Great Joy: “The Joy That Outlasts December”

 Great Joy

Introduction:

Good morning friends. My name is Stuart Davidson. I am the pastor here at Eastern Shore Baptist Church. If you are visiting with us this morning or if you are watching online, welcome. What a joy it is to have you here, to have you worshipping with us this morning. 

I suppose I may have been the first person to say “Merry Christmas” to you at the end of December and I guess that I can be the very last person to wish you and yours a departing “Merry Christmas” as the season fades away into a distant memory. 

Now that Christmas is over, I will transition to “Happy New Year”. 

I do want to encourage you this morning to take advantage of our church prayer line. If you have a prayer request simply text 251-222-8977. The line is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our prayer team wants to hear from you. We are a praying church and we want to help you pray through your needs. Just text that number. I promise you that your prayer will be seen and our prayer team may even respond to you in real time. 

Now that is out of the way, today we come to the final message in our Christmas series, Great Joy. For five weeks we have slowed down and leaned in. We have walked through the story together. We have talked about Mary and Joseph, ordinary people entrusted with an extraordinary calling. We have listened to the angels announce good news of great joy. We have stood with Simeon as he held the promise of God in his arms. And of course, we have centered our hearts on Jesus, the true source of all joy. It has been a sweet and meaningful season.

But let me tell you what happened at the Davidson house on December 26th.

We woke up the morning after Christmas Day with one clear goal, to completely de Christmas the house. That was the mission. Jay, Jack, Jett, and I headed outside and started taking down all the lights. Every strand, every bulb, every extension cord. It took a while. Longer than we expected. Meanwhile inside, Angela went to work on the trees. Ornaments came down one by one. Christmas decor disappeared from the kitchen, the bathrooms, and the bedrooms. Pillows were swapped out. Towels were changed. All the little touches that had made our home feel like a Christmas wonderland were packed away.

By the end of the day, our house looked normal again. Christmas was officially put away. The Christmas season was officially over!

As I was standing there that night, looking around the living room, it hit me how quickly it all happened. Days spent decorating, weeks of buildup, weeks of celebration, and in a single day it was gone. Angela spent hours thinking through meals. We went to parties and get-togethers. I wrote dozens of devotions dedicated to Christmas. Just like that, it was gone. Vanished. Over and done with. And it made me think about how easy it is for the same thing to happen in our hearts not concerning Christmas but concerning Jesus Himself. 

During the Christmas season, there is a strong focus on Jesus. We sing about Him. We talk about Him. We gather around His story. Even people who do not normally think much about Christ seem more open to His name and His message. But then Christmas passes, and it can feel like boom, there goes Jesus. The decorations come down. The routines return. Life gets busy again. And without even realizing it, our focus shifts. The Jesus that we have focused so much of our energies on this last month seems to have faded into the background with all the decorations. All of our celebration and Christmas decorations were placed in the attic and the garage. Is that symbolic of what we do with Jesus. Did we just bring him out with the nativity set but box Him up when the New Year rolls around?

The question we have to ask ourselves is this. Does our joy in Christ get packed away just as quickly as our Christmas decorations? Do we lose our awareness of His presence as fast as we take down the tree and store the ornaments? Was our joy tied to a season, or was it rooted in a Savior?

That is what today is about. Today’s message is titled, The Joy That Outlasts December. Christmas joy is wonderful, but it was never meant to be seasonal. The joy that Jesus brings is not fragile, and it is not temporary. It was designed to last, long after the lights come down and life feels normal again.

Today’s Message:

“The Joy That Outlasts December”

Do me a favor this morning. Fill in the blanks under “Today’s Thought”. Does your excitement for Christ endure when Christmas ends?

Trust me…I get it. After all the family has left, after all the presents have been opened, after you have finally reached the end of your Advent devotional book, what’s left over?

Usually the mess.

Usually the bills. Hey, did I really spend that much? 

Usually you have trash that is way to much for your one trash can to come. When does the garbage run again?

If you are like me, you are left with the thought that if you play your cards right, you can leave your Christmas tree up till at least March because of Mardi Gras. 

Generally, the last thing that we are thinking about is Jesus, His birth, the angels, Mary or Joseph. 

Just yesterday, Erin Moss…our bookkeeper sent me a song by Matthew West. The song is called “Happy Day After Christmas”. I thought the lyrics to that song were appropriate. 

… Here comes the letdown Christmas is over

Here comes the meltdown, there goes the cheer

But before we have a breakdown, let us remember

The light of the world is still here

… Happy day after Christmas

And merry rest of the year

Even when Christmas is over

The light of the world is still here

The light of the world

… So take down the stockings, take back the sweaters

Take down the lights and the star and the tree

But don't let this world take your joy after Christmas

Take joy to the world and just sing

… Happy day after Christmas

And merry rest of the year

Even when Christmas is over

The light of the world is still here

So, what do we do with that feeling when Christmas end? What do we do when the season fades into memory? How does that impact our beliefs? How does it impact our faith?

Today’s Thought:

Does Your Excitement For Christ Endure When Christmas Ends?

Oh friends, so many times I have used a quote from the Prince of Preachers himself...that being Charles Spurgeon. He is just that good. Chances are you have heard this quote before but perhaps never in its context. I thought that I would share this quote wit you.  It starts out with the following…

“The faith that fizzles before the finish was faulty from the first.”

As you all know, I am a fan of alliteration and his use of f’s is primo. However, the great preacher continues. Let me share with you the rest of the quote. 

“A faith that flames for a moment and then fades into nothing was never true faith. That which is born of God endures. Temporary excitement may look impressive at first, but it cannot stand the test of time. True grace may be tried, shaken, and even scorched by hardship, but it will not fail. If faith disappears when the cost is counted, it reveals that it was never rooted in Christ to begin with.” 

Today’s Quote:

“The faith that fizzles before the finish was faulty from the first. A faith that flames for a moment and then fades into nothing was never true faith. That which is born of God endures. Temporary excitement may look impressive at first, but it cannot stand the test of time. True grace may be tried, shaken, and even scorched by hardship, but it will not fail. If faith disappears when the cost is counted, it reveals that it was never rooted in Christ to begin with.” 

Pastor Charles Spurgeon 

Background and Context of John 1:

This morning we are going to be reading only one verse. Just one simple short exquisitely supernatural verse of Scripture. You might see this verse as a vessel because contained in this passage is so much information about our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. We learn about His nature, His purpose, and His mission. 

John opens his Gospel in a very intentional way. He does not begin with a genealogy like Matthew or a birth announcement like Luke. Instead, John pulls us back before Bethlehem, before the manger, before creation itself. He introduces Jesus as the eternal Word, existing in the beginning, face to face with God, and fully God. 

From the opening lines, John wants us to understand that Jesus did not come into existence at Christmas. He stepped into history. Everything that exists was made through Him, life itself flows from Him, and the light He brings cannot be overcome by darkness. When we arrive at our focal verse…verse 14, John has been building a theological foundation, and then he delivers the truth that the eternal Word did not remain distant or detached. He came near. He entered our world, He exhibited our weaknesses, took on our humanity, so that we could see the glory of God not from afar, but up close and personal.

Statement of Belief:

“We are opening the living and powerful Word of God…truth without error, breathed out by Him, and fully sufficient for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness. It is our authority, our guide, and our hope. In honor of the God who gave us His perfect Word, I invite you to stand with me as we read it together.”

Today’s Scripture:

John 1:14 CEV

The Word became a human being and lived here with us. We saw his true glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father. From him all the kindness and all the truth of God have come down to us.

Pastor: This is the Word of the Lord. 

Congregation: Praise His name. Praise His Holy name. 

When The Carols Stop, Will Our Commitment To Christ Drop?

I. Remain With Christ

This morning I want to ask you a really simple question. When the carols stop, will our commitment to Christ drop? Will it fade away when the tree needles turn brown and start to droop? Will our fervor, will our passion, our enthusiasm exit when the first bills hit our mailboxes in January?

You know friends, the world will challenge our faith long after Christmas has gone. Every day there is a new challenge knocking on our door. Every month, every season, a new ordeal that we must overcome. 

This year, this 2026 your faith may be challenged by the loss of a loved one. When grief settles in it may feel like your prayers are going unanswered. We are left asking God why. 

The world challenges our faith when our closest most important relationships break. Divorce. Betrayal. Abandonment. Unmet expectations. Some of us in this room will start out with friendships that will not make it though the year. That loss will hurt and you will be broken over it. Trust me, it will happen. It happened to me last year. There is nothing that challenges your faith than a friend who you thought loved you turned out to be fickle. 

Your faith will be challenged through the exhausting weight of parenthood. Oh young parents, I know that those kiddos are perfect today. They are obedient and do what they are told Suddenly, that 12 year old will turn 13 and you will face an entire set of problems that you didn’t see coming. You will feel unsure. You will feel inadequate. 

Financial instability. Job loss. Job change. Moving. Sickness. Your body fails. Loneliness. 

Everything that I just said, all of it, will come to challenge our faith in 2026. If you feel that Christmas’ departure challenges your faith, brother you better buckle up and baton down the hatches. 

Jett and I were watching Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom the other night. One of my favorite Indiana Jones movies. Some pretty classic scenes in that film. Early on in the movie, Indy has got himself into hot water…again. All of a sudden a car pulls up. Indy dives in and the car speeds away. It is at this moment that we are introduced to Indiana’s sidekick…Short Round. 

The same kid plays Data in the movie Goonies. 

Before Short Round speeds away, he tells Dr. Jones to “hold on to your potatoes Indy”. 

Well friends, I will give you the same advice. 2026 is nearly here. I believe that it will be a great year but you better hold on to your potatoes. 

So, when the carols stop, will our commitment to Christ drop? I certainly hope not. Do me a favor and fill in the blanks under Roman numeral one. Remain in Christ. If you want your commitment to Christ to thrive instead of taking a dive, remain in Christ. 

Look there on your outline to see my explanation of this point. 

“Lasting joy flows from daily fellowship with Jesus, not seasonal excitement about Jesus.”

Remaining in Christ in 2026 is not about making a dramatic vow on January 1 or promising God that this year will finally be different. 

So let me give you some advice this morning. Advice on how you can remain with Christ in this new exciting year. 

It is about daily, intentional connection with Jesus when nobody is clapping and nothing feels exciting. 

It is about opening your Bible even when you are tired, distracted, or running late, and letting the Word shape your thinking before the world gets its turn. 

It is about choosing church not as a convenience but as a commitment, gathering with God’s people even when the couch looks more spiritual than the pew. 

It is about staying close to believers who will tell you the truth, pray for you, and walk with you when life hits hard. And yes, it is about generosity, trusting God with your resources even when money feels tight, believing that obedience still matters in ordinary months like February and August. 

Jesus said it plainly in John 15:4 NASB, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.” 

Branches do not strive, they stay connected.

So as we step into 2026, let me encourage you to set some spiritual goals that are realistic, Biblical, and lasting. Decide now when you will pray and do not leave it up to what feels convenient. Decide now how you will read Scripture, not to check a box, but to hear the voice of God. Decide now that worship with God’s people will be a priority, not an option, and that giving will be an act of trust, not leftover change. None of this is flashy. None of it trends on social media. But this is how joy survives when the carols stop and life gets loud. Remaining in Christ is not complicated, but it is costly. It requires consistency, humility, and dependence. And here is the good news, if you stay connected to the Vine, the life of Christ will continue to flow through you, producing joy that does not pack up with the Christmas decorations.

When The Carols Stop, Will Our Commitment To Christ Drop?

I. Remain With Christ

II. Root Ourselves In Christ

So, our first point this morning is to remain with Christ. 

When the carols stop, will our commitment to Christ drop? I certainly hope not. Here is another key point that will help prevent that from happening. Fill in this second point this morning. 

Root ourselves in Christ. 

See that explanation there on your outline.

“A faith that endures beyond Christmas is anchored deeply in who Jesus is, not merely in how the season makes us feel.”

Let me take you back for a moment. When I was 16, 17, and 18 years old, I worked for a nursery in Montgomery called Green Thumb. For the first two summers I was a landscaper, and the man over all of us was a guy named Jim Hastings. Now I need you to understand something, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I could carry things, dig holes, and sweat really well, but planting something so it would actually live was a mystery to me. Jim spent hours teaching us how to get a plant to root. He taught us to dig the right size hole, not too small and not too big. He taught us to plant at the proper depth. Too shallow and it dries out, too deep and it dies. We had to prepare the soil, gently remove the plant from its container, place it carefully into ready soil, then cover it just enough. Cover too much of the stem and you invite disease and fungus. Then came fertilizer, water, and making sure it was planted where it could get the right amount of sunlight. All of that effort, all of that care, just so the plant would have a chance to thrive. Jim took planting seriously, because if the roots were wrong, nothing else mattered.

And church, the same is true of our walk with Christ. If we want to remain joyful, faithful, and steady in 2026, we have to be rooted well. Paul says it like this in Colossians 2:6–7 NLT, “And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.” 

Being rooted in Christ means we place our lives in the right soil. We are grounded in truth, not trends. We stay at the proper depth, not shallow faith that dries up under pressure, and not buried so deep in guilt or legalism that we suffocate. We nourish our roots through Scripture, prayer, worship, and fellowship. We make sure we are planted where the light of Christ can actually reach us. Rooted faith does not happen by accident. It happens with intention, consistency, and care. And when your roots go deep in Christ, storms may come, but they will not take you out.

But friends, I want to tell you what hinders proper rooting in Christ. Roots do not grow deep in shallow soil, and they do not grow strong in crowded soil. One of the greatest threats to spiritual growth in 2026 is being easily offended. When our feelings stay bruised and our hearts stay defensive, we never stay planted long enough to grow. Add to that our over commitment to social media. We scroll Scripture sized captions while ignoring Scripture itself. We give hours to Facebook and Instagram but struggle to give minutes to God’s Word. We end up informed about everyone else’s opinions while remaining unfamiliar with God’s truth. That kind of diet does not produce deep roots, it produces weak faith and constant frustration.

And let me be very clear, gossip has no place in a growing Christian life. You cannot speak death over others and expect life to flourish in you. Gossip poisons the soil of the heart. It corrodes trust, damages unity, and stunts spiritual maturity. Along with that, many believers unknowingly hinder their own growth by outsourcing obedience. We expect pastors, church leaders, and Sunday School teachers to do the work of evangelism while we cheer from the sidelines. But roots grow when faith is exercised, not when it is observed. When we share our faith, serve others, forgive freely, and love sacrificially, our roots go deeper into Christ. If we want strong roots in 2026, we must remove what chokes growth and recommit ourselves to practices that nourish the soul.

So as we move to the next point, let me leave you with this simple reminder. If our roots are shallow, our faith will be fragile. But when we clear away what hinders growth and intentionally plant our lives in Christ, stability follows. Storms will still come, challenges will still arise, but a rooted believer does not topple easily. Let’s lean in now and look at what it means not just to survive, but to grow strong and fruitful in the joy that Christ alone provides.

When The Carols Stop, Will Our Commitment To Christ Drop?

I. Remain With Christ

II. Root Ourselves In Christ

III. Reflect The Character Of Christ

We’ve made it to our last point this morning. Remain with Christ. Root ourselves in Christ. Now…reflect the character of Christ. When the carols stop, will our commitment to Christ drop? Not if we do the first two points and include the last point…reflect the character of Christ. 

“When Christ truly dwells in us, His grace and truth begin to shape how we live long after the decorations are gone.”

When John tells us in John 1:14 that Jesus is the Word made flesh, he is reminding us that Jesus did not just speak for the Father, He showed us the Father. Jesus was the embodiment of God’s heart, God’s truth, and God’s character. He even told His disciples that if they had seen Him, they had seen the Father. 

Everything about Jesus reflected heaven accurately. His compassion reflected the Father. His holiness reflected the Father. His truth, His grace, His patience, His righteous anger, all of it was a perfect representation of who God is. And if we call ourselves Christians, followers of Christ, then our lives are meant to reflect Him in the same way. Not just in public moments, but in our thoughts, our private decisions, our words, and our actions when no one else is watching.

Think about going to a carnival and walking into a fun house with mirrors everywhere. You know the ones. One mirror makes you look short and wide, another makes you look tall and skinny, another distorts your face until you barely recognize yourself. Those mirrors are entertaining, but they are not truthful. If you want to know what you actually look like, you need a real mirror, a clear mirror, an accurate reflection. In the same way, when our lives do not line up with Christ, when our words are harsh, our attitudes are selfish, or our integrity is flexible, the world is not seeing Jesus clearly. They are seeing a distorted version of Him. That is why Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3:18 CSB, “We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory. This is from the Lord who is the Spirit.” As we look to Christ, we are changed to reflect Christ. The clearer we see Him, the clearer others should see Him in us.

That means reflecting Christ in very practical ways. It means integrity in our business dealings, even when cutting corners would benefit us and no one else would ever know. It means speaking to our children with patience and grace, not just authority. It means living with consistency so that who we are on Sunday looks like who we are on Monday. It means treating coworkers, neighbors, and strangers with kindness and honesty, because God sees every transaction and hears every word. When we reflect the character of Christ, we show the world who Jesus really is, not a distorted image, but a faithful representation of the Savior who is full of grace and truth.

So church family, here is the challenge as we step into 2026. Do not let your faith be seasonal. Remain in Christ when the carols stop and life gets loud. Stay close to Him through daily fellowship, prayer, Scripture, worship, and obedience. Root yourselves deeply in Christ so that when the storms come, and they will come, you are not easily shaken. Clear away whatever chokes growth and commit to a faith that is nourished, intentional, and steady. And then, reflect the character of Christ in every corner of your life. Let your words sound like Jesus. Let your actions look like Jesus. Let your integrity point people to Jesus, whether you are at church, at work, at home, or alone.

If we do these things, joy will not fade with the decorations. It will deepen with time. And as we remain in Christ, root ourselves in Christ, and reflect the character of Christ, the result will be unmistakable. We will shine. Not for our glory, but for His. So let’s step into 2026 with confidence, conviction, and clarity, determined to shine bright for the One who came full of grace and truth, and whose joy truly outlasts December.

Shine Bright in 2026

Closing Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Jesus, the Word made flesh, full of grace and truth. Thank You for Your faithfulness through 2025, for walking with us in joy and in hardship. As we look ahead to 2026, we place the coming year into Your hands and ask for Your blessing, Your guidance, and Your presence.

Lord, help us remain in Christ, root ourselves deeply in Christ, and reflect the character of Christ in every area of our lives. Forgive us where we have fallen short, and search our hearts even now. If there is sin that needs to be confessed, give us humility to respond in obedience.

Father, for anyone here who does not yet know You, draw them to Yourself. We know we cannot remain in Christ, be rooted in Christ, or reflect Christ unless we first know Christ. Give courage to those You are calling to salvation, and clarity to those You are leading to join this church family.

As we step into 2026, help us shine brightly for Your glory and live with a joy that truly outlasts December. We pray all of this in the name of Jesus. Amen.