A Time of Rest in a Season of Stress

I fully intended to post this week about the Write It, Learn It, Live It Bible Study Method for kids. I feel so passionate about that and want to further explore ways to help our kids learn the Bible, and yet every time I sit down to post I find myself staring at a white screen.
As I ponder my white screen I realize something: this time of year can become like spiritual kryptonite for me. Ironic isn’t it given the real reason for the season? During this time of year my quiet time often gets replaced with shopping time. My Bible reading time vanishes with the push of a snooze button. I am constantly weighing my gift list against my bank account. And I awake in the middle of the night realizing I forgot to buy so-and-so a present.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Christmas. However, the older I get the more I long for a more simple Christmas experience – one with fewer gifts and more quality time with loved ones. A Christmas spent focusing more on the Savior and less on my to-do list. A season of reflection instead of stress. And a time-out from the ordinary to experience the extraordinary.
So as I contemplate my white screen (which is now filling up nicely), I have decided to fight for the simpler Christmas I desire, which means making some purposeful changes; and writing them here for accountability purposes 🙂
I will stick to the Christmas list my husband and I wrote in November. Which means I will not give into the last minute shopping frenzy when I feel an overwhelming urge to go buy more because – oh my word they have enough!
I have moved my Bible and notebook to my bedroom so that I will do my quiet time before descending the stairs in the morning.
I will linger with my family, watch movies and bake cookies with my kids, and talk often to my Savior and about my Savior (after all it is His celebration).
And finally, while I LOVE this blog and those who willingly read my ramblings, I am going to take a break until after Christmas. With kids out of school, my alone time is at a premium and I want to use those precious quiet moments to fill my heart with the living water only Jesus can give.
I can’t pour out what I have not been filled with. I want more of Jesus. I want to overflow with Him. And so I am going to spend the next week or so refusing to accept little drips here and there, and am instead going to purposefully sit at His feet and drink from His well.
I have rediscovered my love of handwritten journaling. Just me, Jesus, and a notebook. I love to write my prayers to Him, to scribble down a Bible verse that touches my heart. I even write down questions to Him. I am excited to unplug a little this season and ask the One we celebrate to help me keep my eyes, my attention, and my heart on Him this season.
I am so excited to pick back up at the beginning of the year and explore the Write It-Learn It-Live It Method for kids. I am also so anxious to share what God will have taught me during this time, but until then I will be fighting hard against the Christmas stress so that I can savor my moments with the Savior.
Much love to you and your families and have a very Merry Christmas,
Jen