Hope Full

It is that time of year.  The time of year when trees and lights go up, stockings hang waiting to be filled and children eagerly await a visit from Santa.  It is the time of year for celebrating with the ones we love and filling our bellies with way too much food.  This time of year is beautiful. It is a time where we are reminded to slow down and be thankful for what we have and the people we are walking through life with; however, for most of us, slowing down is the last thing we do at Christmas time.  Instead we get held hostage by our to-do lists and the posts of all the amazing things other people are doing for their family remind us how we are falling short.  How do they have time to be so creative with their Elf on a Shelf?  He roasts tiny marshmallows over a candle flame, really?!  I am lucky if I remember to move Buddy to a different tree limb or bookshelf right about the time I am about to drift off to sleep.  I don't think people who do silly things with their elves are bad people.  It's just one more thing I measure myself against.  Another area I find myself falling short.  Will Jack somehow grow up to be less successful because his Elf wasn't as sneaky or creative?  I doubt it.  It is stupid really to even care about this, but my point is it is just one of the many things that distracts me this time of year from what I should really be focused on.

We are in the season of Advent.  A time of expectation, anticipation and hope.  We have hope because God is faithful and fulfills His promises to us.  Hope that our Savior, who was born in a manger among the animals, who now sits at the right hand of God the Father, hears our prayers and calls us to lean into Him, be still and have faith.  The problem for me is the reality of this time of year leaves me lacking in the hope department.  Those moments where I am using all four limbs in vain, attempting to straighten, tighten and balance a six foot tree without it crashing to the ground, do not leave me feeling hopeful.  Instead I feel lonely and wonder if I will ever have a partner again.  I also wonder will I ever go into this time of year not stressing about money.  Money or the lack of is another stealer of joy during this season.  This year in particular, I am straddling the fence about what to do about our house and our living situation.  The anxiety it is causing me some days makes me want to just skip Christmas and try again in March.  I don't want to be thinking about these things today.  I want to be baking cookies with my son, blasting Christmas tunes, watching the Polar Express and riding the Pink Pig and be completely present and not distracted by the joy stealers in my life.  I want to be alive with the hope of what Jesus's birth means for me.  I want to be moved by the promise of what God has in store for me and for my son.

So, despite of the blaring reminders of what is lacking in our lives, how do we come alive with hope?  How do we go from hopeless to hopeful?  How do we erase from our minds all of the areas we are falling short and instead celebrate our victories and our lives exactly where they are?  We lean in.  We continue to believe this is not it.  There is more.

I have a good friend who recently suffered from a life changing accident.  It has left him at the mercy of other people.  He has to depend on everyone else to do pretty much anything and for someone as independent, strong-willed and maybe a little stubborn as he is, that is not easy.   Hopelessness is creeping into his life where inspiration and adventure once lived.  How does one recover from that place and prevent the dangerous and slippery slide into depression?  We lean in.  We continue to believe this is not it.  There is more.

We have all experienced things that have changed our lives, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse.  We have all been in that place where we question what our purpose is or what the point is in fighting the fight anymore.  We think what we are is not enough.  He was enough though.  Born in a manger, to a virgin mother and wrapped in swaddling clothes He went on to become the King, the Lamb of God sent to save us.  We are enough no matter where we are.  No matter if we remember to move our Elf on the Shelf or whether we have to call a friend to help us put on our shoes.  No matter how extravagant or seemingly inadequate our gifts are, we are enough.

So, during this season of Advent I am going lean in and be hopeful.  I will continue to believe in His promises and not be distracted by what I cannot control.  I will not weigh myself against everyone else and beat myself up for what I can't accomplish.  I will pray for strength to remember this is not it.  There is MORE.