Summary: <br> Welcome to Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving where your jeans fit tighter and everything is on sale!<br> It’s always interesting to me that we go from the day we declare our gratitude for all we have, and jump into the day we need to go out and buy more. Americans will spend approximately $5 billion in this 24 hour period on Christmas shopping. Half of today’s shoppers will go into debt with their purchases. Countless fights will break out among proper, wool-coat wearing women in overly crowded stores. Pushing and shoving, sprinting through the isles in a frenzy, absolute mayhem in the local Walmart over that hot deal, all while Christmas music plays happily in the background. Joy to the world.<br> Why? Let’s stop the madness for just one moment and think about why we’re doing this.<br> Oh yeah, because we’re celebrating Jesus. (with my sweetest southern voice)<br> Then we come home and do the chore we all dread doing … we have to wrap all those presents. Did I mention decorating the house too? The majority of families will decorate their homes today and make them festive … it will start of merry, but then it turns into absolute frustration when that 2 year old pre-lit tree only lights up on the top half, and your house is consumed by a massive mess.<br> Ya’ll I made the mistake of buying a flocked Christmas tree last year. You know the ones that look like a beautiful fresh snow has fallen on the branches. Yeah, well my tree was straight out of a blizzard with huge clumps of fake white snow that cover every inch of green tree underneath. And it snows … constantly. In my house. From my flocked Christmas tree. There’s a never ending pile of white crap collecting on my dark wood floors that can’t be swept up … it just merrily floats around, landing for brief moments then goes about making a mess somewhere else.<br> I’m angry sweeping my floors for the 10th time today. Why? Oh yeah, because we’re celebrating Jesus.<br> I’ve witnessed epic fights in my neighborhood as husband and wives try to hang Christmas lights on the house. He’s not doing it right, she won’t stop bossing him around, he gets mad, climbs down off the ladder, slams the door, and now she’s outside by herself decorating the darn house.<br> Why? Oh yeah, because we’re celebrating Jesus.<br> And here we are in the season of never ending dinners, parties and performances. Each one requires a different outfit and time you don’t have. Suddenly our lives are filled with all we HAVE to do, where we HAVE to go, what we HAVE to buy and HAVE to wear.<br> Why? Oh yeah, because we’re celebrating Jesus.<br> Do you ever just want to yell STOP?!!!!!<br> I don’t want to go into debt buying presents that will likely go unused in a few months. I don’t want to go all these places and wear a fake smile and suck it in the entire time. I don’t want to hang up all those Christmas lights to make my house look like the neighbor’s house, because honestly I really hate taking them all back down. I don’t want to … but I feel like I have to.<br> It takes one brave soul in each family, in each neighborhood, in each friend circle to say … hey ya’ll I’m just going to enjoy Christmas this year and not do all the extra. Okay?<br> I’ve seen it … I’ve seen the sigh of relief in everyone else once given permission to only do that which brings them happiness and honors the season the way they want to honor the season. Maybe you love decorating and shopping … then girl, go for it as you remember Jesus, but don’t insist that everyone else stand in line with you.<br> It reminds me of Jesus going to the house of Mary and Martha.<br> Luke 10: 38-42 “As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened...
