It's the most wonderful time of the year.
We have so much to be thankful for! One of the ways we do that is that we have an entire season of the year set aside to celebrate the birth of our Savior in our traditional and sentimental ways. I LOVE IT. And it's a great time to share that joy with those who may not know about why that's such good news to all of us. Truly, JOY has come to the world.
And yet, it is also a time that I am frequently reminded of how much I would love to be sipping hot chocolate in my parents' kitchen, swapping stories with them.
An author posted an article last week that made me get a lump in my throat because I know many of her emotions. My parents know this struggle. My girls know this tug-of-war. We've sat in many a Christmas Eve service with tears running down our faces because we just really wanted to be with our families during those times.
And yet we also know we also know that we've chosen to be part of the team that brings the message of joy to the world. No one made us do that. The Lord has come. He is worthy. And, as it happens in the good providence of God, this year we do get to be with at least one side of our family for Christmas, which is so kind of Him. (Of course, I'll still cry through "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" every time.)
Here's the article I was telling you about. Pray for the families who have sent our their loved ones. Sometimes, it's much harder on them.
When You Can't Be Together
It was Christmas Eve. I sat on the floor next to my 10-year-old grandson in his family’s near empty apartment to say goodbye. They were leaving early Christmas morning. Suddenly, his body started shaking with silent sobs. That did me in. It was one goodbye too many.
Later that evening my younger daughter and I attended the Christmas Eve service at our church. On what should have been one of the happiest nights of the year, I sat in the congregation trying to sing, but all I could think about was my children, my grandchildren, and my great loss. My younger daughter and a friend of mine sat with their arms around me as I cried.