It’s the day after Christmas. Maybe as a child this wasn’t the saddest day for you, but I know it was for me. No more presents for another 364 days and the days where we were allowed to sit on the couch in pajamas all day was coming to an end. In college, this day was always the worst for me because it meant I was on the first flight out of Chicago back to UCLA for a 3:00 pm practice. Christmas was over. But now, I see the day after as a day full of so much hope.

Christmas day may be over, but we get to live into the hope and joy that comes from what Christmas symbolizes every single day of the year. The Christmas story isn’t something that just happened a long time ago, on one day. Salvation is here and now; the Kingdom has come near and the freedom that comes from the truth of the birth of Jesus Christ has no end. Our responsibility is to live out of the faith we have and the salvation we’ve received. Like it says in Mark 1:15, repent and believe the good news!

So, as the Advent season ends and we all sadly take down our Christmas trees, let’s repent and live like we believe the good news. Let’s believe that Jesus came, born of a virgin, to live and to die on a cross so that we may live. This is the truth we cling to, every moment of every day of the year.