Thinking of Christmas

Hi everyone. Well, here I am, at home, recovering from this cold that descended rapidly upon me after our return to Orlando. Of course, the free time I find myself with is too precious to sleep away. So even though I feel crappy I'm shuffing stuff around the house and unpacking all of our wonderful Christmas goodies, and generally being neurotic as usual. I had some thoughts before Christmas and I have some now as well. I think all of you know that Katie and I were planning to stay in a hotel, fully on my desire and with the purpose of avoiding some of the chaos and giving my allergies a rest. As you all know those reservations myseriously fell through. That very same night, we downloaded a sermon from Summit, our church. I can't remember if I told this to any of you or not. In this sermon our pastor Isaac pointed out that in the biblical account of Jesus' birth, there seemed to be a marked emphasis on the fact that he was born in a manger. This has a purpose. A stable was a messy place, where animals were often born. They also ate and pooped and peed there. The manger was in the center of this mess. The message is that Christ was not afraid of our messiness and the disarray of our lives, and that God put Jesus right where we need him to be: in the thick of it. When I heard that, it was as clear to me as anything has ever been that I needed to stay with dogs and cats and all of you freaks :) Because I love you all so very much. Despite my wheezing (thanks for the inhaler, Kim), it was a great time. I am so thankful most of all for my beautiful wife Katie, but also for this entire family, who does Christmas in a big way with even bigger hearts. Thank you for the overabundance of goodness. Praise Yahweh for the goodness and mercy He shows all of us the entire year through. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!