I CONFESS....

I don't have much Christmas cheer this year. Oh I've been trying with these last few posts, and a few parties and my shopping is all done but that is all just surface stuff. In all honesty my heart is just burdened for so many people (plus it has been a rather rough month here at Park Place) this year that it has taken a lot of the shiny and sparkly out of Christmas.

I'm thinking of (and praying for):

friends who lost their 9 year old son last summer to a very rare medical condition,
the families of my Aunt Vera, Uncle Richard, and Aunt Helen,
our pastor and his wife who lost their adult son suddenly and then 2 weeks later her father,
and a family who used to go to our church whose 11 year old son died last night as the result of a brain tumor.

All of these people are facing their first Christmas without their loved ones and I KNOW how extremely painful that is.

I'm also thinking of:

the many couples I know who are experiencing problems in their marriages,
the families I know that are suffering the consequences of divorce, and
the parents I know whose children are sick.

And these are just the major things.  There are many, many hurting people in this world and there are very few that I can help. 

But I can invest my time in things that matter, and I can pray and I can celebrate the ultimate GIFT that was given to all of us. 

That will have to be enough this year.....