Merry Christmas and some questions for you to ponder
Hello and Merry Christmas!!! …well almost:)
I don’t know about you, but I’m getting super excited to celebrate! It feels like such a great way to bring to a close, a very challenging year. I’m not gonna lie though, I always love Christmas. It's nothing new to me just this year. For me, this season, set in the calendar of our lives, of watching and waiting for the birth of our Savior, Jesus, has a sense of comfort and joy to it. And, of course the opportunity to celebrate traditions with those I love.
Christmas look different,now that my kids are all grown and raised, and have families of their own, but different is ok with me, as long as I get to celebrate it with them!
I think one of the reasons I love it so much is that Christmas is all about WITH-NESS. It’s the essence of who God is——Emmanuel, God with us. And it’s the celebration of the wonder of it all! I don’t think I’ll ever grow tired of being reminded that I’m no longer alone. That there is a God, whose name is Jesus, who made a way for me to live in relationship with Him. One who took my filthy rags, made me holy and called me his very own.
Glory!!!
But every year, as I sit in this space during the last couple of weeks of December, I can’t help but also think about the year that we just lived through. Each year, I love looking back with curiosity and kindness—-paying attention to all the things. The gifts and blessings as well as the hard places and sitting with their memories, WITH God. After I’ve done this, talked through and felt the gratitude and the grief of it all, then I can look put on my hope and expectancy lenses and look forward.
It’s only then that I can lay out all the things I’m hopeful for and dreaming with God about, for the future and let it set my heart on fire. You see, I’m a starter and starters like beginnings. We’re like sparks, ready to ignite the next thing! Beginnings, for me, feel like a blank canvas that’s just waiting to be filled in with all matter of beauty, surprise and wonder.
Some of you can get on board with this and are even saying a hearty "amen" to all things future…all the planning, hoping and dreaming, with expectancy. For others, you’ve already clicked the tiny x at the left side of the top of the page. You ‘peaced out’ of this conversation. haha ....and that’s ok. We can’t all be the same, right?
So, for those who chose to stick around, I thought I would give you the gift, in this holiday season, of some of the questions that I’m using as a framework as I lean into 2021 with Jesus, Mike and the rest of my people.
There’s nothing magical or special about this set of questions. They just happened to be the ones that stirred up in me as I sat down and began this journey. So, if you’d like to use them, then awesome! And if you already have your own set of questions to use, know that I’ve already been praying for you as you enter into this dynamic experience.
Grace and Peace to you and your familyas you celebrate our Savior's birth and continue the practice of being watchful for what Jesus will do in 2021!
Oh, and DON’T FORGET TO BREATHE as you practice this exercise…(wink)
Questions to help you look back with curiosity and kindness and lean towards 2021 with hope and expectancy:
What are some things that were challenges or losses in 2020?
What hard things helped me to learn something new about God or myself…or both?
List some of the things I learned.
What were some of the gifts that 2020 ushered into my life?
Is there anything I was given that I could share with others? What are some tangible ways I live generously this year with my time, my treasures and my talents?
Who can/will I share this season’s journey with?
Who will I commit to pray for and with in 2021?
Who are some of the people in my life that I need to create more time and space for? People that help me flourish. How will I do that? (How often/when)
Who are some of the people I will make time for? Those who I can come alongside in their journey? How will I do that? (How often/when/how)
What are some rhythms and practices that I want to implement into my daily routine in the coming year?
What are some things I’m, courageously asking God for in 2021?
What am I dreaming of and hoping for in the next year? Am I keeping my dreams small?...why? What is one big dream I will courageously ask God for?
Who can I share my desires with?
Who can I ask to share their desires and dreams with me?
Make a gratitude list. Post it where I’ll see it regularly and keep a pen close by so you can add to it over the year!