Preparation

There is a lot or preparation that goes into Christmas. We spend time cleaning the house for the arrival of family and friends, we spend time decorating the tree, wrapping gifts, decorating the houses with lights, singing Christmas carols, cooking food, and shopping. We spend so much time preparing for Christmas that we often miss it. We don't actually miss the holiday but we do miss the meaning. While all of the above mentioned things are fun they are not the meaning of Christmas. Jesus Christ, King of Kings, born of a virgin for all humanity; that's why we celebrate this season. I'm going to be selfish for a moment and say that this season is not about giving it's about receiving. It's about the gift that God gave and has only asked that we receive it. So with all this preparation going into the holiday season how much time do you spend preparing to receive the King.

The Other Side

I just finished the fall semester and I've got to say that this was by far the toughest semester I have had. I only took three courses but two of them (Greek and Romans) kicked my butt. It seemed like all I did every day and night was study and do homework. The material just kept piling on top of each other and at a couple of points I felt as if I were drowning, but the semester is over and now I have a break before going to Greek 2. On my long drive back home after my last exam I realized that even though this was by far the toughest semester it was also by far the semester I learned the most. This realization got me thinking about the tough times in our life where we just feel like everything is piling on top of each other, the times where we struggle just to keep treading water and the shore seems so far off, and how God uses those times to teach us and grow us. I struggled everyday in Greek class but I guarantee I can parse a noun now. The process isn't always fun but we will be amazed at what God teaches us on the other side of the shore.

To those who may be struggling in these difficult times I offer this story taken from Max Lucado's book Facing Your Giants : In 1952 Florence Chadwick attempted to swim the chilly ocean waters between Catalina Island and the California shore. She swam through foggy weather and choppy seas for fifteen hours. Her Muscles began to cramp, and her resolve weakened. She begged to be taken out of the water, but her mother, riding in the boat alongside, urged her to not give up. She kept trying but grew exhausted and stopped swimming. Aids lifted her out of the water and into the boat. They paddled a few more minutes, the mist broke, and she discovered that the shore was less than half a mile away. In her news conference Florence said "all I could see was fog, if I could only have seen the shore I could have made it". Don't be bogged down by the fog the shore is near. "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Rom 8:18).