It’s the most wonderful time of the year! And it truly is for me. I LOVE the holiday season. I look forward to the celebrations, the time with family, and all the feels of love and giving this time of year brings. But if I’m being completely honest and keeping it real, this season also fosters anxiety and unwanted pressure in my life. Am I providing adequate childhood memories for my children? How can I continue our busy schedule AND fit in all the holiday events as well? Are we doing too much? Do our children “get” the reason for the season? Am I a failure as a parent if we don’t have outdoor Christmas lights (that was one of my great Christmas memories with my dad)? Whew! I’m exhausted! Are you? And it’s just the beginning of December.
Stop. Deep breath in. Deep breath out. In. And out. (No, seriously. Back up and actually breath!) How can a season I love leave me on such an emotional roller coaster? It’s because my focus is blurred. I need to put on God’s holy lenses. I need to verify from where my lens prescription is coming. Is it from the world or from The Physician himself? Looking through the world’s lenses will keep us in a state of exhaustion, worry, and comparison. Our view of life can become blurred, muddled, and can leave us stumbling. Lord, give me Your sight, the prescription lenses to see my situation and struggles and others from Your viewpoint. Show me your path of comfort, peace, and contentment.
Home is where the heart is, right? So where is my heart? Is my heart focused on the “stuff” this holiday season brings, or is my heart focused on the Christ in Christmas? So often I find myself looking to FaceBook for validation, comparing my family affairs to that of others. My goodness, those cute Christmas tree cutting pictures are priceless! What special memories and ones I will cherish from my own childhood! But that has not been our family reality for the past several years. And that’s ok. We have been blessed with an artificial tree at the center of many Christmas memories. We love collecting ornaments, and oh how I love re-living all the memories from years past when we set up this tree. Again, if I allow myself to play the comparison game, it steals me from the life moments right in front of me.
For me, I need a reminder that Christmas is not defined by what tree I have in my home, the number of gifts under my tree, or even how many family holiday events I can squeeze onto my calendar. Christmas is a celebration of Jesus’ holy birth. It is the time when God himself came to earth to redeem His people, you and me. That’s it. That’s all we need. But are the other traditions surrounding Christmas tons of fun and even magical? Sure! And our family loves this season of giving, of sharing love with others, and the time we have with each other.
So if you are in need of refueling as we head full swing into December, I invite you to find strength in Him. The same strength God used to raise Jesus from the dead is the very same strength that now resides in His believers through the Holy Spirit. Breath in His Spirit and breathe out His goodness.
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“…and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at the right hand in the heavenly realms..”
~Ephesians 1:19-20
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In Him,
Ashley
“This is the day the Lord hath made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
~Psalm 118:24
Come To the Table Ministry 