In December my purse fills with lists. But tonight I couldn’t help compare my lists with a more significant list.

I have a grocery list: Christmas dinner doesn’t cook itself. It requires an organized shopper.

I have three wishlists: This is probably the list most important to my children. One techy daughter even ‘shared’ her list via iPod note and updates it frequently.

I’ve heard of a nice and naughty list: I’ve never done this, but I have overheard parents threaten their kids that one call to the Big Man in RED will move them onto the naughty list and guarantee them a stocking of coal.

Last night, I faced a different list. It was a list that made my heart swell. A hundred plus people from our church gathered around lists of love, lists of 1100 names. These were not just random names. These were the names of people we love who need Jesus. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, real people with real hurts and real needs.

Every Christmas we pray over this growing list, and one by one we lift each person by name before the Lord. We ask for God to do what He does best: a Christmas miracle. We ask the Lord to open eyes of the blind, soften hearts that are hard, heal wounds that are fresh, cure those who are hurt. We ask Him to do what we cannot: save souls.

As we move closer to Christmas, consider what names you would add to this list and don’t wait for our next church prayer meeting, start praying now. Our God is mighty to save. Believe He can transform the life of every name on the list because in the end, only one list matters. It is the list of names written in the Lambs Book of Life.