A Covid Christmas

The holidays are upon us! Christmas and ringing in the new year with family and friends is a magical season. Make no mistake, this year is starkly different. The traditional gatherings have been almost non-existent between family and friends due to this Covid Christmas. Our house, which is usually a revolving door of Christmas visitors, has been shut tightly for now. Even so, I find myself once again desperate for more PEACE and JOY. How can this be, even in the midst of Covid simplicity? Nevertheless, internal panic erupts while I simultaneously try to press on in my own strength.

“How can I be such a failure?” runs through my mind. “I should have had my gifts ready for everyone by now, and all cards mailed out. It should have been easier THIS year. Next year it’ll be different and I’ll enjoy everything more because I’ll be more organized.” Suddenly I come to terms with the fact that I was never “behind” because there wasn’t ever a competitive “race to the finish” in the first place!

This year we have a rare Covid Christmas gift, which feels very unusual: a time where we CAN STOP doing and REFLECT more. In the busyness and hustle-bustle of every other Christmas season we have ever known, reflection on the true meaning of the season may have been an afterthought at best.

Last year at this time all I wanted was a break from so much holiday activity. Well, this year I got my wish but the struggle to DO, DO, DO has resurfaced once again! So, here’s a letter for all of us who tend to be “the anxious one.”

Dear Anxious One,

I get you. You wake up and start your mental gymnastics of all that has to be done and in what order it will be most efficient. There are days you dread because you know you won’t give yourself a “break.” No matter how much you finish in a day, the laundry list of “to-do’s” for tomorrow has already been written.

If you aren’t careful you will let anxiety become part of your daily identity, destroying your love for life and the ability to live in the moment. When you are in “panic mode” to accomplish you aren’t present with anyone; your family watches you and observes your routine that constantly takes precedence OVER them.

My advice to you, dear one: do what seems most impossible to do and STOP. Stop for a day, for an hour, or just 15 minutes (you gotta start somewhere)! Give yourself PERMISSION to stop. Fight against busyness with prayer, time with Your Father (reading The Bible and singing worships songs), and doing LESS. Yes, LESS. Tidying up is fine but an immaculate house every day is UNattainable. Close your eyes, put your feet up, and call your children over to cuddle, snuggle and BE with you. You CAN override your goals for the day if you have set yourself up for unnecessary and harmful levels of stress. Make your mental checklist shorter and your emotional and spiritual well-being top priority instead. STOP what you’re doing, take time to SEE His creation, and BE still. STOP, SEE, BE.

I understand you because I AM YOU. We share this struggle but we don’t have to let it overtake us. I can’t tell you it will be quick and easy, but if we press into Jesus He promises that He will give us a SECURE victory (John 16:33).

Can we really believe that if we come to Our Heavenly Father He will give us rest as it says in Matthew 11:28-30? We MUST TRUST The One who died and conquered the GRAVE! Death was no match for Our God, Our Deliverer. HE is ABLE and WILLING to liberate YOU today from the stronghold of anxiety that perpetuates bondage, perfectionism, isolationism, narcissism, and spiritual apathy. WAKE US UP to YOUR HEART, oh God, that we may once again walk in PRECIOUS PEACE.

With all the people suffering from illnesses in this season, including the coronavirus in particular, may we honor them and not miss the opportunity to embrace the SLOWING DOWN fully. For me it has been cleaning and organizing MUCH LESS because kids are here to make marvelous memories. Next year Christmas is looking like it’ll be “normal” again; people will resume meeting together, perhaps like never before! Someday I think we’ll miss this”Covid Christmas” we once had, because it meant BEING over DOING. In this interim period I am thankful for LESS, for I have begun to experience HIS PEACE and PERMISSION to BE and NOT DO. STOP, SEE and BE.

A few weeks ago I asked my kids what we can give to God for Christmas. My youngest child Davin, at four years old, responded without missing a beat: “Love. He wants our love.” Let’s not forget whose birthday this is, after all. Read below for a beautiful way that you can demonstrate your LOVE for Our Savior, Our God.

Love to you all, dear TREES OF HOPE! Take a few more moments and listen to the songs below. This is my Christmas gift to each of you: time worshipping Our King together in spirit! Leave me a note to let me know you were here. God bless you, dear ones! Have a very merry Christmas!