I am real. I am as real as your mother or father or grandmother are real. I am as real as the person who loves you enough to give you gifts each Christmas in my name.
It’s true that I am not only one person who lives at the North Pole. I know you thought that was pretty amazing, but the truth is really better than that. I am one Spirit — the Giving Spirit — who lives in everyone who chooses to be Santa Claus for someone they love. The miraculous thing is that so many people, everywhere, love children so much that they want them to experience the awe and wonder of Santa Claus. As your own personal Santa Claus, I spend countless hours thinking about you and filling your stocking with the things you enjoy. I don’t do this so you will think I’m wonderful for giving you such good “things.” I do this in secret, so you can understand the Giving Spirit, which is in the heart of everyone who is Santa Claus.
So what about the reindeer and the elves? Well, the reindeer and elves are just part of the story, but they were real as long as you believed in them. They will not be “real” to you now because you have been told they don’t exist. This helps you learn another lesson about the world: that what you believe is real for you. If you believe that the world is scary and bad, you will find something to scare you everywhere. But if you believe there is love and goodness in the world, then you will be able to find it abundantly, even when faced with hardship.
Now that you know who I really am, I want to give you your greatest gift. Really, it is not a gift to be given, but a gift to be revealed or uncovered, because it has always been within you. I want you to know who you really are, because that is what Christmas is all about.
Long, long ago, there was a child born in Bethlehem, and his name was Jesus. He lived a life so perfect and pure that now people work to follow his example and be like him. The stories in the Bible about the life of Jesus tell of a man who showed love and kindness to everyone, even if they were his enemies. He was compassionate and understanding, and by sharing his wisdom Jesus was able to help people understand how to be closer to God. Just as important, Jesus was willing to forgive others for their mistakes and hurtful actions, even when other people were going to kill him.
How could someone be so good all the time, you might ask. Well, even though Jesus was a human being, just like you, he always felt connected to God. His power and love came from the Christ Spirit, which is a part of God that lived inside Jesus all the time. Jesus knew he had the Christ Spirit within himself, and he listened with his heart to that Spirit every minute of every day. Because of this, everything Jesus did was guided by God and filled with love.
This guidance from God allowed Jesus to do many amazing things. People called them miracles because they didn’t believe they could happen. Jesus turned water into wine and fed five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish. He even made a blind man see and brought life back to a girl whose body had died. People said these things could not be real. But Jesus believed that he could do them, and they were real. The best part is that Jesus told us that we would be able to do the same thing, if we had the same faith. In the Bible, Jesus says in John 14:12, “He who believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do.”
My gift to you this year is the knowledge that you have that Christ Spirit within you. This is who you really are. You are not Jesus, but you have your own shining light of Christ, which can be every bit as powerful.
If you look inside yourself, and inside every person you meet, you will find that Christ Spirit. It shines in you when your heart is full of love and joy and forgiveness. This Spirit is part of the same Christ Spirit that was in Jesus. The only difference is that Jesus lived every moment of his life connected to that Spirit, and we often forget who we really are. Jesus was so in touch with the Christ Spirit inside himself that every thought and action started there. We, on the other hand, sometimes only get glimpses of our Christ Spirit because we are distracted with other things or too busy thinking about our daily activities. But the Spirit inside you is part of the same Spirit that was inside Jesus, and your potential is the same as well.
You can do whatever you want to do with this gift. It has been with you since you were born, and it will always be yours. No one can ever take it away from you, even if you forget that you have it. I encourage you to seek the Christ Spirit within yourself through prayer and quiet meditation or listening. If you ask and listen, the Spirit inside you will guide you through even the hardest parts of your life. There is no greater treasure than to know that God is a part of you, and with you always.
You may wonder why this knowledge is my gift to give. Many people believe that I, Santa Claus, take away from the real meaning of Christmas. They say Santa is simply built on material things and greediness, which go against the teachings of Jesus. But Santa Claus is not really about toys as much as about the spirit of giving, in secret. It’s about giving for the simple reason of seeing joy and happiness on a child’s face, with no expectation of something in return. In my purest form, Santa Claus is the perfect example of the Giving Spirit, just as Jesus was the perfect example of the Christ Spirit.
Since you were born, I have known that you have this precious gift of God inside you. In fact, the gifts that I have been bringing you over the years were to honor the Christ Spirit in you. You probably remember that the story of Jesus’ birth tells of wise men who traveled from afar to honor Jesus, the Christ Child, with gifts. In the same way, I came from afar to honor the Christ Child in you. That’s why the knowledge of what is inside you is my greatest gift.
When you first found out about me, with my flying reindeer and ability to bring toys to every child in the world, you were in awe. You were amazed more at the whole idea of a man in a red suit bringing you toys than you were with the toys themselves. You were surprised that a perfect stranger could know exactly what you wanted and bring it to you down the chimney. But as the years wore on, you began to associate me more with toys and not as much with wonder and magic. That’s why it is time that you know the greater truth about me, and about yourself. That is why it is now time for you to BE Santa Claus, to be the Giving Spirit. You can choose to be Santa Claus on Christmas, for your parents or for someone you know that needs something you can offer. Or, you can show your Giving Spirit every day in many different ways: by giving someone a smile, carrying groceries for your mom, holding open a door, helping someone with no expectation of reward, or simply telling someone how much you love them. It is through these daily acts of giving that the Christ Spirit within you begins to shine, and your life will be forever richer.
Of all the gifts I have ever given, this special knowledge is my favorite because it holds such great potential. People all over the world have recognized within themselves the Giving Spirit, and they show it through their acts as Santa Claus. Just imagine what will happen when those same people also recognize their own Christ Spirit and live from that as well. It is then that we will find heaven on earth.
With love and honor
for the Christ Spirit in you,
Santa
