All you need is Love

Happy Wednesday!

Last year, at the beginning of Advent, I undertook a project that was a thorn in my side. I decided, on a whim, that I needed eight 4'x6' foot backdrops. I needed them built and primed. Oh yeah, and I wanted them designed and painted, too, in the Advent theme. So for two straight weeks, I ate, drank and breathed those boards. Sometimes, I look down at my hands and still think I see hints of purple and pink paint there.

Tonight, as our children were practicing for the Christmas pageant, I couldnt help but stare at the boards set up behind them. Hope. Peace. Joy. Love. I had been thinking about what I would write in this message to you tonight and, because we are focusing on Joy, I kept trying to make something work. Joy is pink and stands out from the others... Joy looks and feels different... Joy (to the world)...Joy (down in my heart)...Joy (to the fishes in the deep blue sea)... I had nothing.

Rather, I kept coming back to the "Love" board and remembering a quote from one of my very favorite TV shows. In the show, the main character says to one of the other characters: "Sometimes love isn't always enough." And after a brief, very thoughtful moment, he meets her gaze and replies, "Yeah, it is. You go without it long enough, and you realize... it's everything."

Obviously, the characters here were talking about romantic love, but tonight I have been thinking about the many kinds of love and how hard it must be for those who go without it. Especially during this time of year, we are hyper-aware of those people all around us who go without. Without homes. Without jobs. Without food. Without Christmas gifts. We donate our time and money and gifts to organizations. We drop change in the buckets outside of stores and pick angels off of trees. We give generously from our wallets... but, I wonder if we give just as generously from our hearts.

If you are like me, it's "easy" to pick out a toy or donate some money or even cook a meal for those people who are struggling at Christmas; it is much harder to love on someone by being transparent and present. This time of year is not just about donating food to the hungry, but sitting down and eating with them. It is not just about giving a child a toy, but playing with and mentoring them. It is not just about dropping cookies off to your lonely elderly neighbor, but about spending a few minutes talking with them.

Friends, there are many people all around us who are going without love. People who are alone. People who are hurting. People who are hungry and cold and in pain. People in hospitals with no family close by. People on the streets with no one to turn to. People who know brokenness, addiction, depression, or loss. People who need to be reminded of their worth in the eyes of God and you.

As we speed towards Christmas in the next couple weeks, I offer you this challenge: open your wallets, donate your gifts, provide people with meals. But also, and most importantly, offer someone--who might not otherwise receive it-- love. Offer them a hug, a listening ear, a sense of self-worth and dignity. You see, money and gifts are not always enough, but-- for those who go without it long enough-- love, well, it's everything. 

Sending you love and joy this night,
Amanda