Enlightened by Hope

Calm and Bright

The day after Christmas—a day to re-coop, relax and reflect. For three days we had a whirlwind of family gatherings. Saturday, we spent time with Tim's family and my family. The older I get, the more I enjoy visiting with my nieces and nephews, catching up with their lives and seeing the little ones grow and change. Sunday was a quiet day, as we traveled to Columbus to spend time with Kati. On the way there, we stopped by the Rivers Crossing church for the Christmas service. We were blessed by an excellent message and a beautiful candlelit moment. Being with Kati reminds us how thankful we are for her health and fitness. We about lost her a few years ago, praise God for her recovery and resurgence. Monday, we traveled to Adam's and shared gifts with him and Brenda and four of our grandkids. What a delight! Sara, Maggie, and Hannah and their families spent the evening at our home. We had so much fun.

After months of preparation, Christmas has come and gone, again. And I feel good. God gave me great health to celebrate his birth. Even though Tim was a bit under the weather on Christmas Day, he enjoyed most of the weekend activities. God gave us a beautiful family to share life with, good food and people who cooked it, and the spirit of gratitude. Every Christmas I pray my family sees Jesus in me. I hope this year was the same.  Some years, Christmas brings on a lot of added stress. I think that's why I can appreciate the holiday seasons that are calm, like this one.

This morning I dropped off our youngest daughter, who caught a ride back to South Carolina. Many times I cry when she goes back. But today, I just felt peace. We had a great visit, and I know God has wonderful things in store.

I pray 2018 is a year of serenity, if not in the world then at least in my soul.  

Merry Christmas!

Wonder and Celebration!

Luke 2:11
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

Celebration and wonder. Two words I think of at Christmas.

I tend to wonder if all the celebration I generate glorifies Jesus. This year, I started in September. Since I create some of my gifts by hand, I have to get an early start. I make my lists, I search for bargains (we have a big family!) and I wrap. For two days, I wrap. The tree sparkles in the corner (thanks to Maggie) and the manger scenes are scattered around the house.  I make fudge, cookie dough, pizza dip, cheeseball, and cranberry cake. And oh yes, a birthday cake for Jesus. I clean my house—company's coming. The cards are in the mail and the Facebook greetings are posted. Did I miss something? Probably.

So much celebration for a tiny King.

Are you exhausted after reading my Christmas to do list? I am. Until I remember why I overextend myself this time of year. Jesus walked on earth for me. He came as a baby, grew into a man, then sacrificed his life for my sin. He did all of that for me and for you. What I do to honor his birth is minuscule compared to what he has done for me.

The hustle and bustle can be overwhelming. But for me, every cookie I bake, package I wrap, gift I buy reminds me of Jesus and his love for me. Yes I can get caught up in the chaos and forget the reason for the season. But I've learned—and it's taken years—to stop, even for a moment and think about why I celebrate my Savior's birth as I do. I want to  let the pure intention of showing Jesus to the world shine through my traditions. I want everyone to know how much Jesus loves them.

 Jesus is why I celebrate Christmas, I want to let that be known in all I do.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas filled with joy, peace, hope, and wonder!

Christmas Celebration

To all our family and friends...

Jolly Old St.Nicholas or Not?

Santa Claus was introduced to America in 1823 when Clement Moore put a fresh image of giving on the face of Christmas. In A Visit from St. Nicholas also known as, The Night before Christmas, Moore created a story for his children based on a man named Nicholas, born around A.D. 280 in the small town of Patara (Turkey). As a believer in the Bible, Nicholas showed great compassion for others. He gave so much to so many that legends spread about him. Eventually, Saint Nicholas became an icon of generosity.

Growing up, my family celebrated the birth of Jesus by reading the Christmas story and attending church services. The stereo played Perry Como’s rendition of the holiday hymns. Mom positioned a crèche on the mantel and one year we even had a live nativity on our porch. So I knew that Christmas honored Jesus birth. On the other hand, I remember my delight when I found packages that appeared on Christmas morning from “Santa”. The magic and wonder that surrounded the mystery gift giver added a sparkle of fun to the day.

When my children were old enough to understand the traditions of Christmas, I puzzled over whether to introduce Santa Claus into the gift giving. I wanted them to know that Christmas centered on the birth of Jesus, but I also wanted them to be acquainted with the kind, caring legend of Saint Nicholas.

So much of the modern version of this December holiday centers on retail sales. Rather than focus on receiving gifts from Santa, I taught my daughters about his giving spirit.  We read the story of how he gave gold to the daughters of a widower in the middle of the night and how he cared more about others than himself. We also shared the story of Jesus’ nativity and talked about why we set aside Christmas to observe his birth.

I wanted my daughters to recognize that giving was more important than receiving. St. Nick’s story offers hope in mankind, Jesus story offers hope for mankind. Joy fills my heart as I hear my children teaching their children about the spirit of giving and the wonder of the season.  What a blessing to share the joy of Jesus and the legend of Santa.