CHRISTMAS!

The Real World. That is where I live my every day. The place where you realize you are a true grown up because you are going to go to work eight hours for five days out of the week. Where you realize you only get 12 days of vacation per year. The one where you only get a break every once in a while.

That is what it is to be grown up.

And so this Christmas was all the more wonderful to me because of this. Because starting a new job and working 40 hours a week can take a lot out of you. It was really nice to spend an entire week with my husband knowing I could see him all day if I wanted to. It was nice to finally see my family again. Because being eight hours away with a real job doesn't allow you to just go see them whenever you feel like it.

This Christmas break was much needed. It was wonderful. It will stick out in my mind for years to come because:

1. It was my first christmas being married and splitting the time between two families.

2. It was my first White Christmas.

3. I got snowed OUT of going back home and stayed in Atlanta an extra day. That's right, Raleigh got 8-10 inches of snow!

4. I appreciated the time with my family so much more than I have in years past because it is so precious to me since I don't really get to see them often.

5. I felt the Spirit near. I felt more focused on Christ and more grateful for all He has done. I am truly undeserving.

6. I met Jonathan's extended family that I have never met before.

Here are some Christmas pictures:

The Greatest Love Story

I'm a sucker for a love story. It's my favorite genre of books and movies. Doesn't take much to reel me in. It's pretty sad. But I just love the thought of a white horse and a prince. And someone rescuing you from all saddness and hopelessness. haha.

Ok, so the older I've gotten the more I've realized how unrealistic this fantasy is. Don't *GASP* at me and think I am saying my husband is not amazing. To me he is prince charming. But he's only human. And fairy tales are not written about humans. The bad things is we let our kids watch Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. And we think that the guy who comes along has to be PERFECT. It might be silly. But that's really what I thought. I was seriously looking for a PERFECT person to come along, sweep me off my feet, never make me angry, etc... And that just isn't going to ever happen.

Of course, there are many moments when my own romance has taken my breath away or given me the "warn fuzzies".

But, no matter how hard Jonathan tries to be my Knight and Shining armor, he will never achieve perfection. Us humans are incapable.

My point? There is a love story that this year has literally given me warm fuzzies all over. And it has brought a smile to my face. And it has made me realize I have a Knight in Shining Armor. A perfect love. Hope when there is none anywhere else. And that is something that no one else can give me.

I realize I may sound cliche' or cheesy. But I really don't care. Seriously. When I was reading the Christmas story tonight it gave me chills. It made me smile. It is a warm and fuzzy story. It ends well. There is no heart break for me in it. Only Hope. Peace. Joy. Love. It's a wonderful story.

I hope it won't just be a story that we look at for what it can give to us though. I hope it motivates us to live for the One who deserves the deepest admiration we can muster.

And I hope you will let it take your breath away.

More importantly, I hope we will allow it to change our lives, the way we conduct every day.

Luke 2
The Birth of Jesus
1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Childhood dreams.

When I was growing up, like any other kid, I dreamed about what I wanted to do with my life. Funny how magical that seemed. Having a career. haha. Oooh, ahh. It really isn't magical, is it? Unlike most kids, I would become obsessed with certain ideas and preparing myself to do the most amazing job at them. I mean, my childhood definitely speaks to the fact that I gave up on things EASILY. Good to know it's something you can grow out of. ha. Here are the top things I wanted to do when I got older:

1. Be an Archaeologist. I wanted to explore the desert and find dinosaur bones and cool trinkets. haha. I would go in the yard and dig until I found "treasure". This led me to some how acquiring a metal detector from a friend and collecting all sorts of rings. Two of these random rings ended up on my ring bearer's pillow at my wedding. Just a little reminder of where I came from. haha.

2. A Ventriloquist. I used to want to do this SO BAD. I actually got a Ventriloquist doll from my nanny one christmas. It was Howdy Doody. Anyone remember him? Probably not. He's not even from my time. Anyways, one of my friends told me a scary story involving a doll coming to life. And I would never touch the doll or go in my room again until my mom got rid of it. There went that dream. Thanks to a friend I am now not following my dreams. haha.

3. A Magician. And so I got a magician kit for Christmas one year. And I would do all these awesome tricks (really they were about as lame as Jonathan's card tricks. ha). But, hey, not everyone is a good magician. I eventually gave that dream up when I realized no one was fooled by my tricks.

4. A singer. I wanted to move to Nashville and go to college there. All while trying to get a record deal.


It's funny the things we want to do growing up isn't it? Then God comes along and shows us how silly we are. And He molds our hearts to follow after what HE designed for us to do. And I am very thankful he called me to the mission field. All the other things seem even sillier when I consider where I am headed now.

God spoke to me during the service yesterday to this end. And reminded me of how important this call on my life really is. I have been kind of discouraged lately. Because of health issues in the family. Circumstances that don't make sense. And hard, hard things that I know friends of mine or my families are going through. And it's hard for me lately to not be emotional about it and wonder why God would do such a thing. J.D. Greear yesterday said he met a girl who claimed she believed in God but just didn't like him. She said he wasn't fair. Why would He allow everyone to suffer so much when He had all the power in the universe to stop it? And so this girl had decided God was her enemy. He wasn't for her. But he was against her. And I sat there in church thinking about how I sometimes don't understand God. But I don't want to head down the road of not liking him because my brain doesn't get it.

In the pew (well, really we sit in chairs...don't judge) I wanted to cry. Thinking about how unfair God seemed to be lately. And God spoke to me. He reminded me that HIS purposes are the main goal. That everything exists for His glory. And that it may seem cruel to allow the world to suffer in sin, disease and death. However, God doesn't find joy in these things. He is saddened just as much, if not more, by them than I am. See, He didn't want things to be like this. He designed them to be better. But we messed it up. And now the affects of sin an death are everywhere. But God also spoke to me saying even though it seems wrong to leave the world in suffering, he is actually being gracious? HOW, do you ask? Because He is giving people the chance to come to know him EVERY DAY! The longer he allows things to go on (no matter how crappy they are) HE allows His name to be proclaimed. And He is being gracious allowing people to not spend an eternity in hell. And that is a BIG DEAL! Therefore, we should be proclaiming His name. Allowing the world to not just continue in sin and suffering. But to hold out ultimate hope and joy. I don't know if that makes sense. But it was a big comfort to be reminded that while God is allowing some things, He has ulitmately conquered them and will come back again one day to show that so. But, he is also allowing suffering to continue so he can be gracious in other ways. Does that make sense? God articulated it better to my heart than I am articulating it now.

And so, I go on with hope. Realizing that my job is to proclaim Him to the world. To hold out his hope. And THIS is what I am going to do with the rest of my life. So forget the silly dreams I had when I was growing up that had nothing to do with God's purposes.