We heard the bell ringing across the parking lot before we saw the red bucket and the Santa-capped volunteer sitting in front of Walmart. My son knows the drill. His chubby fingers lifted towards me. “Money, Momma?” I smiled and sighed inwardly, reaching into my purse to scrape for loose change. I had already given out most of it to …
“No room.” Most of us have heard the story. The fabled innkeeper who turned away Mary and Joseph in their hour of need. The calloused man has become a staple in the Christmas story, though he’s never mentioned in the Bible. No, really. The only Gospel that makes mention of there being ‘no room’ is Luke chapter two. Check it …
I’m a beautiful mess this time of year. And I’ve learned that’s okay. For years I lost precious sleep, valuable hair and added circles under my eyes to achieve the perfect Christmas. For my kids. For my husband. For my church. For my own ridiculous ideals. Christmas is the mother ship for us perfectionist types. Correction, recovering perfectionists, because that’s …
A stable foreshadowing a tomb. A weary girl trembling with fatigue and pain. A father with the weight of a new family pressing on his shoulders. A king gripped with fear that the Promised Child will be his undoing. And shepherds, their limbs trembling as angels announce a message that rocks their world to the core. Yet amidst these poignant …
When asked what my favorite Christmas song is, a dozen tunes flicker through my mind—a bubbly, upbeat version of “White Christmas”, “Be Born in Me”, “Winter Wonderland” or my guilty pleasure, “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”—all top the list. But the one that never grows old and gives me sweet chills every time I hear it is “O Holy Night”. The …
Past stars and galaxies, the glittering lights of mysteries beyond I flew. I was not alone. No, an entire heavenly congregation soared with me. We danced past shimmering hosts and luminescent wonders, winging and dancing, spiraling and speeding past the diamonds of the Holy One’s masterpiece until we pushed past the transparent glass of the blue marbled planet’s firmament. I breathed in …
This past week I was making my usual ‘it’s about to storm so I must stock up on bread, milk and eggs’ run…oh yes, and chocolate. (Don’t judge me.) As I perused through the shoe aisle (did I mention shoes?), I suddenly became aware of a burst of Christmas cheer coming from the aisle next to mine. A group of …