Sunday Reflections

I am now officially ready for the Christmas season! Not that all of my decor is up, or that all of my gifts have been purchased/prepared, but today I was finally filled with the true spirit of Christmas. As one of our friends put it this weekend, Keegan and I are "die hards" when it comes to Christmas everything! The day after Thanksgiving marks the official kick-off for us. Music, movies, decorations, and all. We've found the best local radio stations and online shoutcasts for our listening pleasure and I've also made a station using Pandora for Christmas music. Our daily Christmas movie starts at 8pm. (All are welcome if you're in the area :-) But even with all of the festivities, I wasn't quite in the Christmas mood yet and it was sad.

I got most of Keegan's present this week and tried to be as sneaky as possible about it. I was absolutely giddy afterward! It was so fun knowing I got him something he would use, like, and really appreciate and do this behind his back. (It is really difficult to keep secrests from him...especially since 90% of the time he can easily guess what I got him!) So this helped me get in the mood, but I still wasn't quite there yet....until today!

There is a lady at our church that I think is a great example of being Christ-like and is just a genuine happy and loving person. Her name is Judy. Well, every week, the women and men break up into groups and have a gospel centered lesson. This week my friend Judy taught. She had a great segue after the Christmas song we sang about the many reasons why Christmas is such a great time of year. She had a gift for each of us because that is a part of the season she enjoys, and inside along with some candy, was a small piece of paper. On it was listed the greatest "gifts" that I've been given: The gift of the Holy Ghost, the gifts of the spirit, the gift of agency, and the gift of the atonement.

We talked about the doctrine behind each of these things, and some of the women shared some really sincere, heartfelt experiences that they had relating to these gifts and how they had bettered their lives and made them more sweet. I have to admit its easy for me to get teary-eyed when talking about these kinds of things, just because I feel so strongly that they're true because my life has been better because of them...but it was just what I needed to have that Christmas spirit come and stay. I had to remember the gifts that I've been given because of that first Christmas that last all year long and make a difference to me and my family.

I hope that made sense... but I'm grateful that there are great people in the world like Judy that have such great perspectives and are willing to share them. The rest of church was great too... Keegan taught a great lesson in Sunday School and I just left church feeling completely energized and ready to face the world! So bratty and out-of-control 5th hour high school class that gave me a bad time last Friday- you are in for it this week if you like like it or not! haha And now whenever we watch a Christmas flick or listen to Christmas music or I do other things to get ready for Christmas day, I can remember those great gifts and think about what I can do to better implement them in my life and share them with others.

D&C 88: 33
For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift? Behold, he rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift.


MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!