For 12 days, that started on Christmas evening, I have been giving the gift of encouragement. It is my way of saying thank you for your support for The Showers Group Ministries, The ME Place, Showers’ Blessing Inspires, 11:59 A Minute ‘til Midnight Marketplace Bootcamp, Kingdom Marketplace Connection, and your support on all of our social media platforms. It is my prayer and hope that these gifts of inspirations will continue to propel you in 2023 to become all God envisioned so you can experience what God saw, spiritual, abundance wholeness and wealth.
The “True Love” mentioned in the song doesn’t refer to an earthly suitor, but it refers to God Himself. The “me” who receives the presents refers to every believer. The twelve drummers drumming represent twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles’ Creed: I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell [the grave]. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. John 17:2-3 (KJV)
An Awesome Gift
Over the past couple of decades, we have witnessed an increased effort to eliminate the true reason for the Christmas season. Rather than identify Christmas as such, people feel the politically correct word is “holiday”. What is that all about? Let’s view it as Holy-day in its true reflection of Christ.
We have experienced an escalation of battles waged to not have the nativity scene or the Ten Commandments in public places, or even on private property. Believers are afraid to display or reveal their affiliations at work because of the perceived separation of church and state that is not a part of our Constitution.
Increasingly we find that our society is moving further away from the Word of God in which this country was founded. In its departure we have seen an escalation in crime, divorce, as well as the deterioration of our families, communities, and moral attitudes and actions. Drugs and guns became the substitute when prayer was eliminated from our schools. We have gradually embraced the opacity in discerning what is good and what is not. Our society finds itself exclaiming that evil is good and good is evil and forcefully defending the misconceptions.
During this holiday celebration, I wanted to share that the perceived pagan rituals and symbols that for years we thought were just that, are in fact symbols for us to share our Christian faith. Societal propaganda has hidden and muddied the true meanings of these symbols. From the Christmas tree to the candy cane, to the Twelve Days of Christmas and more we can use them to share our faith to provide hope, healing, and life.
Just like those who created a nonsensical rhythmic song to share their faith hundreds of years ago, we are finding ourselves in a comparable situation. Some of the reason is our lack of knowledge when it comes to our unalienable rights as outlined in the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. As a result, it is hard to even help our children understand what their rights are as citizens attending school public schools.
Oh yes, they have the right to practice their religion, to assemble, and the freedom of speech. If we do not educate them, which in many instances we do not because many of us are not aware of our own rights, how can we help them?
One feeble woman orchestrated an effort that took prayer out of our schools. Yet, we who serve a massive God has not been able to get prayer back in; not even through the back door by training our children about their rights in establishing bible study and prayer groups. Our tax dollars ensure our children are provided with a place to assemble on school grounds. Most do not know about that.
When I embarked on this journey 12 days ago, I did so because my family has been committed to singing this song every Christmas. Years ago, my inquisitive nature caused me to research it to find out its true meaning. I just wanted to share with so many that we can never lose sight about why we celebrate this holiday season.
It is more than Black Friday, (for many consumers it’s actually Red Friday). It is more than going into debt buying gifts that you cannot really afford. It has nothing to do with drinking yourself into oblivion. It is more than becoming holiday gluttons when we eat so much, we almost burst open. It is so much more than that.
Rather than get so caught up in religious dogma that we miss opportunities to share Christ and our faith, let’s be open-minded to understand the meaning of these symbols before we simply dismiss them. Let us learn so we can share the gift of life with others.
Give someone the gift of true life! It doesn’t matter whether it is Christmas or not! God gave it to us through the birth, life, and death of His son Jesus. And, what an awesome gift!
It is my prayer that you have enjoyed these 12 days of Christmas. It is my desire that these words of encouragement will propel you further down your path of success. I pray that your appreciation for this nonsensical song helps you to realize it is not so nonsensical but chocked-full of meaning for believers walking in compassionate love in sharing their faith. Every day throughout the year, embrace the greatest two commandments to be your guiding force to live out your purpose in the marketplace. We are marketplace influencers on a Kingdom assignment. Allow God to reveal to you who He created you to be and the assignment that He has for your life as a Kingdom marketplace influencer.
Have a blessed prosperous year.
Enjoy Your Gift!
Jacqui Showers
The Bold Encourager
Business Encouragement Coach
Showers' Blessing Inspires 
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