Eyes Open, Ears Hearing Part I

How I love it when He reveals things to us at the right time. Tonight hubs and I were watching the book of John. It's a 3 hour movie. We only made it half way through. Can't wait to see the rest of it. So a part of this will come from a letter read, and another part or parts will come from the movie watched.

Today I woke up in pain pretty much every where, and as the day rolled on, I started to feel frumpy. I tried to rebuke it, push past it, but no good. I sat down and done the prayer sheet which usually has me floating on air, but no good. Hubs comes home and I'm still frumpy, not knowing why. I sat in the front room, mainly just wanting to be alone. I started cleaning up my desk and the remnants of Christmas decorating when I came across a mailing from Dr. Charles Stanley. This is when the first start of revelations happened.

In the letter Dr. Stanley talked about we all too often get caught up in the worldly ways of Christmas and often forget what Christmas really signifies. We forget the birth of Christ and why He came to earth. We forget the spirit of giving. Instead we are so wrapped up in how we must get this and that for so and so, and so and so. We worry about getting the latest gadgets, feeling we just must have them.

But that's not what it's all about. It's not about our desires, our wants, it's about Christ! It's about what God wants of us. Shouldn't we be more concerned about the widows and the children rather than ourselves? Shouldn't we be helping and caring for the needy? After all, doesn't He stand faithful to us?

I read farther and thought wow; this is the perfect answer to a problem I've been trying to find the right solution to. This year finances are very tight, but I'm not worried about it like I used to be. I know that Jehovah Rophe will provide. I also felt in my spirit that He is using this time to do some teaching. Not necessarily to us, but to our family. Our daughter has ran into financial difficulties as well, and well, Christmas is looking pretty bleak.

Christmas has always been big in our family. We wanted to give, give, give. Yes, it's good to an extent, but we often more than not, go over board. We don't want for the kids to want. I looked back at all the years of finding under the trees presents stacked high. I remember the delight in seeing all those. We never bickered though as to whether one got more than the other, or anything like that. We were just happy to have new clothes and toys.

We did however often wonder why some of our friends got more things and bigger and better things. We knew mom and dad couldn't afford those things, yet we still yearned. Never mind the friends that hardly got anything. Did we ponder that one. Well, yes, to some degree. Our hearts went out to them, but not like it should have.

So now I look at our grand kids who worry about how many each one gets and whether or not one got more or better things than the other. I am a firm believer in treating each one equally and try hard, but have blundered in previous years. I watch in wonderment as to how they can grab those packages, rip them open and toss it aside to do the same with each gift, then sit there and complain as they wanted this and that. My heart used to break over not being able to satisfy them.

I think back over how my daughter and I would stress over making sure we met their "desires". Now I kick myself as we didn't instill in them the real meaning of Christmas. Yes, giving to them and making them happy is a joy, but I also want them to "really" get the feeling of what it is all about. I wondered how to go about then when Dr. Stanley talked of how his son while sitting at the table as a teen and said, "Dad, I'm glad you didn't give me everything I wanted." Dr. Stanley asked him why he said that. Andy proceeded to tell him about how he has seen other kids messed up by getting everything they want. I too see that. Some become arrogant and aloof to those who do not have it all. Others are just plain greedy and don't know what it's like to give of themselves and so on. Their lives become a total mess, full of turmoil and stress.

So this year, there won't be a pile of gifts under the tree. I know they will have a hard time with that, but instead a good gift that will help create family time will be under the tree instead. Jesus will be discussed, parts of the Bible read, and the true Spirit of Christmas will fill our home. I know that some day they will be thankful that we changed our ways. I pray our daughter comes to the realization as well.

I will continue this story at a later date. I do have more revelation to add to this but a different subject. None the less it all falls under eyes open and ears hearing. Thank You Jesus!