What is your word for the year?

How often do we get lured in by what looks good only to realize we’ve short-changed ourselves and gotten a worthless emotional fix at the expense of a truly satisfying yet maybe less flashy object? That must-have kitchen gadget that now sits gathering dust. Last year’s expensive fashion accessory you just put in the box to Goodwill because it’s out of style. The latest fad self-help book that was no help at all because you simply need Jesus, not a formula.

Distractions abound. We clutter our houses with stuff which takes time away from people. Bling entices us. The new movie release calls our name. Pinterest projects tempt us. Our long range “To Do” list gets longer instead of getting completed. Books pile up on the shelf and in the app waiting to be read. The latest diet or exercise fad promises a new us, new life, hope. We take expensive vacations, yet we return home needing to rest up from them. We feel the call to buy more, do more, get more, go more. More, more, more distractions!

We try to fill the emptiness in our soul with these distractions. We seek relief, escape from that dark, scary void. We long to matter. But an ache so deep cannot be filled by material stuff. These distractions are simply packaging popcorn we use to try to fill the gaps in our soul. What we really need is a relationship with our Creator which amply supplies all that we long for and brings self-acceptance and meaning to our souls. We need the Father’s perspective which yields satisfaction, contented lives of faith, and all one needs to face the road ahead without fear.

As I was seeking my Word for the Year this December, the Father surprised me. The word He gave me is Content. Not success, or joy, or hope or any of a number of great things. Simply, Content. As my flesh seeks for thousands of things to comfort and fill the void in my heart, my spirit longs to say with the Apostle Paul, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” (Philippians 4:11-12)

Have you learned that secret?

Contentment yields the strength we need because we are resting in Christ. In the very next verse Paul said, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” And we can too. We can live contently in plenty or in want – whatever our circumstances are if we are content in Christ. Why? Not because we are denying our problems, but because as Paul goes on to say in verse 19, “my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Because we know that God Himself will meet all our needs.

Do you know that?

Do you have contentment? Are you seeking it?

In 1 Timothy 6, Paul again mentions contentment. He talks to his young disciple, Timothy,  about godly teaching, people who cause unhealthy controversies, quarrels, and strife, and people who seek financial gain. He reminds Timothy in verse 6, that, “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” So as we grow in godliness this year, let’s add contentment and experience this great gain. What gain? Maybe more peace. More compassion. More usable time because we aren’t bound up being a care-taker of all our possessions and distractions. A greater ability to hear from the Lord as we sit in contentment at His feet. An ability to see with spiritual eyes the the direction to take on the paths before us.

Sometimes our physical eyesight gets bad and we need to get glasses. Uncertainty abounds from not being able to see clearly. Sometimes our spiritual eyesight gets blurred as well and we need a new lens to look through. Sometimes we are blinded by the glare of the world. Whether your vision is blurred or you need some sunglasses to see through the glare, contentment will be a new lens for you. Try it on and see if it doesn’t help.

Maybe contentment is a primary need of your heart, like mine. As you seek the focus you need for this new year, as you pick your “word for the year” or “verse for the year,” consider the word content. Look up the scriptures on contentment. It may be just the focus you need. It will definitely send you down a new path.

Whatever your word or verse is this year, please share with us in the comments below. Others may be encouraged by what you share.

He came out of the door marked “Kitchen” wearing an apron and a t-shirt with some BBQ something like WGPM (world’s greatest pit master) or something about Smokin’ something.

The t-shirts always crack me up. I appreciate a funny t-shirt.

He made his was around to tables handing quarters to his youngest patrons. He would pause at the tables and ask how lunch was and if everything was alright. My eyes followed him around the room. He would pause at tables making small talk with the adults and passing out quarters to his youngest patrons. There were rambunctious little cowboy boot wearing girls and sneaker wearing boys. When he would hold up the quarters in their direction, their faces would shine with excitement as they gazed upon that silver circle held between his thumb and forefinger.

I mused on his small business owner cohort at the end of the road in the opposite direction. He does the same thing, hands out quarters to the children who frequent his establishment, and despite the obvious differences in that one is a restaurant and one is a tire store, the proprietors, at least in that regard are similar.

The tire store quarters will yield a gum-ball. I learned that afternoon the restaurant quarter will yield a handful of slightly squashed m&ms or a handful of rainbow colored candies.

I watched as those children raced to the machine and were elated over a handful of candy. Their mamas attempting to coax them back to the table to finish their lunches. I noticed that many of them literally had nutrition on their plates, yet they readily abandoned it for the handful of crushed candies. A momentary sugar exchanged for real Sustenance.

I was reminded of the quote by C.S. Lewis.

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

I too, am like those tiny patrons, ignorant of what truly awaits me, satisfied with the temporary and non-beneficial ways of this world in exchange for the beautifully beneficial things of God.

One of my favorite Christmas memories was really an unusual Christmas.

The year was 1989. My husband and I decided that we would like to have our own Christmas celebration instead of going to either of our parent’s houses on Christmas Day. This was not a popular decision in our family, but we thought the time was right to start our own traditions. Our son was 9 years old and our baby girl was 16 months old.

I had purchased a turkey and the trimmings to make our own small Christmas dinner. I had decorated the table and was ready to cook on Christmas morning. The temperatures for Birmingham, Alabama, were unusually cold that year. It was called the Siberian Express. From December 23^rd – December 25^th, the temperatures did not get above freezing. The temperatures were between 1 degree to 15 degrees. This is extremely cold for Alabama any time of the winter.

As I was about to put the turkey in the oven, my father in law called and said that the pond was frozen. My husband told me to put the turkey back in the refrigerator and we would cook it later. We needed to go see the pond. We bundled everyone up with extra socks and lots of layers and ran across the street to go behind their house, down the hill, and then down the bank to see such an amazing sight. The pond was indeed frozen all the way across and back in the trees further than we could see.

We knew the water was not deep under the ice so if the ice broke, there would not be danger of not being able to get out of the water. My husband went out on the ice first. He would walk a few steps and then slide a few. He was having so much fun. My sister-in-law and her husband went out on the ice. They were having a great time.

We had a sled from years past that was rarely used. We put our two children and our two nieces on the sled and pushed them out just a few feet to get their picture. We figured this would never happen again in their lifetime. The children were 9, 5, 16 months, and 12 months. What a picture and what a memory.

We were concerned about the younger children getting too cold so we took them inside my in-law’s house and started taking off all the layers we had them bundled up in. The fire was so inviting. We started hanging wet socks and gloves up in front of the fire. My mother-in-law made hot chocolate and we all got warm inside. She always made the best hot chocolate.

After I got warm, I went back out to the pond. It was amazing and beautiful at the same time. My sister-in-law and her husband started walking on the ice again and it started cracking. My sister-in-law started going toward her husband and he told her to move away. There was too much weight in that area. We laughed and laughed. It was such a fun morning.

The next thing I knew, it was lunch time. My turkey was still in the refrigerator. My mother-in-law knew everyone would be cold and hungry so she was making chili. Chili for Christmas dinner? Yes!!! It was wonderful. Everyone was tired and cold and wet from playing on the ice. What an amazing day.

Later that afternoon a neighbor came over with his tractor with the wagon hitched up to it. We all piled in and had quilts under us as well as on top of us. He drove us back out into the pasture land behind the pond and then around the surrounding area to see all of the neighbors’ ponds. We sang Christmas carols and had a wonderful time. 

By the breath of God ice is given, and the broad waters are frozen fast. Job 37:10 ESV

There was a magic about that Christmas Day. Even though we did not have our turkey dinner, it is a day that we will never forget. God’s handiwork was so beautiful   He forms each ice crystal and makes them unique. He protects the fish under the ice. He is such a gracious God. He gave us his one and only son as a gift of salvation so that we would be able to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. I will never forget this day. There was fun. There was family. And there was faith. What more could a person need on Christmas.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 ESV

When the children were little we had a small, wooden manger that sat beside the fireplace for the entire holiday season. Next to it was a bin of hay. Each time a child did a kindness for someone He got to add a handful of hay to the manger. The children knew that as they were acting in love toward another, they were preparing a place for Jesus to come on Christmas morning. The child-friendly lesson was simple and based on scripture: “‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:40

A very familiar Christmas carol encourages us to “let every heart prepare Him room.” Are we? Preparing Him room in our hearts and homes and lives? Are we, coming in child-like faith and laying down a full, soft bed of hay for the baby Jesus through our generous and kind acts of love and service to the world around us?

That same carol proclaims, “Joy to the world the Lord is come!” Does your life proclaim joy to the world? Does it reflect that all joy is because the Lord has come? Does our daily behavior encourage the those around us to “let earth receive her King”?

This Christmas, may you find joy in the Lord. May you prepare Him room in your life and in your home. May your actions draw the people you come in contact with to come receive the King!

Christmas has been a little rough for me for the past several years.

I’m not sure, but I think it started with the loss of my oldest sister. She loved Christmas, although she got anxious about gift giving. She made the most delicious fudge, and we spent days together making goodies.

Another reason it was rough is because my kids grew up and lost the “magic” of Christmas, so it became like routine to me. Just going through the motions of celebrating.

A few years ago, we lost my brother-in-law way too soon and again, Christmas changed. We always looked forward to being with him and all the sudden, he wasn’t there…

Christmas had become a time of grief. My heart ached each year, and I began to buy gifts because I had to. There was no joy in it.

This year has been much the same. Little money to buy gifts. The busyness of the season and always being gone. Never getting to spend quality time with family because each one is somewhere different.

I have a dear friend battling cancer and she is fighting for her life.

This year, we also have the added grief of divorce in our family and my grandchildren will have to leave on Christmas afternoon to spend time with their Dad. Again, I had lost the joy of it all.

This past Wednesday, I had the privilege of watching my oldest granddaughter and her friends perform various Christmas songs for us. Each song mentioned Jesus and the real reason for the season. As I watched her sing, watched her face light up as she recited scripture of the Christmas story, listened as she loudly and proudly sang, “Go Tell It on the Mountain” at the top of her lungs, hearing them sing away in a manger and resting their sweet heads on their hands,… my heart began to melt. The joy began to return.

Why? Not because of a 3-year-old, but because of the God who used that 3-year-old to proclaim his message to me once again. “Perhaps Christmas you see, doesn’t come from a store. Perhaps Christmas means so much more.”

Today, if you are searching for that Christmas Joy, just remember the savior born in Bethlehem and the Joy he brings to the world and to your heart.