The eve of Christmas Eve! It’s finally the week of Christmas! So exciting!  As I finish up last minute preparations for the holidays this week, I am so looking forward to spending time with my family.

These past few weeks have been a blur of activities from Christmas banquets, Christmas parties, Christmas open houses, and preparing a float for a Santa Claus parade all while trying to do all the normal day to day stuff like working, keeping up with laundry and housework, and trying to manage the schedules of two busy teenagers with our own schedules!

I love the holidays for the time it gives us as a family to spend a little extra time together, to have the opportunity to see and visit with extended family and for the break in hectic schedules!

Family and home is what I’m thinking about today.  In preparing for the holidays, a lot of time and thought goes into planning out our few days together, and as a mother, I always want my family to love what we’re doing together and for things to go well. I know I’m not alone in my feelings as a mom.

Whether we have a lot of material possessions or just a few, love can make a home out of just about anywhere for a family.

Thinking about Mary and the journey she and Joseph had to take because of the census so late in her pregnancy, I wonder about her feelings as a mother. She ended up giving birth in a stable to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.  I’m sure that Mary wanted to give her son the very best.  Mother’s want the very best of everything for their children. In the midst of that stable, holding her new born son, Mary created a home as best she could for that first night as a family.  Using a manger for a crib shows us how resourceful  Mary was.

There are many families that struggle financially during the holidays, many that struggle financially all the time. Regardless of how much money you have or don’t have, you can be rich in loving your family. As wives and mothers as we love our families and do our best to provide a comfortable home for our children. It’s our attitudes that can set the tone in our homes. As much as I don’t like the statement, there is some truth in it – ‘If momma ain’t happy, ain’t no one happy’.

Not sweating the big stuff, and figuring out how to be content with what we have and where we are, these are big steps towards finding peace and being able to pour out our love for our families.

With all the stress and busyness of the holidays I would like to encourage you to take a moment or two to pause and be grateful for whatever you have. Whether it’s your health, your family, a warm home, a good meal, or something else, there is always something to be thankful and grateful for. Focus on the positives and on making your home a happy place for your family.

If Mary, with her love, could make a home in a stable for the King of Kings, we can make homes filled with love for our families. A home is not about ‘stuff’,  it’s about people and our relationships with them.

I’m praying that you will have a wonderful Christmas and will be able to make time to spend with the people who mean the most to you.

Be blessed.