“Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:10-11
I simply love Christmas. It is by far my favorite holiday. It is probably the only guaranteed time of the year my whole family is together for more than one day in a row — it’s hard to keep 9 people in one place for very long, you know. We spend our Christmases in Colorado and similar to many families, we have our favorite Christmas traditions. We make handmade ornaments for our tree, decorate sugar cookies, and watch the same Christmas movies each year. I love all of these traditions.
This Christmas is particularly special for me as I am flying off to Thailand on January 1st, exactly one week from today, and won’t get to see my family for almost a year. As I read the Christmas story in Luke 2 last night and again this morning I keep coming back to verse 19 “But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.” One translation says “Mary treasured up all these things.” I can only imagine what a special night that was for Mary as she gave birth to Jesus, the Savior of the world. In the past month since I left my job, God has given me so many moments to treasure up and keep in my heart. Words of encouragement, prayers, and hugs from dear friends. What treasure has God given your heart this season? I have no doubt that God will remind me of these precious moments when I need them most during my upcoming journey. As I get ready to go on this adventure I have been reminded of how loved I am by the people around me, but also how much more I am loved by Jesus. What a joy it is to know this truth!
The greatest gift from God to all of us is when Jesus came to this world on Christmas so many years ago. I am so excited to set off in a week to share this gift with the world.
& LOVE
-Callie
