Put Christ first

“Seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33, NIV

June and I lived for six years on the Micronesian island of Pohnpei, a lovely tropical Pacific island 200 miles above the equator. The Pohnpeian word for Christmas is Christmas, a word the local people had adopted into their language from the English when they converted from their animistic religion to Christianity. The word Christmas originally meant Christ’s Mass. That is, the mass that was celebrated in honor of Christ’s birth. The interesting thing about the word Christmas in the Pohnpeian language is that the Pohnpeian word “mas” (pronounced mahs) means first. So, when a Pohnpeian says the word Christmas he /she is actually saying “Christ first.”

Putting Christ first in our lives is the heart and soul of Christmas.

Major Scott Nicloy

Salvation Army