WRAPPED IN LOVE

I always raced down the steps in great anticipation on Christmas morning, 

Just beyond the cardboard fireplace, and underneath the tinsel-covered tree, I saw all the proof I needed to believe.

Had I been good enough to be graced with Santa’s favor?

The answer lay before me, sprinkled with fallen pine needles, and magically wrapped with wonder.

But little did I realize then, that the treasures I unwrapped each year were not a result of my good behavior, but of my parents’ deep love for me.

For in times of plenty, or times of want, they took great joy in watching me unwrap my dreams, regardless of the sacrifice required to bring them to me.

Now, years later, I often find myself racing down life’s path, yearning for greater treasures - the kind placed in your heart, not your hands.

And the little girl in me still holds her breath as I round the corner, for we both know that I haven’t kept up my end of the bargain as I should.

But when I look past all the distractions -the things that glitter, and the things that pretend - I exhale in relief, seeing them clearly, waiting for me.

Peace. Hope. Joy.

To be completely known. To be truly loved.

God’s Presence waiting- all wrapped up in swaddling cloths and lying there, in a manger.

Emmanuel. God with me. 

Emmanuel. God with you.  

Emmanuel. God with us.

Every soul’s deepest longing fulfilled. 

Proof of a Heavenly Father’s love. 

Reason to believe.

“For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile everything to Himself by making peace through the blood of His cross - whether things on earth or things in Heaven.”

Colossians 1:19-20 HCSB