Last Sunday, I had an opportunity to talk to a dear lady, who has faithfully served in our choir for many years. Now, health issues prevent her from singing with us. As I held her hands, we expressed our love for each other. She said, “When I look at the choir, I am right there with you in my heart.”
This brief conversation with this precious friend reminded me that love and togetherness are an integral part of the Christmas season.
Making Time
Busyness is the bane of spending time with others. Are our schedules really that busy? Or is busyness an excuse to avoid carving out time to be with friends and family.
We make time for what holds a place of importance in our lives. None of us know the number of our days. Time may be short for those we hold dear, so make spending time with them a priority.
Loving Family
Although I am an only child, I have cousins by the dozens, and was blessed to grow up with parents who maintained close ties with their parents and siblings.
Family gatherings, at Christmas, and other times of the year, were filled with laughter and fun. I miss those days and the loved ones who are no longer with us, but am thankful for the ties that continue to bind me to cousins.
Love your family well. Forgive when needed and don’t allow hurts, or perceived wrongs, to separate you.
Cherishing Friends
During the time since Jim’s death, almost two years now, the love, support, and prayers of friends have helped me navigate grief and widowhood. God has been my guide, but friends held up my arms when I was too weary and grief-stricken to hold them up on my own, or make any headway with forward motion.
Sometimes, we take friendships for granted and don’t cherish them as a God-given gift. Now, and in the coming year, be sure to express love and gratitude to friends for all they mean to you.
Gratitude for God’s Great Love
In this season, we are remiss if we do not acknowledge the love, compassion, and forgiveness of God our Creator. Because of God’s great love for us, He gave us the greatest gift of all, His son, Jesus, to bridge the gap between sinful humanity and Himself.
Through Jesus’s sacrifice, we have forgiveness of sins, and fellowship with God the Father.
This Christmas, give thanks for God’s great love.
“This is the embodiment of true love: not that we have loved God first, but that He loved us and sent His unique Son on a special mission to become an atoning sacrifice for our sins. So, my loved ones, if God loved us so sacrificially, surely we should love one another” (1 John 4:10-11 VOICE).
©CandyArrington
Candy Arrington is an award-winning writer, blogger, and speaker. She often writes on tough topics with a focus on moving through, and beyond, difficult life circumstances. Candy has written hundreds of articles, stories, and devotions published by numerous outlets including: Inspiration.org, Arisedaily.com, CBN.com, Healthgrades.com, Care.com, Focus on the Family, NextAvenue.org, CountryLiving.com, and Writer’s Digest. Candy’s books include Life on Pause: Learning to Wait Well (Bold Vision Books), When Your Aging Parent Needs Care (Harvest House), and AFTERSHOCK: Help, Hope, and Healing in the Wake of Suicide (B&H Publishing Group).
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