Christmas Is Over

Ecclesiastes 3:1-6 "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to search and a time to quit searching; a time to keep, and a time to throw away..." ESV

Today, I took down the Christmas tree and put all of the seasonal decorations in the attic. What a chore. I dread this day every year. I love putting up all of the festive garnishments and then looking at its beauty throughout the Christmas season. But the day of taking it all down is just depressing, and what a chore it is! Usually, I delay it because I just hate it so much. My kids' birthdays are in the middle of February, and one year on their birthday, there was a birthday cake/ice cream photo taken with the unlit Christmas tree in the background. But no matter how quickly I remove all of the decor, I'm always shocked at how bare the house looks when it's done, and things have returned to their normal places.

A wise person recognizes that everything has its own season, both in our physical life and in our spiritual life. We should be able to determine the appropriate time to engage in or stop an activity. But unfortunately,we as humans would just like to live our lives in the fun times. No one wants to go through trials and storms, but such is life. Someone once told me that if I were going to thank God and enjoy the good times, then I needed to accept the hard ones in order to appreciate the good ones. Such wisdom.

The remaining two days that we have left of this year are short. Much has happened in our lives, in our country, and in our world this year. I saw a meme on social media yesterday that said "2015: The Year Everyone Got Offended." Tis true. Our world is different now. Heartache has happened, people have been taken from us, we've relocated to another part of the country, and my ministry role has changed. But through it all, God has been good.

Things may look a little different in your home, in your heart, or in your family after living through 2015. The question is, how will you end it? Make the most of these last 2 days. It's the season for organizing, for cleaning out, for taking inventory of those Christmas lights that quit the third week of December. But's it's also the season for realizing that 2016 is coming, and it's a blank slate. What will happen this coming year? None of us know the answer to the question, but we can embrace the new season upon us and clean our hearts and homes for its arrival.

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