A customs officer observes a truck pulling up at the border. Suspicious, he orders the driver out and searches the vehicle. He pulls off the panels, bumpers, and wheel cases but finds not a single scrap of contraband, whereupon, still suspicious but at a loss to know where else to search, he waves the driver through.

The next week, the same driver arrives. Again the official searches, and again finds nothing illicit. Over the years, the official tries full-body searches, X rays, and sonar, anything he can think of, and each week the same man drives up, but no mysterious cargo ever appears, and each time, reluctantly, the customs man waves the driver on.

Finally, after many years, the officer is about to retire. The driver pulls up. "I know you're a smuggler," the customs officer says. "Don't bother denying it. But I can’t figure out what you've been smuggling all these years. I'm leaving now. I swear to you I can do you no harm. Won't you please tell me what you've been smuggling?"

"Trucks," the driver says.

It’s easy to miss the obvious. It’s amazing how often this happens to me!

Millions have missed the most obvious thing about Christmas: they’ve missed Christ. The lights, frenzied shopping, holiday food, music, and more make it easy to overlook the most important thing about Christmas.

This year make certain you don’t miss the obvious. It’s easy to get caught up in looking for what’s wrong with Christmas: Christ wasn’t born on December 25th; many of the seasonal celebrations we witness don’t focus on Jesus; Christmas has become a season driven by commercialism. All of these things are true.

But we shouldn’t miss the opportunity to focus on our Savior, Jesus Christ. He loved us enough to give up His throne in glory and come to be born as a babe in a manger. He loved us enough to live among us and die to save us.

Don’t miss the obvious – don’t miss a Savior who loves you.

Love,
Mike