Jennifer Kay Smith
in love with creativity & its sourceArchive for Uncategorized
desires change
This year I really only asked for alternative gifts. Money donated to things that really matter. And sometimes we do that in life to impress people or to feel better about all the things we waste during the year. But it’s great to watch the things we desire change. Several years ago, if I asked for that, it would have been a sacrifice. I would have missed all the things for me. But this year, I was overwhelmed with gratitude and joy at the simplicity of gifts. It meant so much that people around me tried to think about Christmas differently.
Some of the highlights:
- Gratitude Box from my parents, husband & siblings (we all wrote things we appreciated about each other)
- World Vision chickens from Kerri (she put tons of feathers in a box, I thought there was a dead chicken in the shoe box!)
- HIV/AIDS Caregiver Kit from Jason & Brooke
- Sister necklace from my siblings
- UMCOR gift donated by my parents
- My new amazingly comfortable recliner (my husband went WAY over our agreed upon spending limit but I LOVE it!)
- Year subscription to Rev Magazine (love this magazine!)
- Lots of gift cards to shop with!!
- Spending time with my aunt, uncle & cousins, my husband’s family and seeing my family open some of their presents on webcam in Alaska (jealous of all their snow!)
I hope your Christmas & New Years are filled with moments that catch you off guard. Moments you internalize how much love, family and faith matter in our lives.
christmas eve
I’m not sure I can adequately describe what happened tonight. I hosted at the 3pm Frederick Pike service. Then stopped by my office to check email before the 5pm service. I wrote my dad an email, as he was preparing for 5 services at his church in Anchorage. I closed it by saying,
“I hope you’re surprised by joy tonight.”
It struck me how we try to manufacture the perfect Christmas moments. If we get the perfect gift, the best food, the right people around the table, then Christmas will be meaningful. We’re blind to a million moments that could fill us with joy because we’re too busy creating moments.
Are you too busy to be surprised by joy?
So we start the 5pm service and everytime I looked at the Jesus figurine on the altar, tears stream down my face. I can’t believe we get to do this. I can’t believe Jesus loves me that much that he would leave heaven and choose to get involved in our mess. I’ve never felt so close to God. Singing David Crowder’s O Praise Him rocked!
After worship, I hopped in my car to get to the YMCA service at 7pm and worshipped along with the radio all the way there. It’s been a great evening!
For those of us that work in the church, we’re often in danger of missing the point. We’re around everything so much that we get used to it.
I’m so thankful for moments I’m surprised and amazed all over again. Merry Christmas!!
our christmas newsletter
For the last two years, we’ve decided to put our Christmas newsletter online. Glad we can cut some costs and show a lot more pictures than we could fit on paper. Enjoy!
