all did all the good things that we feel like we are supposed to do but often do not end up doing. If we all answered the call every single time we felt the urge to reach out to someone, there would be an abundance of goodwill for everyone. We all need to remember that it is God who is causing us to feel drawn to do the good deeds that enter our minds, and we should strive hard not to suppress them. These good deeds can take many forms, and often they do not require much of us. Maybe we feel the urge to call, text, or email someone just to say, “I am thinking of you.” Maybe we feel like we should donate money or unwanted things to a charity. Maybe we feel drawn to give of our time to a sick friend or relative, an animal shelter, or a shelter for people who are less fortunate than we are. Maybe we feel like we should smile at a stranger, open a door for an elderly person, or stop and help someone who is having car trouble. Maybe, for no particular reason, we feel like we should send a card or a small gift to someone who means something to us. Maybe we feel like we should take our neighbors a pie or cake.

Whatever the urge is, when we feel it we should understand that the urge to do something good is coming from God. When we feel the urge to do something good, we immediately start making excuses as to why we should not answer the call. The most common excuses are that we are afraid the person will think we are crazy, that doing the good deed will take up too much of our time, or that the person may get too attached to us. We all need to understand that these are lies that Satan tells us to keep us from doing the good things that God wants us to do. If Satan can stop one good deed, then he is happy. We have to not allow the lack of confidence that Satan tries to instill in all of us to keep us from doing the good that we are all called to do. When we do answer the call and do something good for someone and it makes him or her feel special and loved, we will also feel special and loved. When we continue to have a giving spirit all year long and not just in December, the lives of the people who our good deeds touch will change, and they will feel better about doing good for someone and the cycle will continue and eventually the world will be a better place.

So, if you are struggling with the post-Christmas blues and wondering how you can keep the spirit of Christmas alive for a little longer, start answering the call to do something good for someone every single time you feel it. If we will all live our lives with a giving spirit there will be no post-Christmas blues, just post-Christmas joy. Now, doesn’t that sound a whole lot better? We can all answer the call. and we can all make the world a better place one good deed at a time. Living our lives with a giving spirit, heeding the urge to reach out to our fellowman, and spreading God’s love will lead all of us to peace and PEACE MATTERS.

~Dan~