Thanks (celebration) be to God for His indescribable gift! [2 Corinthians 9:15 / NKJV, parenthesis added]
“Dad, if I wasn’t here with you, would you still put out the Christmas decorations?” my daughter asked as we began putting up the Christmas tree.
We started a month earlier than usual so we could enjoy the tree, lights, and decorations longer than previous years. It’s our favorite pastime to turn off the house lights and sit in the dim room while watching the rhythmic pulse of the tree lights. It can be quite peaceful, if not a little hypnotic. Add the roaring fireplace casting its dancing brilliance on the light show and . . . ahh, one of the beautiful moments of the Christmas season.
Not Just at Christmas
Recently God used my daughter’s question to speak to my heart. Why do I wait the majority of the year to get into the holiday spirit and celebration? You know the one I’m talking about. We slow down from our hectic schedules. Nostalgically, we remember the good times of past holiday gatherings with the extended family. We reach out to friends with whom we’ve lost contact over the year. There’s an expectant excitement in the air. Fresh baked pies, bread, and cookies create that “home” smell. Life takes on a softer hue as the Christmas season approaches.
Again the question: Why do I wait until the holiday season to express my feelings to loved ones, to appreciate my friends, to be grateful for God’s multiplied blessings in my life? If my daughter wasn’t home, would I even bother to go through the trouble of hauling out all the decorations only to take it all down, box it up, and put it back in storage?
God is God all year round, and He sent us Christ, bundled in swaddling clothes and laying in a manger. To most folks, He seemed ordinary, but He was far from ordinary. Christ was the most beautiful and indescribable gift God could have given us. His perfect son. His perfect love. So instead of saving that “special feeling” for the end of the year, celebrate God all year long!
God, thank You for who You are and for Your countless blessings! Awaken in us today a sense of Your constant presence and a mesmerizing wonder of your continuing goodness!
