Emmanuel

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Parties, shopping, decorations, bells at the grocery store and PLANS!!! You've got to do a lot of planning this time of the year in order to do everything you want to do and get your families all visited and taken care of. I am a master planner. In fact, if I'm not careful - 'the plan' will become my emphasis. I was making my 'plans' this weekend when our son looked at me and said, "How are we going to go all that?" I had such great ideas: cinnamon buns for breakfast followed by gift exchange followed by pictures/puzzles/cookie decorating and then on to lunch, movies and a family Christmas dinner with my brother and sister and their families. I was trying to fit candy making in with my daughters-in-law when it dawned on me that I COULD make it all work but would it really be fun?

I think that is where Emmanuel becomes such a precious reality to us. The name God gave us for Jesus is "God with us." No plans. No preparation. God with us - always, wherever, whenever, whatever. You can be intentional about spending time with Him and experience His presence more fully or you can be unintentional and miss Him or be surprised by Him. For He is always with you.

Our Christmas is really no different than the first one. Everyone was busy with their plans. Caesar Augustus had plans for everyone to go to their birth city for taxation. City managers were planning to fill the city coffers with hotel and dining money. Mary and Joseph planned to check in to a local hotel and deliver their firstborn. Things didn't exactly go as planned. They don't usually for ours either. Humans seem to get in the way of the best of plans.

It's easy for us to look back at that first Christmas and stand in amazement that they missed Jesus. Yet if we're not careful, we'll do the same. But He won't miss us. That was the entire point of God becoming a man. He wanted to live with us - within us. To be with us always. It's an amazing and wonderful gift. And it is our reality. God is with us.

The originator of Christmas is also the originator of families.......man.......and plans. He isn't opposed to any of those - in fact He just wants to be right in the middle of them. That is my intent this Christmas - to center Christ smack dab in the middle of my planning! I encourage you to do the same.