The Message of the Manger: Christmas ReflectionsSample

Crowded or Full?

As I looked around the house, room after room looked crowded: the Christmas tree had been put up in one corner; furniture had been shifted over and rearranged to make room for the tree; garlands with sparkling lights wrapped around the banister. Every corner, tabletop, nook, and cranny was filled with something symbolic of the season: the nativity scene, a homemade gift from a child, and memories of years past that brought joy in the present.

Yet as I looked, I realized: the house didn’t look crowded as much as it looked full.

The difference? It wasn’t clutter. Every piece was packed with meaning.

I realized that might be the very distinction needed for the month of December: is my calendar crowded, or is it full? Is it cluttered with something that is not important or needful at this naturally busy time of year? Or is it filled with that which has meaning and significance?

However, more important than even my calendar is the state of my heart: is it crowded, or is it full? Is it cluttered with worries, anxieties, deadlines, and to-do lists, or is it full of worship for my King, in awe of the gift of Himself, and purposed to be present in the moment in order to see the people and opportunities in front of me?

There is no getting around the busyness of the month of December. But we can, at its onset, choose how we will enter it. We can differentiate between that which is clutter and that which holds meaning. We can, by the grace of God, choose full over crowded.

And when it’s beyond our control? When something uninvited wiggles its way onto our calendar or into our hearts? We can remember the difference between "crowded" or "full" is simply meaning and purpose. We can pray that the Lord would show us the meaning of what we did not invite, resting in the fact that He knows best and is unfolding His purpose, just as He used a crowded inn to unfold His perfect plan for the birth of His Son.

He knows how to fill our outstretched hands and open hearts in the most meaningful ways. Our homes and calendars may feel crowded this month, but when fixed on Him, our hearts will feel full.