a trade off

Sometimes holidays come & go. We get through them. We survive them. We regret what we did or didn't do. Sometimes we are sad to see them go. Other times, there is a sense of relief. The mayhem is over, let's just get back to our so called normal. Or... perhaps we've endured a loss or a sad memory, & Christmas is too painful this year. Holiday stress added to our everyday stress is sometimes more than we can bear.

I love the holiday season that is about to kick off with Thanksgiving & last through the first of the year. I think it's important we savor the meaning of each special day & attempt to live it throughout the whole year. We decorated our house a little early this year, cause I don't want to miss out on one day of celebration.

I love Thanksgiving because I believe gratitude is something we should practice everyday. When you live your life with gratitude, it makes for a glass-half-full attitude. When you seriously set out to appreciate all of the good in your life, it changes your outlook. It also helps you turn negatives into positives. It helps you notice the good in spite of the bad.

I have to agree with Rick Warren, a well known pastor of Saddle Back Church in California. Life isn't the ups & downs I used to think it was. Rather, it's 2 roads. One is filled with joy. The other is the more difficult journey. We travel both of these roads simultaneously throughout life. We can have joy in our life even as we struggle, face hardships, live with unknowns, & grieve for others facing sadness.

As a young person, I didn't really "get" it. I thought life was either happy or sad. I didn't understand that  one can experience an up & a down at the same time. As humans, I think we tend to let our sorrow rob us of our joy. I think instead we should grieve our sorrows & celebrate our joys. I have also learned that joy can come from both the good times & the bad.

Being stretched is hard work, but the growth that results is a trade off. Life is full of sadness, brokenness, tragedy, & hardships. These things are inevitable, & no one is immune. However, it is through these times that we deepen as human beings. These things serve to make us better people in a strange sort of way. They make us thankful for the good times. They keep us from taking our loved ones for granted.

As we enter this joyous season, I want to share God's love with others in every way possible. I want to love like I've never loved before. I want to serve with a passion so deep, others see Christ & sense God's love. I'm not all caught up in shopping & wrapping like I usually am; I just want to savor each day. I don't want it to go too fast. I want to see the lights. I want to hear the music. I want to taste the Christmas cookies & see the sparkle in the eyes of little children. I want to love the poor & brighten their day. I want time to think of that first Christmas. I want to imagine myself as a mouse in the corner of that stable, seeing the bright star in the East & hearing my Lord's first cry. I want to smell the hay & see the love in Mary & Joseph's eyes. I want to savor every moment.