Watching “A Christmas Carol” is a holiday tradition. It might be the original 1938 version, the Muppet version or the 1988 “Scrooged” version. One of my favorite lines in the “Scrooged” version comes from the woman who plays the Ghost of Christmas Present, Carol Kane. She is hilarious in the role! When she first meets up with the main character, Frank Cross (played by Bill Murray), she slaps him in the face. He asks “Why did you do that?” Her response, “Sometimes you have to slap them in the face to get their attention”.
Cracks me up every time! Now, by no means do I encourage anyone to slap someone. It did get me thinking though, does God ever have to "slap" me to get my attention?
Psalm 34:4
“I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.”
1 Peter 5:7
“Turn all your anxiety over to God because he cares for you”
We all go through seasons. Seasons of sorrow. Seasons of joy. Seasons of waiting. Two of the three are not easy seasons. We might be on our knees a little more than usual. We intertwine more prayer time throughout our day. We cry out to the Lord to heal the hurt or speed up time. We pray for answers. We pray for blessings. We pray to move on to the glorious season of joy.
Once there, what do we do? Do we praise Him? Probably. Do we just kick back and relax and enjoy the green grass around us? For a while. Or, do we let that inner “Eve” in us come out questioning if there is more? More for us to experience. More blessings we need to have answered. All of a sudden, the gift of an answered prayer becomes the old toy, as we beg and plead and cry out for “more”.
This hit me extremely hard this holiday season. To understand, let’s go back to my Christmas past.
For years I prayed for a husband. I prayed for a home I could decorate during the Christmas season. I prayed for a place to hold bible studies and parties. I prayed and prayed and prayed.
He heard my cries and he answered my prayers. He allowed me to marry an amazing man. He gave us the guidance and ability to buy our first home together. He came through!
As we entered the Christmas season, you would think I would be chomping at the bit to decorate and buy every last thing I could find at Hobby Lobby to fill our new home with the Christmas spirit. But, I didn’t. Why. I wanted more.
Throughout this year my husband and I have tried to get pregnant. We went through two fertility treatments with no luck. In the beginning of October, after the second failed procedure, the doctor bluntly told me “you have bad eggs”. A heartbreaking blow to my dream of ever being a “mommy” naturally. The gift of a child was being denied this Christmas. I didn’t want to decorate or even acknowledge the holidays. However, my husband did. He asked time and time again if we could decorate and I would shrug my shoulders, blow it off and try to change the subject.
One morning, the Lord convicted me on my behavior toward my husband. He told me "when two become one, it's not always about your feelings. You need to put Brent's feelings above your own to minister to him". Boom, slapped. I thanked the Lord and told my husband “let’s decorate”.
We spent the rest of the day buying decorations (by this point 50% off) and making our home festive. I could see the joy in his face and the joy in his eyes as we did this together. He would continue to come up to me and hug me and thank me for doing this together.
As we stood back and admired our work, the Lord "slapped" me again reminding me of His answered prayers. I married a wonderful man. I have a beautiful home. I can decorate for Christmas and host parties and bible studies. I can enjoy the Christmas season with the one I love. I had been so preoccupied with wanting “more”, the Lord had to remind me of the blessings He has given.
Psalm 23:2-3
“He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for the sake of His name.”
It’s natural for us to go through life always looking to the future. Yet, as believers, God calls us to do the opposite. From Genesis through Revelation the Lord commands us to “not worry”. He wants us to soak in life at the point where He has us.
John 14:27
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
Right now, your life might not be what you always imagined. It might not be the season for the fruit of your dreams to blossom. We are challenged to adopt a new way of thinking, to put away the “selfish” desires and remember what God has done.
Don’t forget about your Christmas past and don't look past your Christmas present. Remember, the Lord has your Christmas future in His hands.
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