I'm sitting here reflecting on this wonderful, memorable Christmas we just enjoyed. Its been a holiday I'll not soon forget. I enjoy the whole Christmas season, which for me begins on December 1, and runs until New Years day. And its been quite a month- unseasonably cold for the deep South, lots of sickness going around, and I've been sick about half the month myself! In fact, I was pretty miserable in the two weeks leading up to Christmas Eve, with flu, sinus infection, and bronchitis symptoms all rolled together. Yuck. Then after a fever-filled night, I began to mend by the Eve, finally. It all left me pretty exhausted, in an already hectic, exhausting season.
Driving to the church early to help get ready for the Christmas Eve service, I was about to ask God, "I really need something to get me back in the Christmas spirit, Father," when He stopped my thoughts mid-sentence, speaking into my heart, "Its not about you, and working up some feeling. Its about My Son, and your worship of Him. Just choose to worship." I smiled, and I did, all the way there. I sang Christmas carols while driving, specifically "Come & worship, come & worship, worship Christ the newborn King" among others. And I worshipped all through the service, focusing on Christ, not looking for a feeling for me. But the feelings came anyway, in the form of a deep, satisfying joy.
This joy has sustained me all through the wonderful weekend! We joined up with some old friends out in Athens for a midnight candlelight service at their church, then home for Christmas with just the four of us. Christmas morning brought gift-unwrapping, Christmas music, smiles, laughter, and packing up for the trip to Christmas with Lisa's side of the family.
While down in Fayette with the Brown family, something happened that has not occurred in Georgia in about 119 years- snow on Christmas Day! It snowed all afternoon, on into the night, leaving 1-2 inches of white on everything. It was the most amazing sight for Christmas we had ever seen. Finally, all the "Winter Wonderland", "White Christmas" and other songs, we could sing down here in the heart of Georgia! Even today, there is still snow everywhere, 2 days after Christmas.
There's been a fair amount of adversity this Christmas, with my illness, then Ansley was sick, then we had issues with some gifts that didn't work right, a ticket while driving to Athens, to name a few. But really, these didn't affect the joy of Christmas, for me or my family members. We had plenty to laugh about, to enjoy, to worship and be thankful for. In the midst of the chaos and rush of the season, the heart of Christmas remains-
"God, who knows no before or after, entered time and space. God, who knows no boundaries, took on the shocking confines of a baby's skin, the ominous restraints of mortality... Little wonder a choir of angels broke out in spontaneous song, disturbing not only a few shepherds but the entire universe." -Philip Yancey, "The God I Never Knew", p.45.
God bless Christmas.

I recently found an old Dr. James Dobson book on our shelves that I had never read, so I decided to open it. It is a collection of stories from Dobson's life, or folks he has known over the years. I found one in particular that gripped my heart, and have been sharing it since at every opportunity.
Dr. Dobson recounts how much his father was always a dog-lover, and enjoyed a special friendship with a toy terrier named Penny for 17 years. When Penny's health failed and they had to put him down, Dobson Sr. grieved for nine years, refusing to replace his little companion. Finally, he opened his heart to the possibility of another little toy terrier, but for months had no luck in finding one. Finally, answering an ad in the paper, Dobson Sr. and his wife drove across town to see the pup at a pet store. With a strict set of parameters in mind (pedigree papers, good temperament, six weeks old, all shots, etc.), they instead found the pup to be nine months old, no papers, in poor health, malnourished, and traumatized in a filthy, over-crowded kennel. Astonished that anyone would offer an animal in this condition, Dobson Sr. tells of the encounter with the pitiful little pup-
"He followed me about the room, meekly, his tiny tail clamped tightly down, a picture of dejection...He seemed to be saying, 'You look like a nice man, but I know you will be like all the rest.'..he put out his warm pink tongue and licked my hand, as if to say, 'Thanks anyway, for coming to see me.' They drove off, but suddenly turned around, not able to leave that little pup in there. Bringing the pitiful animal home, the Dobsons bathed him, got him all the proper medical attention, and put him on a healthy diet coupled with heaping helpings of TLC. Benji, has they named him, became a wonderful little addition to the family. As Dobson Sr. writes- 'He thinks I am God Almighty when he comes to meet me in the morning, twisting and wiggling like he will tear himself in two. It is as though he will never allow himself to forget his private hell in the pet shop!'
I found this story to be a beautiful picture of why God Himself came into this world over 2000 years ago. I found this Bible verse, that really relates well to the above story-
"When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, that He might redeem those under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons." Galatians 4:4
The word "redeem" meant to "buy out of the market", specifically a slave market or an animal market. And everyone knows what "adoption" means. Together, these words tell us that God came for us, "entered the door" of this world, bought us with the precious blood of His Son Jesus, and adopted us as His very own. Dobson Sr. is a picture of God in the above story, except of course God came for us, fully knowing our condition, and in compassion reached out to us. We are "Benji" in the story, except of course that we have a choice- we can gladly receive our adoption as Benji did his, or we can say, "No thanks, I like it here in the 'pet shop.'"
This Christmas, every time I see a Nativity, I want to remember Benji's adoption, and rejoice in my own. And may my response to my Master be the same as Benji's response to his master- brash, unhindered, whole-hearted worship.