SETH'S STORY (an example...)
When I was kid, my mom would always ask me to make my birthday and Christmas list in early October. My birthday is near Thanksgiving, so it lands about the same time. But, who am I kidding, my mom LOVES to give gifts and still asks for Christmas/Birthday gift lists. It’s still fun! Back in the day, I’d get out the Sears Catalog, the Eastbay (athletic gear) magazine, Guitar Center ads and other resources to put together the ultimate list. Lists are part of preparing. I LOVE lists - especially todo lists. God gave his first followers the Ten Commandments which gave them an outline of ways to follow a life of love and devotion which would keep them close to Him and also show the world a better way of life. My list had a Nintendo (the original!) on it for about 4 years. Almost all of my friends had one and it was so fun! My parents said it would melt our brains or something and we could play it at our friends’ houses. Whatever. So in 1991, I decided I wouldn’t put it on my list. I even made it very clear that I had given up on that dream. After both Christmas Eve services (my dad’s a pastor), we opened gifts at 10:30pm and there was one gift left under the tree. My brother, Aaron, and I walked over sleepily and opened it. IT WAS A NINTENDO!!! We FREAKED OUT! Amazing, unexpected and yet, deep down, we had always hoped for it. It reminds me of those faithful ones who never gave up on the hope of the Messiah. Holding fast to the lists of practices which kept them close to Yahweh, and fighting the urge to give up hope, but holding on, knowing that a Savior would be born. Imagine being the Shepherds who got to see him within hours of his birth and knowing that HOPE had come! Freaking out, I bet! God gives us what we need to be prepared, but often He gives us even more than we expect!
