A Christmas Eve To Remember

Christmas Eve is just about to give way to Christmas morning. A handful of thoughts as I prepare to go to sleep.

Thanks Erica, Kari-Lynn and Shannon for being the ringleaders of the Fumbling Bumbling Angels production. It was a highlight for me to be 'drafted' into duty and to have a sweet little girl named Ari lead me around and tell me what to do. "Come on Pastor... it's time for the shepherds!" I've concluded that no matter how polished or unpolished certain aspects of a children's production are, there is no 'star power' like kids sharing their all.

Thanks Amanda, Adria, Bonnie, and Steph for dancing for us this morning. Carol of the Bells proclaims Christ - and your artistry is a blessing to us.

Thanks Shari and the music teams, both morning and evening. What a thrill it was for me, and for so many of us, to sing those great Christmas favorites!

I spent the morning worried about my message in John 1, thinking it was long and boring (always happens to me when the children's church is cancelled... I start hearing my thoughts through the ears of our youngest and least patient participants). A number of people told me that the Lord really touched their hearts with that text. What do I know? God is good!

And then tonight at the candlelight service, I was nervous about how the sharing time would go. Wow! Those of you who spoke up to share - Thank you! Thanks for letting the Lord show up for all the rest of us in the words of your testimonies.

We Shaw's went to a local Chinese Restaurant for a quick supper. I couldn't help but think of the holiday classic 'A Christmas Story'. I noticed something though: the hostess, the waiter, even the young woman who came by a hundred times to fill my water glass - they all said 'Merry Christmas' to us. Not 'Happy Holidays', but very clearly 'Merry Christmas'. That is different than any other retailer I visited this year. Hmmm.

Then we took off for a tour of lights, visiting a large section of Amherst and Merrimack. Okay, the inflatable crap is really tacky! But, we did see some very nice displays too. A favorite pass for all of us was through Great Stone where the roads in the entire neighborhood were lined with little luminaries. Very beautiful. Next year at CCA... luminaries? Yes, I think so.

Finally we put the finishing touches on some wrapping and got ready for bed. We tuned into the NORAD SANTA tracking website. You know what we learned? Santa is making his way up the east coast of the U.S. as I type this. I better get to sleep.

Merry Christmas to you all!