Tis the Season (and other expectations!) - A Five Minute Friday Post

I was sitting in front of this screen all day yesterday working on editing a wedding and by dinnertime I was so ready to look away and relax. Only I completely forgot it was Thursday!  So I made it late to the party, but I made it! If you haven't joined in with the #fmfparty community over on Twitter, I highly encourage you to come check us out next week! It's one of the most amazing, encouraging communities online!

This is Five Minute Friday (- a five minute timed free write) and our One Word Prompt for the day is: SEASON

{GO}

Tis the Season...

It's the first thing that came to mind when I saw the prompt because, of course!

And also because, it is! 

It IS the season...

"Tis the season to be jolly...fa la la la la, la la la la"

But here's the thing:
What if you're not? 

What if you are not feeling jolly?  What if you just can't muster up some Christmas cheer?  What if the deadlines and the headlines and the shopping lines all have you standing on your last nerve and what you really feel is anything but jolly? Anything but fa la la la la... what then?



I am well aware that I live a fairly charmed life. 

I am blessed and thankful and my disposition is one that leans more toward joy and jolly than it does toward depression and darkness... but this world we live in surrounds us on all sides and it pushes in tight.  Even if we somehow escape it, those we love feel that downward pull and the holidays seem to trigger so many open doors that the enemy just walks right in as if he was invited to the party.

I am learning the balance between slowing and giving in to the sadness and longing of Advent, and leaning in to the joy of the fact that He came... He is here, and He is coming again! 

There is a balance... a permission I think we must give ourselves and those around us, to feel both.  To feel the heaviness of this world, but to remember that we have a Savior who carries every burden... who paid the price and who bought our freedom and He promises that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. (It's just that sometimes we forget!)

At Christmas time, we remember that He came wrapped in swaddling clothes, laid in a manger... but let's not forget that He left His mark, His blood stained on a different kind of tree, --naked and laid out so He could beat death, hell, and the grave and rise up in victory, keys in His hand and Light shining forth!

I think we are called to be real, to be authentic, and for the love -let's not pretend and just push through this season! 

Let's be honest and if there is darkness around our edges, let's acknowledge it... let's ask for prayer... let's remember that Jesus is the Light of the world and oh my goodness how our world --our family, our friends, our neighbors, maybe even our own souls-- need to see how bright even a little Light can shine!

For truly, in this season, a weary world rejoices!

{STOP}

So don't put on that Pinterest-worthy mask of Perfection and push through the holidays only to find yourself drained and numb... instead, slow and give space for Him to hear your heart --for He already knows what is heavy on it.  I believe He wants you to remember that whatever is weighing you down, friend --If it concerns you then it concerns Him, too!

Do we want the Decked out halls and all the Jolly? Of course... let's look for the joy - let's expect it and make room for it! But if you just aren't feeling it... let's make room for that too.  

Let's remember that in our instant, we-want-it-now world - Jesus comes - but He never comes in a hurry. It took over 400 years of silence before a Child was born, before a Son was given... before the Messiah became flesh and blood among us.  So even in the quiet, in the darkness... He hears... He knows... He shines brightly!

Tis the Season to remember, more than anything else, this Truth:
He came!  He is Here!
 And He is coming for you, still!

Linking up with Kate Motaung and the #fmfparty Community today.  Five Minute Fridays gives us the chance to dive right in and share what He puts on our hearts! Click here to read what others have to say about "SEASON"

The FMF lowdown: The gathering happens on Twitter on Thursday nights & then we write our hearts out & hit publish all over the interwebs on Thursday & Friday (& sometimes on Tuesdays!) It's where we encourage & uplift... where we share prayer requests & praise reports... where we talk food & friends & we find support & kindred hearts. It's where we are reminded that life is good & God is good & we're not alone... & then we all write for five minutes flat, a flash mob of wordsmiths letting our hearts & our fingers do the talking tapping & we hit publish before we can second guess it all away. 


We'd love to have you join us!