Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Thank you, Bing Crosby. I WILL count my blessings instead of sheep.


I LOVE CHRISTMAS. I mean, who doesn’t? But, I’m seriously ridiculous about it. I live about thirty minutes from the world’s LARGEST CHRISTmas store and I go there regularly. It is my happy place. There is no way you can be sad or down when you’re walking around that place. It is amazing. When I moved back home from Florida to help my dad when he was sick, I told my sister “If I ever go AWOL, look at Bronner’s. I’ll be at my happy place.”  I continue to do so when I get overwhelmed. Seriously, what isn’t there to love about Christmas? Except, “Black Friday”, you people should be ashamed. I love everything about the Christmas season. I love the lights. I love the cheer. I love buying gifts for my family. I love baking. I love cutting down a Christmas tree (no fake trees in this house, they just seem dishonest). Anyways, who can be sad when you’re celebrating Jesus birth? It is the happiest day ever! Without him we have no hope. Without him there is no joy. Without his birth, there is no Savior. Without, CHRISTmas, there is no Good Friday, NO EASTER, no resurrection, no eternal life! Scary to think. So, who is sad at Christmas time?

Me. I am sad at Christmas time. I never feel as alone, depressed, and scared as I do at Christmas. In my family growing up, we always had these huge Christmas gatherings. They were so loud and chaotic, they were wonderful. Except…except when they weren’t. Except when I found myself being fondled in the next room. Or when I was being groped during a picture.

Yes, the girl who LOVES Christmas, who will listen to Bing Crosby in July, she secretly dreads Christmas. Even now, it is hard to shake that fear, that apprehension. I am a grown adult, I have made sure he will never come near me again. Yet, every time I am in a large crowd or at a family gathering, I am STILL absolutely petrified.

Now, I’m pushing thirty. I still single and childless. I’m pretty sure I’m rocking a prune and two raisins where my uterus and ovaries used to be. (Ok, that was an exaggeration.) But I’m also so incredibly sad that I don’t have my own children and husband to spend Christmas with. I want to teach them the REAL story behind Jesus birth. I want them to sing all the best Christmas songs. I want to see their faces as they celebrate Christmas day. I want them to know that joy, the joy of the true meaning of Christmas. But, I don’t have them. “They” are not in existence. Every Christmas I spend single and childless reminds me the time is ticking by.

His actions are stealing my favorite holiday.  Every year, come October, I start getting really excited about Christmas. (I mean, let’s be real, I get excited about Christmas in July too. ) November it starts going into overdrive. I mean, I HATE November. It just gets in the way. I just want it to be December already so people stop telling me it is too early for Christmas music and decorations! Then, somewhere mid-December, I start remembering. I start reevaluating my life. I start focusing on all the wrong things. I start getting mad. I start feeling sorry for myself. I start getting afraid of something that I have made sure is certain to never happen again. I start panicking. And, because I’m still working on things, I think I have to hide it from my closest friends and family.  So I stuff it all down and try to fake it. Which, I think I do pretty well.

A few weeks ago, I was having a really bad evening. I was just really down and frustrated, exhausted and emotional. I hadn’t been sleeping well. I’d be tired, but couldn’t stay asleep. I would wake up several times during the night. It was too early to go to bed, which is all I want to do, because at least then I wouldn’t be awaking being all down, frustrated, exhausted and emotional. White Christmas happened to be on TV, and even though I own two copies of the DVD, I turned it on. It was the part where Rosemary Clooney can’t sleep and she runs into Bing Crosby and they have a snack by the fire. He sings to her, “When you’re worried and you can’t sleep, count your blessings instead of sheep. And, you’ll fall asleep counting your blessings.”

Ah, yes. Thank you Bing Crosby. That is EXACTLY what I needed to do. I could list here all the wonderful blessings that God has given to me in my life, but I won’t. I will only point out the most important. The ONLY thing that matters. The only thing that is strong enough, great enough, wonderful enough to make all this fear, frustration, depression, anxiety, anger, disappointment, apprehension, misery and sadness go away as if it never happened. CHRISTMAS.

Because of CHRISTmas, I have hope and assurance that someday my suffering here on earth will end and I will be in heaven with Jesus and none of this will matter. None of what happened to me will matter. None of the stolen Christmas gatherings. None of the ruined dreams. The prune and raisins will barely be a memory. The fear, frustration, depression, anxiety, anger. disappointement, apprehension, misery and sadness will be gone and what will be left will be better than any Christmas here on earth. Because when Christ does come again, when we celebrate his return, it will be an everlasting Christmas. More beautiful than a thousand lit evergreen trees. The songs we sing will be more joyous than Joy to the World sung in the Mormon Tabernacle. More sweet and loving than the Vienna Boys Choir singing Still, Still, Still. The angels won’t simple be atop the tree, they will be next to us singing along. We won’t be reading Luke 2, we’ll be talking to Luke himself. We won’t be unwrapping gifts, because the greatest gift of all will be right in front of us. And, the best thing about that Christmas? There will never be another November. We’ll never be told it is too early for Christmas music. Every day will be Christmas. And it will be Christmas day every day, forever.

So, thank you Bing Crosby, for reminding me to focus not on what I don’t have, but on all my blessings. The BEST of which is that baby born in a barn in Bethlehem. He is the greatest blessing.

 
Now sing we, now rejoice, Now raise to heaven our voice;
He from whom joy streameth Poor in a manger lies;
Not so brightly beameth The sun in yonder skies.
Thou my Savior art! Thou my Savior art!

Come from on high to me; I cannot rise to Thee
Cheer my wearied spirit, O pure and holy Child;
Through Thy grace and merit, Blest Jesus, Lord most mild,
Draw me unto Thee! Draw me unto Thee!

Now through His Son doth shine The Father's grace divine.
Death o'er us had reigned Through sin and vanity;
He for us obtained Eternal joy on high.
May we praise Him there! May we praise Him there!

Oh, where shall joy be found? Where but on heavenly ground?
Where the angels singing With all His saints unite,
Sweetest praises bringing In heavenly joy and light.
Oh, that we were there! Oh, that we were there!

 

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