Give Thanks!

I pride myself on spending our Thanksgiving break giving thanks and doing a whole lot of nothing. I do not decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving; neither do I participate in Black Friday.  I tried Black Friday one time at Toys R Us when the kids were little, but it just was not worth it.  I still remember where I stood in line with my basketful of goods in the far back corner of the store and where I left my items to get out of line and head home.  I went back to my In-laws in Dallas and enjoyed another cup of coffee before my kids even got up. 

We do have the tree up now.  It tried to fall on me today, I mean literally.  I had to hold it up until my husband came to my rescue.  Somehow we got it stable again without having a full blown disaster.  As usual, I got tickled right in the middle of the fiasco. 

I have reminded myself to laugh and intentionally have fun since the rain began Friday.  I have been inside of the house with four kids and three dogs.  We do good with one Hallmark movie day, but three days of togetherness is pushing it for sure! Getting along takes work.

I realized this weekend that there are many parts of Christmas that can seem like work too.  That is not good news for me because I already have a few jobs. I have the wonderful job here of being a wife, mother, and head organizer of our family, and a teacher.  Quite honestly, I do not need for Christmas to seem like another job.  None of us do.  The stress and mess can take away the real meaning of the holidays for sure, and it starts early in November. 

It came to me though that really as a Christian, one who believes in Jesus Christ, that I do have a job at Christmas. My job is to use the special time of year to tell others about the real meaning of Christmas.  It has nothing to do with my church affiliation, age, or how long I have known Christ as Savior. It has to do with all of the people I will come into contact with and that the holidays are on everyone’s minds.

Everyone seems to be looking for a way to give meaning to all of the hustle and bustle!  I can tell them. You can tell them. We can tell them that Jesus is the reason for it all!

I remember several years ago when my friend knew I was pooped from the holidays and honestly frustrated.  She asked me to join a group and make ornaments that would be exchanged and used along with a Jesse Tree devotional book with our families. 

That simple tradition has really helped us!  It reminds us daily why we are knee deep in all of the hype.  It reminds us that while the hype of stockings and Santa maybe fun, the real reason for it all is Jesus. Every home in my opinion needs something like this to do daily as a reflection.

Be ready to tell someone about the birth of Christ.  If there are new jobs that fall upon you during this time of year, remember that the most important task you have is to share the truth about the good news of Jesus.  In Luke 1:10, the angel said to the shepherds “I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all of the people.”