This Christmas

10 hours and counting . I will fly out in 10 hours and still have to do laundry, pack, and actually make it to the airport. I could hardly sleep last night thinking about being with my family and friends. Every time I think about it a get all giddy and anxious! I'm trying to enjoy all the excitement and anticipation because I know it will be over all too soon.

The important thing I have to keep recalling is that family and friends and the celebration of Christmas is great but it's not the point. I love every aspect of a big family Christmas and can't wait to experience it again this Christmas but I know that the important thing is Christ and His birth. All too often we see the remembrance of Christ's birth as part of the "holiday season" but it if far from it, His birth is the reason we celebrate in the first place. So many times we struggle to include Christ in our celebration. We fit Him in right before we sit down for family dinner or maybe even read of His birth before we tear into our gifts but rarely do we treasure the greatest gift we've ever been given. I tend to relate to the crowed that was in awe, astonished, even mesmerized by the news of the birth of the Savior. I am in awestruck wonder but that tends to lose its luster, its captivation after first hearing it. I need to follow Mary's example. She pondered the birth of HER Savior. She thought about it carefully, not losing sight of the implications of the meaning of His birth. He was more than a baby, he was God with us, Emmanuel.

Merry Christmas!