People make Christmas special. You'd think being in Bethlehem at Christmas is the best place in the world to be. But to be honest, its nothing special. Tourism has turned this holiday into something flashy and hard to connect to. But don't get me wrong. This has been a WONDERFUL Christmas; just for reasons you wouldn't expect. Drew and Char tag-teamed eggs benedict Middle Eastern style: over pita. Mmmmmmmmm. We had Brady, the volunteer from Canada, Rachel, the director of PAIDIA, and Fadia, a National working at PAIDIA while going to Bethlehem University. We had music playing. Everyone was either chopping or stirring or chatting in the kitchen. After the amazing meal, I got to have a skype date with Andrea, a friend from home. What a blessing! And now we are rounding out the day with an intense game of RISK; that was so fun I didn't even mind being dominated. People make Christmas special. And I think its because we experience God's character so much through each other. Char reminds me of His kindness. Austin reminds me of His justice. Drew reminds me of His joy. Brady reminds me of His good humor. Rachel reminds me of His commitment. Fadia reminds me of His grace. And Andrea reminds me of His faithfulness. And this place reminds me of His peace. My Aunt sent me such a beautiful reminder of God's heart.
Jesus brought all that is needed for peace in our world. He taught us the principles of peace, calling for people to love their neighbors as they love themselves. And as He was leaving this planet, He promised, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you" (John 14:27)
I am blessed. We are blessed. To be a blessing to others. I forget that part sometimes. Merry Christmas. I love you all so much and am so grateful to come home to such amazing people!
No comments:
Post a Comment