Christmas. A time of year when people make time to get together and love on their family members and friends. But do they? Really? Most of us are even given extra time off work for this purpose but the time off quickly becomes filled with shopping, cooking, wrapping presents, etc that by the time I am finally able to focus on the quality time aspect, I'm spent and not fully engaged. There are so many events leading up to the actual day that wear us out as well. Chrismas programs at school, church and in the community; Parties at school, church and in the community. Practices or planning meetings for these events; decorating the house inside and out. and again....shopping. Tell me, when do we actually get the time to spend with our loved ones? I don't know about you but aside from the fact that the true meaning of Christmas often gets pushed away, it seems my expectations of the holiday season also get moved to the background. The true meaning is focused around Jesus. Would He be happy about all this hoop-lah? The little baby that was born in a barn.... that grew to be a man who made a "career" out of spending time with people.... and loving them.
As I write this, I feel almost ashamed. Although I certainly don't go to extremes, I have been focused on preparing the house for the holidays, shopping and wrapping gifts - taking extra time and spending extra money to make everything look nice. Time - that I could have given to someone else - whether that be friend or family OR even a total stranger that needed a listening ear or a helpful hand. To me, time is invaluable. It's what *I* want for Christmas but I should be willing to GIVE it as well.
This story is copied from facebook but it really tugs at the heartstrings:
A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.
SON: “Daddy, may I ask you a question?”
DAD: “Yeah sure, what it is?” replied the man.
SON: “Daddy, how much do you make an hour?”
DAD: “That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?” the man said angrily.
SON: “I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?”
DAD: “If you must know, I make $50 an hour.”
SON: “Oh,” the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: “Daddy, may I please borrow $25?”
The father was furious, “If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I don't work hard every day for such childish frivolities.”
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?
After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and he really didn't ask for money very often.
The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door. “Are you asleep, son?” He asked. “No daddy, I'm awake,” replied the boy. “I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier” said the man. “It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here's the $25 you asked for.”
The little boy sat straight up, smiling. “Oh, thank you daddy!” he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills.
The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.
“Why do you want more money if you already have some?” the father grumbled. “Because I didn't have enough, but now I do,” the little boy replied. “Daddy, now that I have $50, can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you.”
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.
It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of your time with someone you love.
beautiful.
ReplyDeletehope you are doing well!