We’re anticipating the big day – Christmas Day!
Our sons are anticipating it for slightly different reasons – they are looking forward to a visit from Santa and the presents that he will leave under our tree. Although our oldest son doesn’t believe Santa leaves those presents and our middle son admitted to “kind of” believing that Santa leaves presents.
My wife and I are anticipating the big day for the presents that we will give to our boys and each other, the family meal that we will make and share with my mom, and time spent together as a family.
I’m anticipating preaching a sermon on Christmas Day – as I have for the last 15 years. But I’m not serving a church full-time this Christmas and that is adding a little uncertainty to my anticipating.
One of the things that this is teaching me is to enjoy each moment as it happens. If I start to look too far ahead, I can get bogged down in so much stress and uncertainty as to miss the joy of this season.
Mary – the mother of Jesus – might have faced this challenge. Going through the joy of bearing the Messiah, she was also “warned” by Simeon that a “sword will pierce through your own soul also.” The pain of watching her son die on a cross was in her future, but that was later. Did she let it dominate her “now”?
Even though there is much uncertainty in the future, now is the time to live. We can ruin now by looking only to the future. During these days leading up to Christmas, we’ll be looking at each day as it unfolds and leave the rest to God.
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