Because our lifestyle is a bit crazy, my family doesn’t have any specific Christmas traditions. In fact, it doesn’t really matter where we are or what we are doing, for us Christmas is a time to really focus on who we are celebrating.

As we get together with family each year, I look forward to playing games, watching Christmas movies, and spending quality time together. It’s the one time of the year that all of us get time off of work to relax and reconnect.

This Advent season, there’s one theme that sticks out to me in particular; the theme of love. Looking back on my time in St. Louis, I see all the relationships that I’ve formed and the people that I’ve grown close to. It’s funny how sometimes you wait until the end to tell people how you really feel about them; over the past two months I’ve exchanged priceless phone calls and texts with many of those people. Ending a chapter in my life with the Cardinals has allowed me to recognize the love that I have for the guys I’ve been sharing life with for the past seven years. As I’ve been able to share my feelings with them and express how much they really mean to me, I’ve realized that these relationships have changed my life.

Sometimes it’s hard to tell another grown man—especially a tough athlete—how you feel about him, but it’s always worth it. It’s really meaningful and important to share your heart with the people closest to you. This is the perfect time of year to look back and express your gratitude to the people you love.

As the new year begins, I want to be mindful of living life with a grateful heart and looking every day for opportunities to impact others for Christ. I try to be someone who is present, who listens, and who treats others the way that they are supposed to be treated—as children of God. When we see people in the eyes of God we realize that every single person we come in contact with is extremely important.

We each have an arena where we can share the Gospel, and yes, we all have bad days. But it’s important to remember that we have the opportunity to shine a light on Jesus and share His love with others every single day—in everything we do.

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” —Galatians 5:22-23

—Matt Holliday

Matt Holliday is a regular contributor of The Increase, providing monthly articles and opinions.

Check out Matt’s Increase profile here: http://theincrease.com/author/mattholliday/  

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