You Came Down

I miss my Mom the most at Christmas. Man, she was great at Christmas. She absolutely spoiled me and Scott and Dad with gifts and everything was wrapped perfectly. I loved coming home at Christmas because she had the house decorated perfectly, inside and out. She was always cooking, cleaning and getting everything perfect for whatever party she was throwing and for family to come over. Last year was really tough because it was the first one without her, and I'm sure this year will be a little better, but I think it took until the past couple of years for me to really GET Christmas. For 23 years, not only did I get exactly what I wanted from my parents, but really great things that are far beyond what I deserve. I hate that it's taken me so long, but I finally realize that Christmas isn't about what's on my list or what date the tree gets put up or the Christmas day schedule. All those things are great and I'll always appreciate gifts and family traditions but this beats it all:

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this." -Isaiah 9:6-7

I know my Christmas traditions will change throughout the rest of my years. Presents that I got just 5 years ago are already forgotten about (or chewed up thanks to the dog). But the greatness of what happened when Jesus came down for us, there is no end to that. When I give more attention to Jesus, other things matter less. And If I ever have kids (God help me) I can't wait to make Christmas as awesome and beautiful for them as Mom did for us. But more importantly, I can't wait to talk about Jesus with them at Christmas time and tell them the story of how He was born. It's a story I feel like I re-learn the weight of every year. Love it.