Pondering these things.....

It's been a full weekend of Christmas activity, and although I'm suffering from "light righteousness" - that's the condition from whence one's righteousness comes from their being able to get their Christmas lights up and get their Christmas lights to work, I've been struck by a couple of things this Christmas that are of more significance...
First, I was struck by the sermon last nite at church. After we had ogled at Katherine's performance with the kids, Jon M. talked about the fact that he's not a very good receiver. Now, with the understanding that he's not talking football, I was really struck and challenged by his thoughts. One of the things that we've been trying to do with the girls is to instill a sense of appreciation for what we have and for what we are receiving this Christmas. It's always a challenge with kids to make the concept of appreciation and thankfulness one that sticks, but after Jon's sermon, I realized that part of the problem is that those who are instructing need a lesson as well.
Jon talked about how hard it is to receive from others - whether it's a gift, help with daily tasks or even a simply compliment. And as he talked, I realized that I am as bad as anyone in this category. I have always felt somewhat awkward at that moment after opening a gift from someone - a combination of trying to show appreciation and realizing that someone is doing something out of the kindness and generosity of their hearts. It's a very difficult thing for me to feel comfortable in such a situation, and it really challenged me to be a better "receiver" myself - even as I teach my children to do the same.
The other thing that struck me the other day was a conversation we had about the Baby Jesus in the manger. On Saturday, we were at a church Christmas party, and the discussion happened to turn to setting up manger scenes. One of the couples mentioned that one year, they were attempting to set up the manger scene, but Jesus was no where to be found. It turned out that one of the children had put the Baby Jesus in Mary's arms, not in the manger. We were thinking about the fact that here was a baby, yes Jesus, but at the same time a baby. We always see Jesus in the manger, but in reality, one would think that this young couple, who had gone through so much in the past 9 months, would not even let the Baby Jesus out of their arms. We realized that perhaps our connection to our faith is quite similar - we look at our faith and admire it. We gaze on it lovingly, and are even thankful for the joy that it brings us. At the same time, we don't pick up our faith and embrace it. Our love for our faith is at arm's reach, not the love of a mother's embrace.
Something to think about as we go through Christmas....