LIGHTS

I walked in Walmart last Saturday, the Saturday after Halloween, and before my eyes stood a Christmas tree, and I had to smile. I was excited!!! I love how something changes in most people around Thanksgiving and people get a little nicer, are more inclined to give to others, etc.

I have to admit, I am one to get all caught up in it though. I love to give gifts, and I will confess, I like to receive gifts. Now I wouldn't sulk if gifts were not a part of it, but that is part of the fun. My Mom and my in-laws always want a list, which is wonderful to get the things I want, and usually they get something that wasn't on the list which is always a pleasant surprise. Then there's always the challenge of those hard-to-buy-for people, which I'm not sure how well I do at that. Then there's the challenge of the affordable office gifts, so you don't go broke buying for the people you work with, but you don't want to buy something that's going to be sold at their next yard sale either.

I LOVE Christmas lights. The reason we bought a Jeep with a hard top instead of the easy-to-retract top with plastic windows is because I couldn't imagine driving around looking at Christmas lights though plastic windows. I love decorating our tree and looking at the ornaments and the memories they bring. If I get an ornament as a gift, I write the year and whom the ornament was from on the bottom, and I always took as I'm putting the ornaments on the tree.

I wonder what God thinks about how Americans celebrate Christmas. I wonder if He just looks at us and chuckles, the same way Jesus must have looked at the disciples many times and had to refrain from laughing out loud as to not hurt their feelings over things they thought were so important, but in the big picture, the picture Jesus sees, were so minute. I wonder if it makes Him mad. I wonder how many people who don't think about Jesus on a regular basis think about Him during this season. I wonder if God smiles as He hears the voices of choirs singing Christmas music, or if it breaks His heart because of the pain those who are singing the words are covering up inside and are refusing to trust Him to relieve it.

I wonder what God thinks of me and the way I celebrate in His love and the gift of His Son whom He sent here to die for my sins. May my focus be on the glory of God and less on the glory of the worldly celebration of this holiday.