Focus

The shopping frenzy is done. Now it's time to remember what this holiday is really about.

I'd love to say I purposely saved my baking and gift mailing for next week because the kids will be home and they can help me share the spirit of Christmas with our faraway friends and loved ones. I'd really be feeling like an amazing mom if I could say that. But let's be real. I'm me. And the truth is I am making secret presents this week and have no time for baking and mailing. The kids will be able to help and share in all that by default.

I take no credit for it. But, I still think it will be fun.

We do make an effort every year to remind the kids what the gifts actually represent. I'm fortunate enough to have kids who don't put a lot of emphasis on what they WANT for Christmas. So many times I'm the one asking them because I'm not sure what to buy, or what to suggest to family. Sometimes I feel like I'm raising kids too tender for this world. They understand the spiritual nature of our roles here so well.

For the record, I don't take credit for that either. They are simply amazing, even though they have the ability to completely frazzle my nerves and dance on my last shred of patience. I mean, they are children. Let's be fair.

I hope all of you can take a bit of time this crazy season to let a little truth into your hearts. That sweet manger scene isn't just a prop after all.

I'm SO Glad when Daddy Comes Home!

I'm not going to spend a lot of time here--haven't seen the hubby in 6 weeks, people--but I did want to say how awesome it was this morning when he went in to each kid's rooms and woke them up for school. The reactions were pure joy and utterly priceless. It was better than when we surprised them with a trip to Disneyland. Loved it.

Also, with him coming home earlier than we'd initially thought, I scrambled to get my BofM reading done, and finished Monday. Awesome. I'm starting over. It has helped me so much!

Have a fantastic day. I'm going to.

Reader, Beware!

I'm going to get religious here for a bit, so if you don't want to get that intimate--stop reading now.

Ok, you asked for it. No apologies now.

I read a lengthy portion of Elizabeth's Smart's testimony of her treatment in the hands of Brian David Mitchell today. I have so much respect and empathy for that young woman. What she endured; her bravery--the times she tried to deny him. Kidnapped in the middle of the night, her family threatened, forced into a farce of a marriage and imprisoned for months. The fact that she's so whole now is a testament to her faith and the healing power of God.

Watch this girl. She's going to contribute something incredible to the kingdom of God. Maybe in little ways; maybe not. But let's break this down. For nine months, ironically the length of time it takes a child to grow in the womb, she was attacked on all fronts--physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. The man attacking her is so possessed by evil it has polluted every aspect of his mind. He's not insane or weak minded. He's cold, calculating and a sociopath. He used every device at his disposal to destroy her, to make her malleable and submissive. And it didn't work.

God protected her. I'm sure in those dark moments of despair she had to have doubted, had to have wondered why this had happened to her. An innocent child of 14 taken from everything familiar and abused in the worst ways. Yet the woman she has become is a testament to the healing power of faith, to the special gift of love of family and to the power of a loving God.

It may not have always seemed like it, Elizabeth, but God is with you. And He loves you. Serve well, my sister.