Future Holiday Memories

As I wrap up this week talking about memories, I wanted to take a second and look to some future memories, memories that we haven't made yet. With the holidays upon us, (Can you believe that it is already November?!) our attentions turn to list making and preparations for the coming get-togethers and celebrations ahead. 

This year, with lots of help from the family, we are hosting the Vinson Family Thanksgiving. My mind is already awash in the things I want to do and need to do to get ready for the big meal. As usual though, I am afraid I am allowing my expectations to get the better of me, and, as a result, that line between what I want to do and what I need to do is already a bit blurry. I need to sit down and evaluate the kind of memories that I want to have from the event. Then I can go ahead and make my plans. 

For example, I know I want to remember enjoying my day. I want to remember making my family feel special and comfortable in my home. I don't want my husband or daughter remembering me going crazy or getting impatient or becoming stressed out in all the preparations. Ultimately, I want to honor God and keep Him as the central focus, because everything we have to be thankful for comes from Him to begin with. So with these goals in mind, if the hallway goes unpainted and the new recipe I want to try for cranberry-orange sauce flops, I will still remember the day as a success, if I place my effort and priority in making the memories I want to keep. 

Last summer I read Treasuring God in Our Traditions by Noel Piper. The book was a fantastic help in showing me how I could continue to strive to make God the most central aspect of our home. In it, Noel shows how to take the everyday things we do, as well as the holidays and keep our eyes on Jesus. She shows the Biblical principles for this and challenges the reader to be intentional about making sure Jesus is really the reason for the season -ANY season.

So, dear sister, my "encouragement" to you is to begin thinking of the memories you want to create with your family and your church this holiday season. Read Noel's book, (Your local Lifeway should have it, or it can be ordered at www.desiringgod.org). More importantly, begin praying about your focus. As the wives, mothers, grandmothers, and ministers' wives of our homes and churches we have the ability and responsibility to set the tone. We have to be intentional and purposeful or it just won't happen.

Post your ideas for this holiday season: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's. Share something that made some really wonderful memories in the past. Share a goal or a question about memories you want to be intentional to make this year. We will see if someone else has an idea about how to make your memories happen . . .