[Written: Monday, December 18, 2023]
As I woke up early on this last Monday morning before Christmas, the thrill of hope is present!
Merriam-Webster:
Thrill – noun: a feeling of great excitement or happiness
Hope – noun: desire accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment
My excitement is in the hope of Christmasy things and events happening over the next week. Today specifically, it is for snow in the forecast while I tidy my messy house; work on presents; finalize lists including my Christmas Eve food list with the high hope of looking at cookbooks during the process. That list specifically has made me think of Mom a lot this year. I do miss her during this time, but there is also a fondness and warmth in reflecting.
The definition for hope says that the desire is “accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment.” Part of the reason the expectation and belief is there is because of Christmases past…so many wonderful Christmas Eve’s spent with my family.
After I became a married adult, it took a little while for this rhythm to start because when I was younger, we would go to my grandma’s on my dad’s side and watch her open presents as her leg bounced up and down…probably because she had so many presents from so many people. She had ten kids who lived to be adults and about 40+ grandkids, and I really don’t know how many great-grandkids. Then we would go to my cousin’s and open presents, followed by coming home to gifts “from Santa.” Yes, he stopped at our house Christmas Eve and then went on to other stops because he had so many. (Insert smile.). Although my husband and I didn’t continue the Santa tradition at our house, it was fun and exciting at home. If it was gonna be done, Mom and Dad knew how to do it!
When those particular traditions changed, we began a new tradition on Christmas Eve—still Christmas Eve. We would plan the menu, and prepare mainly finger foods, with changes, additions, subtractions, and constants over the years. Mom and I would enjoy discussing what we would make, as well as other family and friends who were coming, but with her doing the bulk of the preparations.
That night would come and the table would be full. We would fix plates and sit wherever…kitchen, dining room, front room couch, floor, etc. After our bellies were full, we would read the Christmas story from the Bible, taking turns each year. Then we would open presents. When my daughter was two, maybe three, she sat quietly during the reading; and after, she jumped up and yelled, “PRESEENTTS!!!” I love those memories.
Last year, we continued the Christmas Eve tradition at my house. I was honored to host. Although it was new for all of us, we still enjoyed food and fun. This year, I am excited to host again. The thrill of hope…planning, preparing, and excited to share this time with my family that has been blessed with so many wonderful Christmases together.
Sometimes, my thrill of hope can turn to fear, and lead to anxiety when I am afraid that something might in any way hinder my exciting plans coming together! It kind of happened to me last week. After a day or two of talking with the Lord, He brought me back to the thrill of hope (period) with a few lessons learned.
I just want to try to quickly share what I have learned over this holiday and the previous one. Maybe there will be something you can glean from it to make your holiday a little lighter and a little brighter…and enhance your thrill of hope.
I love the holidays. I love the giving and the sharing. I love to cook. I love the get-togethers. And—I love the fulfilling feeling afterward—and the leftovers—I really enjoy the leftovers, especially at Thanksgiving! I can, however, over-plan a little for these occasions…or perhaps, procrastinate when it comes to some of the preparations. When I have had years that things went a little haywire when it came down to the wire(!), I can become afraid that history will repeat itself. Or, simply that I won’t be able to execute ALL of the plans that I am so excited to do, AND still have my down time to read, or write, or look at cookbooks, etc.
What I learned this past week (and this season) when my thrill of hope went over that edge (partially due to trying to reasonably squeeze in another endeavor before Christmas but decided to wait) was that…
1-We each have different capacities, or limitations. I recognize that I enjoy a fairly slow pace with most things I do. That way, I can enjoy the creative parts of the process and think things through if need be. That limits me on how much I can put into my schedule comfortably.
2-If I have to plan so tightly in a time period, it might be a red flag that I had better pay attention to and reconsider trying to ‘do it all.’
3-I don’t want to procrastinate certain preparations.
4-Sometimes, when I let go of “perfectly-planned” plans, I find that things often work out beautifully…or perhaps—perfectly. Yes, sometimes we need a plan—no doubt!—but knowing when to let them go, or change it up is important.
I am so thankful that God continues to teach me. For each lesson learned, there is a thrill of hope in moving forward, and celebrating life even more fully!
And you know, the bottom line and underlying source of this thrill of hope lies solely in Jesus. Knowing Him is the reason these traditions are worth celebrating. He—is our thrill of hope.
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 15:13 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/rom.15.13.NLT
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