Not Done Yet

She tugged back on his hand and said, “No, G-dad, I not done yet.” We were in the mall, slowly strolling along and taking in all the Christmas decorations with our 2 ½ year old granddaughter, Senna. Both my husband, Mike (aka G-dad), and I were enjoying watching the wonder in Senna’s eyes and the smiles and expressions of joy on her face even more than looking at the decorations. We had stopped at a window with an animated fox and bear giving each other presents. We were there for several minutes, watching the scene repeat itself many times, when Mike gently pulled Senna’s hand, and said, “Ok, let’s go on”. After Senna informed us that she wasn’t finished watching this yet, we stayed a few more minutes until she had time to soak it all in.

Mike and our terrific son, Dan.

This made me wonder how much I miss by moving on too quickly. This beautiful Christmas season, I have been really savoring the moments, and I hope you have, too. From stopping for an extra few minutes gazing at Christmas decorations to spontaneous parades with Senna singing Jingle Bells, Joy to the World, and other carols in the house, to laughing and goofing off jumping in front of our Christmas tree, it has been a joy-filled season. As Jim Elliott stated: “Wherever you are - be all there.”

There is so much beauty and joy all around us, not just in shop windows, but also in the people surrounding us. As the saying goes, “The eyes are the window to the soul”. So I encourage you to slow down and gaze into not just holiday decorated windows, but also into the windows, that is, the eyes, of the people all around you.
“Joy to the world, the Lord has come!”

        ~ Sarah

G-dad and me.    

Senna helping with cookie baking. ;)

Senna sampling the cookies while her daddy and mommy decorate them.
(our wonderful daughter and son-in-law, Amy and Dave)

Misjudging the Sunlight

Her face was all scrunched up, rather looking like she was scowling. I was a young teenager, and my mom was driving me somewhere. Truthfully, I don’t remember where we were heading. However, I do remember us making a turn and passing a woman at a stop sign. She was waiting to pull out onto the road, and her head was turned towards us. I said to my mom that she sure looked mad. My mom took a look at her and told me that the woman was simply squinting, because the sun was in her eyes. As I took a second look, I saw that my mom was right. The sunlight was streaming directly in the woman’s eyes, and she was squinting to try to see.

This happened a long time ago, but the memory of it has always stuck with me. How many times do I still jump to conclusions and misjudge people? The answer, unfortunately, is still way too many times. I try to look at the whole picture and also think about the fact that we never know all that is going on in someone else’s life. It seems to me that it’s a great idea to look at others with a lot more grace and a lot less judgment. I know I hope others will look at me that way.

One of my favorite verses says, “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.” (1 John 4:16). How I want my life to be marked by love! Thankfully, this is actually possible. It is only possible because of Jesus and the fact that He is changing me as I yield to Him. It is definitely a process and not an overnight change, but like the psalmist, I pray, “I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills His purpose for me.” (Psalm 57:2).

God is always faithful and always loving. You can count on it!

~ Sarah