Simply Celebrate Christmas!

Please read Luke 1: 26-38

“…….For nothing will be impossible with God!  And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.”

We moved with our 10 and 8 year old daughters to the east side of New Orleans, Louisiana three weeks before hurricane Katrina. After the hurricane God provided a wonderful group of people and a church parsonage right out side of Atlanta. We lived there for 10 months.

Six weeks after the hurricane my husband and I went back to our flooded home to salvage any thing we could – to our surprise and great delight we were blessed with the survival of our Christmas decorations. We had begun a tradition with the girls that each year they would receive an ornament from us. The idea being that when they left home to start their own lives they would take their box of ornaments with them. This way they would have a box full of treasured and cherished ornaments to hang on their first tree. They each have their own ornament box filled with ornaments that we and others have given them each Christmas since they were born. We loaded the boxes in the truck and took them back to our temporary home.

In December we purchased small trees for them and we let them decorate their trees in their rooms. For the first time since the hurricane my girls did not leave their rooms. I started to wonder about them and went to check. I found them both sitting on their floors looking up at their trees. Eyes filled with wonder, happiness, and most of all contentment. They had found great contentment in having some of their special things survive the flood. That Christmas was the most memorable for us! Each gift received was absolutely appreciated! Each card received was read with thoughtfulness. We simply celebrated Christmas! We enjoyed the gift of Christmas! We celebrated the greatest gift!

Recently, my oldest, who is now 16, said, “Mom, I wish we could go back to that Christmas right after hurricane Katrina. It was so peaceful for us then. It was such a simple and peaceful time.” Can you believe it? We had lost everything. We had nothing for daily living. We had lived out of our van for a month and really did not know our future and yet this young woman wants to go back to the time that we had virtually nothing in regards to material things. This is absolutely one of my favorite Christmas memories!

My oldest without reservation longs for the simplicity of this life.  Young Mary as she was going about her daily life, suddenly had a major interruption!  God chose her because He knew her and He saw where she was!  It was all quite simple to Him.  Later on in Luke, Jesus reveals the heart of his coming – “for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them!” True and simple by God’s terms.  Because nothing was or is impossible with Him!  I wonder did Mary ever long for the simple days of her former life?  We are told that she “pondered” things in her heart.  I think she probably did.  You and I cannot recapture the past but we can live in the moment and the moments of this Christmas can be celebrated in simplicity!  The simple act of celebrating Christmas for the holy time it was meant to be!  It is meant to be a celebration of the greatest gift ever given mankind!  A Savior!  Jesus Christ our King!

See you tomorrow my friend!  Diane

This is the first day of our 31 days of focusing on Simplicity!  I pray that you will join me by sharing your own comments on how you are living in simplicity as you celebrate Christmas!