Heavenly Peace

It's 10:00 a.m. Christmas morning, there's a quiche in the oven and coffee brewing, but the only sound I hear is a beautiful Christmas medley playing on the piano as the cat walks across the keys. (Seriously - my cat's amazing that way. :)

It's kind of odd that the boys aren't awake yet. Used to be we would have five eager children all climbing onto our bed at shortly after 6:00 a.m. wanting to tear into their gifts immediately. Strange how as time passes, our appreciation for the gift of sleep increases.

So quietness marks my Christmas morning, and the peace that I long for. But I suspect this peace I feel does not come from the lack of volume in the room where I sit right now. In fact, peace doesn't truly come from the specific circumstances we find ourselves in, but rather the abiding assurance that God loves us, and He's always good. The circumstances of this Christmas season have not been perfect for many reasons, but I guess I wasn't hoping for perfection. I was hoping for simple peace.

I had 30-ish members of my family over for dinner last night (age of 4 months to 78 years). There has been much to do in preparing for this annual event including cleaning and cooking and finding the space to seat all 30 hungry souls. I was only three quarters of the way through my list before our first guests arrived. Soon my home was buzzing with all sorts of energetic activity. So much glorious clamoring noise and yet there was a sweet peace that settled over all of us.

You know...

I didn't get to frost the sugar cookies I baked earlier - just ran out of time. So a few of us decided we'd frost them together after dinner, while telling stories and laughing until we cried. And then we ate them with Christmas tea!

I didn't sweep the hall of those dreadful little dust bunnies before my visitors came, but the grandchildren quickly "hid" them for me by dumping all the toys out of the toy box with playful exuberance.

I couldn't find just the right Christmas plates this year, so we used boring, blue ones. Well they were boring up until they were "decorated" with hot roast turkey and gravy, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, vegetables and hot rolls all prepared by various members of my family and shared together.

I didn't get that one candle lit or that one Christmas light turned on- but apparently no one noticed. They were too focused on enjoying the Light in one another.

So in the end, every "T" was not crossed, and every "i" was not dotted, but it didn't matter nearly as much as it did when I originally made up my Christmas "to do" list. It seems as though peace does not come as a result of everything flowing along as planned, but rather by something much deeper. We are loved and we love. We have God, and we have one another. We have a hope and a future. We have Jesus.

I pray that your Christmas would be marked by peace that surpasses all understanding.

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth…and from the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another!”

In Jesus' Name

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I just finished wrapping a pile of presents, and have yet to clean the house and finish the cookie baking before my house is filled with thirty of my favorite people in the world - my family. I confess, I am feeling the pressure that seems to always meet me around this time of year, and so, I am choosing right now, to press pause.

And breathe.

And remember Who this is all about.

Jesus - What a name, eh? I feel my aching muscles relaxing already. Jesus. Name above all names. Literally, "The Lord Saves." What a name of monumental promise to a drowning and devastated world. A name of Hope. "You shall call His name Jesus for He shall save His people from their sins." Father saw our state and breathed Jesus into our world. Jesus.

Luke 1:32-33 "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

Emmanuel - God with us. We're not alone, trying to figure it out by ourselves. The separation is over. God entered our dark and hollow existence, wrapped His arms around us and promised never to leave us. And He hasn't. And He won't.

Mighty God - The mountainous issue of sin and darkness was no barrier to the Lord. He is Mighty to save. His eyes were fixed upon His children and with the fierceness of a lioness rescuing her cubs, He burst through evil like tissue paper torn to shreds. His Right Arm saved us. He is well able. He is God after all.

Everlasting Father - Jesus came and ushered us into a whole new relationship with God by calling Him Father. Father. The One who loves us, cares for us, provides for us and died for us. Father. When He sent His Son, He sent us an invitation to also become "sons". Oh what manner of love is this? It's AMAZING!

Prince of Peace - I love the fact that even though the greatly anticipated coming of the Messiah was the climax of all human history, Jesus came quietly, humbly, as a lamb. It's such a perfect picture of the Peace of God that passes all understanding. He wasn't biting His divine nails, wondering what to do. He wasn't coming up with some big elaborate "crash into the world, fix it and let em know who's boss" scheme. He so gently came on that silent night, as a babe, to a loving mom and a protective dad with only a few barnyard animals as witnesses. He's my Prince of Peace and since that is so, I can humble myself under the authority of my Prince, and allow His Peace to rule my heart, and my mind and throughout my day. Peace. Wondrous things happen in the midst of peace - on silent, holy nights. Let it reign.

If you choose to press pause, I encourage you to take just a few moments to consider the awesome wonder of Jesus, to breathe a prayer of thanksgiving and to look deeply into His loving eyes while listening intently for His words of life. May the celebration of Jesus and ALL that He is, bring you fresh encouragement, joy and hope and may you, my friend, be filled to overflowing with His very presence even now.

In the Name of Jesus.

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GOD.

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promise.son.provision

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PROMISE.SON.PROVISION

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GOD.

The “R” word. | Stuff Christians Like – Jon Acuff

The “R” word. | Stuff Christians Like – Jon Acuff

Family, Friends and the Wee Ones

I have found that family, friends and/or children are the common denominator of my most cherished Christmas memories. Cookie baking is just a chore, but when you do it with grandchildren, it becomes a hilariously messy, wonderful memory for them, and for me! Shopping alone feels, well, lonely - but shopping with a friend is a happy event that usually involves laughing and sharing a meal together. Wrapping presents is tedious, mundane work, unless I can get my husband in on it with me, while we watch You've Got Mail for the 67th time. Then it's a wonderful holiday evening.

I totally agree with the Whos down in Who-ville. If Christmas comes with no cookies, no shopping, no ribbons and no tags! If it comes without packages, boxes or bags...we'll still enjoy Christmas, if we have each other. Little ones and spending time doing Christmassy things with those we hold most dear, make the season extraordinary.

Cherished memories:
-Making Christmas cookies with my mom, when I was younger - and making Christmas cookies with my grandchildren last year.
-Inviting Christmas caroler friends in for cookies and hot cocoa.
-Playing euchre with my siblings during the wee hours or the morning, laughing til I cried and making entirely too much noise.
-Going to grandma's house and wondering if Santa would know I was sleeping there Christmas eve.
-Taking the kids out to chop down a too-short, too-fat tree in order that we could surprise their father. (Thankfully, later that week he went and picked out a more acceptable one!)
-Having too many friends and family members gloriously crammed into my living and dining room for Christmas eve dinner.
-Singing worship songs with my parents, brothers, sister, nieces and nephews.
-Listening to my father-in-law share a Christmas devotional before anyone could touch the presents.
-And as I sit here next to my husband by the warm crackling fire writing about cherished memories, it occurs to me, here we are in yet another lovely Christmas moment.

Celebrate Jesus with the ones you love. The most special memories always have the most special people in them.

Taking time

I have a good friend, Aaron, who said something to me a few days ago, that has stuck with me. He said, "We're all too busy. We need to encounter Jesus every single day!" I couldn't agree more, though I confess my busy-ness sometimes consumes the day so quickly in the morning, that I don't say much more to the Lord than "Hi" and "Bye" before I'm off and running. To be quite honest, this is not an unusual occurrence for the last month of the year. Sometimes I find myself trying to get "reacquainted" with the Lord in January. It's ironic to me that the season, which is devoted to recalling and honoring the birth of our Savior, gets so filled with activities surrounding our celebration, that we forget to actually take the time to encounter Jesus, our Immanuel. He is my everything - and I want Him as part of my every day.

I wonder what you think of when you hear the word "encounter". I think of something that consists of more than "Hi" and "Bye". Encountering the Lord takes intentional pursuit of Him, though He is not far and certainly not shielded from us. It requires that I stop what I'm doing, stop the lists I'm making in my head, stop doing the 'next thing' and sit down. I'm not sure it requires words, on the other hand, I find when I fix my gaze upon Jesus, consider who He is and His love for me, words sort of naturally flow as a response from my heart. Jesus.

I believe it also requires that I take time to listen. Listen to His still, small voice and receive His life flow into my heart. It means for me, a reconsecration to His purpose and will for my day, my week, my life. "Ahhh, this is all about You, Jesus. I love You. Show me Your heart." Encounter means we sit together for a while and connect. "

Take a minute (or two or ten) and consider Who Jesus Is - today, right now. Hear Him and respond to Him, deeply. Take a moment now to let His life and love flow freely in you and let it fill you with joy, peace, strength and all the grace you need for this day. And then return your love for Him in sincere worship - if only for this moment.

Jesus.

Keep Christmas in December!

So here's a short but helpful hint to simplifying Christmas and decreasing the stress load...

Consumer Reports just released a study that found 13.6 million Americans are still paying of credit card debt from the 2009 holidays. (I got this from Dave Ramsey.)

He wisely reminds us to keep Christmas in December! We need to remind ourselves and our loved ones that little Johnny won't become an axe murderer just because he didn't get some plastic stuff for Christmas. Let's commit to buy what we can afford based on our budget, then draw a line and stick to it! I think our Christmas holidays will be merrier, and we will enjoy less stress knowing that we gave out of what we had - and not what we borrowed. May God provide for your needs and grant you wisdom to know where the line is on spending this Christmas season.

Fa la la la la

No expense of time or money for this simple Christmas pleasure:

Turn the radio on and get some Christmas tunes permeating the atmosphere. Whether I'm decking halls, wrapping gifts, or frosting cookies, music goes a long way to put me in the mood for Christmas. I'm so grateful for this heavenly expression of heart and soul - God gave us music. Even the stores are piping "Joy to the World" through the air waves. It seems everyone agrees, music helps stir up Christmas spirit.

I had the privilege of hearing portions of Handel's Messiah tonight - live and in person. Imagine sitting in the middle of an old church, with high cathedral ceilings, perfect acoustics, an amazing full orchestra and a talented choir whose clear harmonies filled every corner of the room from floor to ceiling and front to back declaring with one loud and wonderful voice:

"Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth, good will towards men!"

It was great.

Later on, in the comfort of my own home, I turned on my Pandora Christmas music - peaceful classical piano and guitar renditions of familiar carols. It makes the most mundane tasks a little merrier. I don't even mind the snow so much, if there's Christmas music playing somewhere. Eventually I went to our old piano, and plunked out a few Christmas hymns - sometimes I just need to allow my fingers to sing the themes of my heart.

Music is a gift given to us for God's pleasure and for OURS. Wasn't that nice of Him? Furthermore, we can enjoy it and worship Him with it any time of the year, but somehow Christmas is made a little "Christmassier" when there's music playing.

So, c'mon sing out loud and clear - Come Let Us Adore Him!

Happy Shopping

Christmas is just 21 days away. If we want to simplify Christmas and drop the stress of spending too much, we need to have started our shopping months ago. On the other hand, there's something to be said for some of the outstanding sales we can find at no better time than smack dab in the middle of the Christmas season! Last week, I found three pairs of perfect fitting pants from Old Navy for $1.73 each. Yesterday, I bought a beautiful $50.00 sweater from Kohl's and paid $1.82.

Stores want your business and they're competing with every other store you have access to so they're offering crazy deals! They're banking on the fact that once they've got you hooked by a crazy deal, you'll find a multitude of "must haves" on your way to the check-out. The trick is to do your homework and fiercely stick to the list.

How do you do your homework? You network with websites like slickdeals.net, where the bargain bloodhounds do the work and make it easy for you to find amazing gifts for nearly nothing. Now, I must give credit where credit is due: it's also a good idea to network with friends who are uniquely anointed by God with the spiritual gift of bargain hunting. They like to shop - but more than that, they can zero in on a bargain with lightning speed. Furthermore, they like it! I have one particular friend who is thus gifted. She knows me well and has a keen eye for sales opportunities I might not want to pass up. She regularly sends me links to major deals, many of which I pursue. I often think I probably ought to pay and keep her on retainer for the last two months of the year. She has saved me hundreds of dollars over the years.

One thing I find very beneficial is shopping online. When I'm in a store, I'm tempted by the plethora of product displayed in such a way as to entice me and unfortunately I often succumb to the pressure and buy what I don't need. I also get tired and weary from all the walking and hunting and bag carrying, so I end up picking up a green and purple sweater and say, "Eh, it'll do." I don't want to end up with "It'll do" purchases if I can help it. If you avoid online shopping because you're worried about the added shipping costs , I've found that most stores offer free shipping codes, and if not, they typically offer to ship your package to a local store for free.

With only 21 days left before Christmas, there's no time to waste. Now is the time to snatch up those deals. Soon, it will be too late to assure timely shipping not to mention the closer we get to Christmas, the more we feel like going with the "It'll do" approach and we end up spending far more than we planned on.

Happy Shopping! (Because there's fun in shopping - there's just no fun in obligatory gift buying pressure or debt.)

Presents & Presence

I started asking my children (age 15 and up) what they wanted for Christmas during the cooling days of September. I know it's a dangerous question, because they're not really going to consider my bank account when they respond. And why should they? My husband and I have worked hard to meet the needs and desires of our children over the course of their lives. Our desire is to bless them, and somehow we've decided that "stuff" blesses them. The truth is, much of my Christmas shopping is done and I'm fairly pleased with the purchases and I sincerely believe my children will be blessed. But if I take Dave Ramsey's advice to heart, then perhaps it's not really stuff that they or any of us TRULY want or need. Dave suggests that we ought to consider "giving people less stuff and more of ourselves—more genuine care, time and attention."

Presents are nice, but presence is better.

So perhaps the question we could be asking our loved ones is "What would you like to DO for Christmas?" Things like baking cookies, snowman making, chopping down the tree together, making a cool craft, having a special brunch together with favorite foods, visiting a sick or elderly friend, or shopping for a less fortunate family are just a few possible ideas. Christmas activities enjoyed together are more likely going to leave a lasting impression, creating a cherished Christmas memory that may turn into a tradition handed down to coming generations.

I've found that this approach may be easy on the pocketbook, but it could actually cost more in precious time. If my son wants to spend some time with the family driving through the neighborhood to look at Christmas lights, we need to be willing to find the time in our schedule for that special occasion. It could mean I need to remove something that might feel more important - but in the long run, is just another time stealing non-essential event. To make room for the simple moments, I need to be willing to say "no" to those things that feel so crucial.

I've made a Christmas "do" list of my own: This year, I'd like to spend some time singing carols with a sick friend. I'd like to hear a choir sing Handel's Messiah. I'd like to make Christmas cookies with my grandchildren. I'd like to take an evening off to sit by a roaring fire and relax with my family. I'd like to Skype with my daughter and son-in-law who live in Italy. And I'd like to be intentional about connecting with family, friends and strangers, sharing the love of the One whose life we celebrate. The financial cost of my wish list is near zero, oh but the personal value is absolutely priceless.

What do you want to do for Christmas?

Christmas: Let's Simplify

December 1, 2010

Now that Thanksgiving is over, we're all on the exciting fast track to Christmas! It began on Black Friday when bleary eyed bargain hunters lined up outside their favorite stores at painfully early hours of the morning, waiting for the security guy to open the front doors. I hope the store pays that security guy well, for surely he will end up trampled underfoot at 5:01 a.m., as shoppers press onward, completely focused on grabbing the last mini-food chopper on the shelf, on sale for just $5.95!

Throughout the month of December, people (and especially moms) who are already too busy, add to their heavy loads, the pressure of making Christmas extraordinarily memorable...yet again this year. Not only are there the perfect gifts to get and wrap for each family member, but there's the hundreds of cookies to bake, the halls to deck, the dashing through the snow, the big meal to plan, the Christmas cards to write, the packages to ship, the school Christmas concerts to attend, not to mention the Christmas parties to plan, the drummers to drum, the pipers to pipe and a partridge in a pear tree! Phew! We're exhausted by the first week of December!

So this year, I've decided that I'm going to simplify. Don't applaud that decision just yet. I made the same decision last year as well - and the year before that. Just ask my children and they'll tell you. "Oh Mom - Yeah, she always says she's going to keep Christmas calm and simple, but then she still always goes nuts." It's true. The "problem" is - I love Christmas. I love almost everything about it. I don't prefer the pressure, but I love giving gifts, and making cookies, and decorating, and parties! I'm just not sure all my busy antics are really accomplishing the peaceful, love-filled, stress-free, Jesus-focused family holiday I always hope it to be. There has to be a way to have a truly wonderful Christmas, minus the outrageous spending, the time pressure and the general craziness that so often surrounds such a great season.

And so yes, yet again, I've decided that this year, I'm going to simplify. Maybe you've been thinking about the same thing. I'm hoping to write about some practical ways we can get back to basics. And I've decided to recruit some help, since clearly, I have trouble staying on the Simple Road to Christmas. For instance, I received an email on this very same topic from Dave Ramsey this morning. His suggestions were inspiring, but maybe you also have a suggestion for simplifying the Christmas season while still filling it with special moments and memories. I would appreciate hearing your thoughts! I'm thinking it's time to start a simple revolution to get out of the cyclone of whirling Christmas craziness that seems to increase with each year. I sincerely believe there's a way we can get through this month together, more aware of the Presence of Jesus and less concerned about...well, anything else.

First - Let's remember Who we are celebrating and commit to keep our eyes fixed on Him every day throughout this month. It's interesting how quickly I can lose my focus on the Person of Christ, while staying so busy planning His party. Lord, help me keep YOU the priority in everything.

And now - a little something from Dave Ramsey to help us in our quest:

"Focus on People Instead of Gifts: It's time to take the pressure off of yourself! Many of us assume that we have to do things so we don't disappoint people because "So-and-so loves how I buy this or do that for them." While they may appreciate those gestures, the truth is that people in your life love you for who you are, not what you do. Look back over your life and remember what has mattered most. Was it the fanciest events, or the simple moments centered on faith and family? This year, try giving people less stuff and more of yourself—more genuine care, time and attention."

I like it, Dave!

Beginning December with this goal in my heart: Love Jesus. Love Others. Simplify.

What are your suggestions for making Christmas extraordinary, while keeping it simple?