Christmas Season
We have a stack of Christmas story books. Every year when Thanksgiving day ends, we switch gears to Christmas holiday season. We go get our tree from the tree farm. I haul out all the decorations and Christmas music CDs and we start making our Christmas lists. We enter in to the season of Advent and purpose ourselves to focus on the birth of Christ more than the commercial holiday....but you guys....it's just so hard. It is hard to not get sucked in to the buying and decorating and hoping and excessiveness.....it is hard to not want to give and spend and give and splurge and give some more....I get swept up in the wave of it all.
The Christmas books are sweet and simple and many of them remind me to focus on what really matters. Sitting beside my beautiful tree with twinkly lights summons me to sit and feel peace......the nativity scenes I set around the house remind me that it is about Jesus.....so why do I still want to spend and compare and plan and stress over it? What I watch on tv definitely influences me. Social media paints a picture of holiday bliss and that is not my reality people.
I have another Christmas book called the Cosmic Christmas. I like this one a lot. It tells a story of the spiritual warfare that likely took place for God's plan to be revealed to us, in the form of his son Jesus. its a short and gifty-type book and an easy read if you want to borrow it. It speaks to the battle between good and evil that may have been waged as the devil tried to prevent the Holy spirit from doing His work .( and isn't that true still today)
Every year at Christmas time, I try to listen for a song that stands out, that is more meaningful than the others. So many of the words are familiar that it is easy for them to fade into the background of my car as I travel around for work. I think about what to make for dinner, what appointments I have coming up, which parties and programs I need to focus on and once in awhile a song is set apart. Sometimes I feel like God is sending me a message through a certain familiar Christmas song for that particular season.....and so I am listening still. There are a few forerunners right now but I haven't quite settled on one yet. If I do I will share it. I have for the past years. If not, I encourage readers to find your own. Listen more closely these last days before Christmas. On December 26 the songs will cease and return to regular music. We won't hear them again until next year, the day after Thanksgiving, when culture tells us we should focus on Christmas season and all things Christmas.
We have about a week and a half left of this Christmas season. I have done some shopping and wrapping and baking. I would like to do some more worshipping and reading and resting.......and reflecting.....on how undeserving I am of this magnificent gift. I and you and we were given a savior. A Savior. A SAVIOR.
The Christmas books are sweet and simple and many of them remind me to focus on what really matters. Sitting beside my beautiful tree with twinkly lights summons me to sit and feel peace......the nativity scenes I set around the house remind me that it is about Jesus.....so why do I still want to spend and compare and plan and stress over it? What I watch on tv definitely influences me. Social media paints a picture of holiday bliss and that is not my reality people.
I have another Christmas book called the Cosmic Christmas. I like this one a lot. It tells a story of the spiritual warfare that likely took place for God's plan to be revealed to us, in the form of his son Jesus. its a short and gifty-type book and an easy read if you want to borrow it. It speaks to the battle between good and evil that may have been waged as the devil tried to prevent the Holy spirit from doing His work .( and isn't that true still today)
Every year at Christmas time, I try to listen for a song that stands out, that is more meaningful than the others. So many of the words are familiar that it is easy for them to fade into the background of my car as I travel around for work. I think about what to make for dinner, what appointments I have coming up, which parties and programs I need to focus on and once in awhile a song is set apart. Sometimes I feel like God is sending me a message through a certain familiar Christmas song for that particular season.....and so I am listening still. There are a few forerunners right now but I haven't quite settled on one yet. If I do I will share it. I have for the past years. If not, I encourage readers to find your own. Listen more closely these last days before Christmas. On December 26 the songs will cease and return to regular music. We won't hear them again until next year, the day after Thanksgiving, when culture tells us we should focus on Christmas season and all things Christmas.
We have about a week and a half left of this Christmas season. I have done some shopping and wrapping and baking. I would like to do some more worshipping and reading and resting.......and reflecting.....on how undeserving I am of this magnificent gift. I and you and we were given a savior. A Savior. A SAVIOR.
Comments
Post a Comment