How many times have you been asked in the last couple days…”Are you ready for Christmas”?
It’s a question I have been asked too many times to count and that’s just today. I have my lists going, my planner planning, and my mind still spins. After spending much of the last weekend laid up in bed with a flu bug, my previous Christmas planning has flown out the window with the winds and rains hitting our lives right now. I still have people to shop for, baking to do, groceries to buy, dinners to cook, gifts to wrap, parties to play at, church to attend, oh and I just discovered Doggie Snuggle Sacks…I think I might need to make for the boys. OH and that’s not even including work. All of this takes planning, perfect execution, lots of prayer and a stocking full of insanity…which I am sure my family believes I am full of!!
A devotional I read today really put in focus the Reason for the Season, and the priority of all of the items on my lists. Van Walton wrote the following:
“I wonder, if Jesus were making a holiday preparations list, what would He include? What if those who were there on Christ’s birth day could advise us on getting ready for Christmas? What would be on their list?Joseph might recommend we listen closely to the voice of God to prepare.Mary may suggest we ponder the miracles of heaven.Perhaps the angels would propose we sing about the King.The shepherds may gently guide us to follow their act of worship.Possibly the wise men would teach us to give Jesus our most valuable gifts.The innkeeper may suggest “Hospitality: open your heart and home.”And Jesus’ list would likely encourage us to be a light on the hill pointing the way for others to know Him.”
In my constant busyness in preparing for Christmas I don’t want to overlook the miracle of our Savior’s birth, not hear the rustle of angels wings, or forget to slow down and feel the warmth of those who God has filled my life with . I think I have to re-arrange some of my lists!
