Christmas story review...

I have been waiting all day to sit down with the 3 munchkins before bed and go through this Christmas in a box story. Now, in my head I am imagining this sweet time with the kids reviewing the glorious story of Christ's birth. Where all of the kids are hanging on every word I say and that each of them share with me in turn the story of Christ's birth, as we reminisce together. Needless to say things didn't go as planned... The girls fought over who opened the box and from there it was fights over who opened the little boxes, who was moving the figures in the nativity, who was touching who, who was tackling who and who could talk louder than mom while I am trying to read the story. Chris says I often envision these lovely moments and more often than not they never end up the way I am thinking. Oh well, I got the story in there. Now at least they know Gabriel wasn't Mary's friend (that was Ryah) and that baby Jesus didn't come to bring us food (that was Cade), by the end they could've lead anyone to Jesus with the gospel story! Take every advantage to pour into your kids that Christmas is the celebration of the life of Christ and not how many presents are under the tree...

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!

It's that most wonderful time of the year again... I love Christmas! But, I must admit, I do lose my mind a bit more than usual during this time because of the busyness. Our friends, the Yuen's, had invited us over for dinner and I asked them if they could just come over to our house because the kids have school and it would be easier. She said no problem and that she would bring a pot roast and all I had to do was provide the sides. Fair enough easy for me. That was on Sunday, well Wednesday rolls around and I'm getting my day together and trying to figure out what I shall make for our guests that evening. I decide on spaghetti. So I make a trip to the market, come home and start making my (or should I say Brenda's) homemade sauce. It's 6:00 and the doorbell rings and as I am walking toward the door I can see the Yuen's through the window and they are holding something. I think to myself oh good they brought dessert, I hadn't thought about that. As I get closer and place my hand on the doorknob and we are looking at each other through the window, I realize they are holding a pot roast! In a matter of seconds my brain is processing what to do now. I think should I run to the kitchen and hide the spaghetti dinner I made, and then I realized how awkward that would be to go from holding the doorknob staring at them through the window to running away into my kitchen. So , I decide to face the music. The music, not only that here Nancy had slaved all day over a pot roast that she told me 3 days earlier she would bring, to the fact that at 32 I am losing my mind! I don't know which is worse. Thankfully they are some really great people and went with it! Thank you Yuen's!!! All that to say, I was reading a devotional about Christmas and it was talking about how John 3:16 reads during Christmas time "For God so loved the world that He gave His only forgotten son". It hit me because I am so guilty of getting caught up in the celebration of the season that I forget the very One I am celebrating. In a world that pushes Christ out of Christmas more and more every year, it is our responsibility to make sure that we always pointing back to Him. I went into a store the other day to buy stamps and the lady said, "we only have Christmas stamps, oh I mean holiday stamps. We aren't allowed to Christmas this year, because it has the word Christ in it". I asked her, "isn't that the very one were suppose to be celebrating this year?" She said, "well maybe you are but other people are celebrating something else". "Like what?" I asked. This world has so diminished itself that we are celebrating whatever it is you want to celebrate. Be loud for Christ this Christmas and use every opportunity to share the true reason for celebration this season.