Merry Christmas!
December 2024

By Alan Weihausen

Was at my mom’s house recently and she asked me if I remembered the Sears Wish Book and JCPenney catalogs. Are you kidding? I loved looking at them and writing out my Christmas list. Had to start at the back cuz that’s where the toys were.

 Days go by slow…years go by fast!  I say this as I wipe a small lump in my throat out of my eye. Seems like yesterday that I was in the full blown joy of a little boy waiting for Christmas Eve to get here. Seems like yesterday that I spent my first Christmas with my wife in our one bedroom apartment at college. Seems like yesterday that I watched the magic unfold on my own children’s faces. 

 There is no pause button on your day-to-day…life is always on PLAY…but I’m not too sure that the PLAY button isn’t running faster than it used to. 

 Sitting here tonight in the quiet lights of our tree…honestly asking where the roar of Christmas past went. I loved them all. The memories so thick. I pray God will give me many more to come. But tonight I feel a pull…a tug on the ol’ heart to take a deep breath and be still. 

 No one can stop time…but I’ve heard the great ones can slow it down. I’m gonna try that. I’m going to purposefully slow down to a crawl this year. Take it all in…and try my best to spend as much time as I can with Jesus. I will freely and sadly admit my life has become a blur the past few years. Living too fast…getting through each day with the wrong end game in mind.

 “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”” Psalms 46:10 NIV

 December…mass chaos at high volume!  How can you find-or make-time to simply “be still”?

 “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2: 10-11

 Christmas…faith, hope, and love in the form of a baby. 

 How can we daily keep Jesus as the guest of honor at His birthday?

 Gonna pray more…gonna praise more…more purpose…more patience…less play…more pause.  

The secret to driving on a bumpy road??? Drive slower. Find a little joy in the journey. 

 Wishing you a mighty calm before the chaos.