It seems ironic to be reading a chapter out of Luke which talks about selling your possessions, directly following Black Friday/Cyber Monday.  Maybe you were one of the crazy people standing in line at your favorite store, hours before it opened, to ensure you got what you really wanted.  That was my husband. Number 63 in line at one of his (ok, my) favorite stores – with his list of what both of our brothers wanted us to pick up for them.  Mission accomplished.  Or, if you were like me, you avoided all lines and did some Black Friday shopping from home, taking in the huge discounts and free shipping without competition.

And then this week, I open up Luke 12 and read the heading over the section that says, “Teaching about Money and Possessions.”  One of my longtime favorite verses closes out this section, “Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”  This is such a timely reminder of where my focus should be always – not only in a season of giving.

As we move into the Christmas season and have begun the fun, horrible, wacky, or boring traditions with our families & friends, we realize life is still competing to be heard.

A handful of people will lose their job before the year ends, a handful of people will be diagnosed with an illness or disease, others will face first holidays without their loved ones and others will be trying to make it through one more holiday so life can resume as it was before the holiday season broke loose.

Whatever your story is, my encouragement to you is to make the most of this holiday season. While it’s super easy to get caught up in the sales and the gifts you feel like you have to give, or the thrill of holiday gatherings, take a moment to step out of that world and into a world where you’re not anxious about anything, but trusting in the Lord with all your heart.

As we walk through the next few weeks leading up to the day we celebrate Christ’s birth, consider the promises of God in our Inked message series.  May those promises bring you the peace, direction, grace, hope, protection, and possibilities that being in God’s word gives us.

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