Are you ready for Christmas? I’m not thinking of the last-minute shopping or the taco dip you have to make before the office party. I’m thinking about focusing on Christ.

Picture a manger placed in the middle of whatever room you happen to be in right now. There are three ways that you could approach this Christmas. First, you could turn your back on that manger entirely, caring little about who Jesus is and what Jesus did. (I’m guessing that’s not you.) Second, you could turn your body toward the manger but still be looking back over your shoulder, constantly distracted by all the holiday traditions. Finally, you could turn not just your body but also your eyes toward the manger, thinking often about the blessings that come through the birth of Christ.

“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus” (Hebrews 12:1,2). It takes perseverance to focus on Jesus in the midst of our December to-do lists. Yet that perseverance is richly rewarded as we start to grasp how high and long and wide and deep is the love of God, a love so immense he sent his Son in human flesh for us.

The best way to be ready for Christmas is to block out time to think about those blessings. Can I encourage you to read Matthew 1, Luke 1-2, John 1, and Philippians 2 in the upcoming weeks? These chapters will fix your eyes on the Savior who makes Christmas merry.