Presents and Presence.

This Christmas season, if we aren’t careful, can get stolen. In a season meant to be filled with hope, expectancy, love and peace, our Christmas season can get hijacked into a busy, hectic, joyless, placeless season that we don’t relish but dread. Christmas becomes the but of jokes in the pick up line: “well you KNOW… THIS TIME OF YEAR IS JUST LIKE THAT.”

Our presents and the mad dash to get them steal our joy. Our activities and the scramble to schedule them steal our peace. Our purchases and our frenzy to make them steal our hope.

In prayer yesterday as a staff we began to pray against the tyranny of busy-ness in this season. We prayed for the true joy, the true peace, the true hope to come.

Which really doesn’t come in presents, but in His holy, loving, all-consuming Presence. The Psalmist writes in His PRESENCE is the FULLNESS of joy. It’s like a blanket of love and grace and warmth. It’s all we want and all we need.

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. - Psalm 16:11

The threat to this incredible season, as we wait in anticipation for our savior, is that it gets stolen by lesser joys. By presents, and activities, and calendar invites, and dinners. When joy, and pleasures forevermore are offered - in HIS PRESENCE.

May you pause today, and sense His closeness and warmth. He is here. He is present. He is close. And he longs to bring you his GOODNESS, wrapped in HIMSELF.