Don’t you love a good Christmas story? I sure do! This Christmas, I encourage you to find a sweet hidden story in your Christmas celebration, one that you will remember and cherish for years to come. Savor each moment with the ones you love. Celebrate Jesus with all your heart and enjoy the blessings of family.
December 12
Dear family,
I want to share an extra special Christmas gift this year. It won’t come wrapped in pretty paper with a fancy bow. It won’t sit on a table, look attractive when you wear it, or taste delicious. I hope you will visualize what follows and cherish the beautiful vision of one woman’s love for her family.
Yesterday, I helped Mom with a few of her Christmas preparations. She happily planned and discussed everything from food, to gifts, to decorations and seating. You can’t begin to comprehend what your presence in their home means to Mom and Dad. Momma savors every aspect of her Christmas Eve party as she plans to look into the faces of the people she loves most. Daddy marvels at the diversity of our crew and soaks in every detail. Your presence at the farm is something they long to enjoy.
Mom and I rearranged furniture, remembered Christmases past, and shared secret hopes and dreams as if we were young girls again. Mom’s tree is one of her Christmas favorites. Not because of the tree (it is a rather skinny, inexpensive, and unattractive artificial tree). No, it’s not the tree itself. It is the “forty-seven.”
Forty-seven –the number of “name” ornaments that will adorn her tree this year. While I busied myself putting the lights on the tree, Momma sat down at the table to take inventory of her unique collection of “name” ornaments. She wanted to be sure she had one for every family member. Mom meticulously removed each carefully wrapped ornament from the box and read the name aloud. She smiled, clutched the ornament tightly, and sometimes softly repeated the engraved name several times. The decoration was then placed on the table with the “family” unit to which it belonged. She did this for every single ornament — all forty-seven.
If you have ever (even once) wondered if anyone truly cares for you outside the perfect love of Jesus Christ, let me answer that question for you. You are absolutely cherished and dearly loved by Momma and Daddy. Forty-seven ornaments represent forty-seven people that we treasure as immediate family. Each member is unique, specifically designed as a perfect part of the big picture that completes our family. Every person accepted, each unconditionally loved. The forty-seven tree decorations represented a lifetime investment of love and continued prayers — for each person’s life and the Kingdom of God to come.
Isn’t this a beautiful illustration of the very essence of Christmas? Love. Love came to us wrapped in swaddling clothes. Jesus offers His beautiful abiding love for all who would join the family. Jesus is the center of our celebration and the center of our lives. I am thankful for the many gifts He has given; among the most treasured is family.
Life is busy. Work schedules, sickness, distance, and distractions make it difficult, if not impossible, to join the family at Christmas. Add the fact that families are not made up of perfect people, and you can easily find an excuse not to show up. We can love one another well because we are part of the larger family of God, not because everyone fits our perception of perfection. You and yours are beloved members of our family, and we are incomplete without you. Come as you are and as early as you can. Time with our aging loved ones is precious.
If you can’t make it, we will miss you. While we hope there will be many more opportunities to gather this side of eternity, clocks and calendars somehow zip through hours, days, weeks, and years quickly. Each day is a blessing; each visit is a treasure. I hope to see you, Christmas Eve.
I love you dearly,
Sister
If you are blessed to have parents who are still with us, visit them! They need to see you. You won’t be sorry. Celebrate the Savior and enjoy the love of family this Christmas.
Charlene Miller
Lean into Jesus Ministries
#charlenemillerblogs
Originally published December 13, 2019; Lean into Jesus Ministries.