As the "holiday" time of year approaches, I look forward to family time. Our family makes a big deal out of preparing for our favorite holidays - Thanksgiving and Christmas. I love the theme of thankfulness that wraps itself around the Thanksgiving season, providing numerous opportunities to remember and be thankful for the Lord's abundant blessings. I love the focus on giving at Christmas and our celebration of the greatest Gift of all, the Savior, Jesus Christ.
It is a blessing to me to see how my young adult children are fully participating in these celebrations of love by adding their insights, suggestions, and sometimes bringing their friends into the mix! They've challenged our old traditions with new ideas causing our family to be in a transition time. This is good! I love seeing through their eyes that these traditions have become more than being just about "us." As gifts to some family members last year, our daughter and son-in-law donated money for projects benefiting needy children around the world. Friends who don't live near to their families will be invited to join us at our table for holiday meals. Each year we focus more on what we have in the Lord rather than what we have on earth.
This impact has come from my children - from the ways their world views have been challenged and their lives have grown spiritually at George Fox. I respect and admire the people they have become (and are becoming.) They constantly challenge me to get out of my comfort zones! I hope you are welcoming and enjoying similar changes in your home. Thanks be to God for His blessings to us!
