[04ctd]

Unwrap Some More


Who am I, O Lord, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far?ÔÇÖÔÇØ (2 Samuel 7:18)

One of the most poignant moments in the Old Testament comes when King David is planning to build a temple in Jerusalem, but is told by the prophet, Nathan, that God doesnÔÇÖt want him to do that ÔÇô the building of the temple is to be left to DavidÔÇÖs son, Solomon. DavidÔÇÖs heart is pure, his motives are good and his rationale is clear, but God says ÔÇ£NoÔÇØ. How would you respond?

David doesnÔÇÖt complain, he doesnÔÇÖt argue ÔǪ instead, he ÔÇ£went in and sat before the Lord, and he said, ÔÇÿWho am I, O Lord, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far?ÔÇÖÔÇØ (2 Samuel 7:18)

David faced what must have been disappointing news by sitting down with God and remembering ÔÇô with amazement ÔÇô how far they had come together. Christmas is a great time for you and I to sit down with God and do the same thing.

For many of us, this past year has been a year with disappointments ÔÇô plans unfulfilled, good intentions thwarted ÔÇô but it has also been a year with amazing blessings, surpassed expectations, and abundant evidence that God has been at work in all of our circumstances to bring us ÔÇ£this farÔÇØ.

Part of unwrapping the gift this Christmas needs to be taking time to review just what God has done this past year, and to ask Him to help us put it all in perspective ÔÇô perhaps to get just a glimpse of how He is using these experiences to reveal His character, to take us deeper, and to continue the work of making us into the image of Christ. ItÔÇÖs that kind of perspective that allowed David to respond even to disappointment with a sense of gratitude and awe.

We can have the joy of helping our families and others related to Christmas as a time for giving, a perspective that might very well lead some into a personal relationship with Jesus in the process.

Each year as we come together, exchanging gifts, eating Christmas goodies and spending time telling stories of what had happened in our lives over the past year. The stories are usually all over the map ÔÇô stories of people weÔÇÖd encountered, challenges overcome, great blessings. There are always crazy things happening in our lives but may our part be on that day of reflecting to help other see God in those stories, and to wrap them up with a clear message of how He had been at work in our lives and how blessed we were to have come ÔÇ£this farÔÇØ.

Creating a time to tell stories is a great way to highlight the reality of Gods fingerprints in our lives. A great way to continue to un-wrap the gifts already given while creating that sense of gratitude and awe that prepares us to celebrate again that most amazing of all gifts - Immanuel  God with us  Jesus the Christ.

By the way, intentionally unwrapping the past year with your family can build that same perspective in our home, while encouraging both parents and children to expect to see God at work in the year ahead.

I continue to be amazed at how wonderfully God has set the stage to allow us to unwrap Christmas well, and how He blesses our efforts to do that. Why not go in and sit with the Lord today, let Him give you ideas for unwrapping Christmas in your life, and while you are there, take some time to be amazed that, like David, He has brought you ÔÇ£this farÔÇØ.

Christmas Blessings