​The Christmas gift of taking away.

Scripture:
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
John 1:29 NLT

Application:
Imagine a different Christmas gift exchange. Instead of giving more unnecessary things to each other (often at the cost of bringing on more debt), we took away. We relieved one another of the burdens of electric bills, medical debt, and student loans. We cleaned out each other's garages, lifted liens, and dropped lawsuits. Merchants ripped up cash register receipts and banks cleared payment due slips. Prison sentences were lightened and trade tariffs revoked. Immigration offices lifted travel restrictions and the IRS forgave taxes.
All free, and the giver received nothing in return.
That seems more commemorative of what Jesus did for us. His gift was taking away our sins at the cost of His innocent life. A totally incongruous exchange, one which the beneficiaries (that's every one of us) could never match.
Perhaps if we took away instead of added, the spirit of Christmas would have more meaning.

Prayer:
Father God, please open our eyes to the meaning of Christmas so that we don't focus upon the things that are added to our lives, but what You have taken away at a tremendous cost to You. Amen.