Week 2: Married Christmas

“A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.”
-Isaiah 11:1-5, NIV

Our first Christmas season as a married couple, my husband and I lived in a snow globe. Out of our window in Aspen, CO, I would watch the dance of snowy, white dots before the evergreens while I listened to the rivers roar.

While our view was picturesque, our studio apartment was not so dreamy. It was tiny. To give you some perspective, I cooked on a hot plate and washed our dishes in the bathroom sink because we had no kitchen. The only tree that would fit inside was basically a Charlie Brown tree. It was only about a foot tall and bent a little toward one side because I insisted it must have a little star on top, though it could barely hold the weight of it. 

As I started to place presents around our "tree," I found a clue to what God was up to when He created Christmas. 

** This is an excerpt from the December 11th entry of Kaley’s Advent devotional “This Will Be A Sign To You.” You can grab your copy and jump in on Amazon. 

​For anything to grow, it needs roots. A tree didn’t just majestically spring up out of the ground (even if it is only a foot high). It started small, spread its roots wide, broke through the earth, and began to daily reach toward heaven. 

The same goes for anything really; relationships, parenthood, dreams, goals, friendships, businesses, ministries, etc. It all must start somewhere and if it is not planted in something strong, it will only be able to reach a certain height or hold a little weight before it falls over.

This Christmas, as you look at your tree, remind yourself to take root in God's love, plant your feet into a foundation of His counsel, strength, knowledge and fear, and then begin to daily reach toward heaven. 

Advent idea: Donate your pocket change to a charity or drop it in as extra for your church offering. A little goes a long way.