The more I have thought about the Christmas season the less I have looked forward to it. . . until now.

I was getting so bogged down with all of the financial messes we are seeing around us and in our home. For some reason I had it in my head that we had to have gifts in order to be happy at Christmas. Kind of ironic since my husband and I have talked about and decided to make Christmas more about Christ and doing more for birthdays to celebrate the life of those we know. Still, in my heart, I was carrying around a HUGE disappointment knowing that we couldn't do anything for Christmas this year. Yes, I would love to get gifts, but I really like to give gifts. So, that made my sulking ok, right? Wrong. Last night I was encouraged to find other things to give to people that don't cost money. I must admit that inside I laughed at the thought. Not so funny, though. It's actually a great idea. I plan to make a list this week and pray for the Lord to show me what I can do for those people.

The next thing that was holding me back from truly enjoying this wonderful time of year was that I had to be with my family. I was extremely disappointed when my husband lost his second job and knew we would have to use the travel money for bills and groceries. Then, my dad suggested they come down here to see us. I was SO excited about that. I have lived in GA for 6 years now and my parents have only been here twice (I'm originally from PA). I found out yesterday that they will not be able to come now due to being robbed while they were away for Thanksgiving. This could still change, but I needed that to happen to show me just how much I was relying on them to make Christmas special.

Christmas needs to be a time that we take to reflect on Christ. We all look forward to going to heaven to get away from the things of this world, yet Jesus left heaven to come to this world to save sinful souls such as mine. How humbling!!!

I encourage all who read this to challenge your family to truly focus on Christ this Christmas. Yes, the decorations are pretty, the gifts are great, and families are nice to spend time with (most of the time), BUT let's remember and take in the reverence that the wise men had for baby Jesus - the King of Kings.