Monday, December 28, 2009

i hope you feel full

How do you feel…now that Christmas is over?  You should think about that.

Four thoughts:

There’s a thief.  He comes only to take and never to give.  He’s sneaky.  Most of the time we don’t even realize he's robbing from us.

There’s a good shepherd.  He comes to give full life.  He even gives of himself so that we can fully live.

There’s a beaver.  I often run past a tree he’s killing.  Never seen the beaver.  But I know he’s there.  His destruction never sleeps.  Even when I’m sleeping, he’s busy… destroying.  Like those who, in their greed, teach things that are not true.

There’s a paradox: Some who have everything are actually very empty.  Others who have almost nothing are very full. 

How do you feel?  If you’ve bought-in to the deceptive, destructive cultural message which is only amplified at Christmas, you’re probably surrounded by lots of things.  But I wonder if there’s a haunting sense of emptiness to it all.  If, instead, you’re choosing a better story: one about loving, serving, and giving, then you probably have less stuff, but I bet you feel full.

(John 1:1-4, 3:16, 10:10, 17:13, and 2 Peter 3)

1 comment:

Jean Kocher said...

Since giving my life over to Christ, and especially this Christmas, I've blocked out all the media hype and lures to spend my money on frivolous things. I need to do more giving. Cleaning house from Christmas day was an abomination for me. It was a hard day for me because everyone was enjoying their "stuff" while I was filled with the Holy Spirit but felt alone. I was unable to express my thoughts and feelings due to religious differences. How do you go into it with Orthodox Greeks? With joyful silence. . .