Not the Usual Trappings of a King

 

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post entitled, When Your Stager Nixes Christmas, in which I shared last year’s Christmas decor and talked about the fact that our home stager asked us not to put up any holiday decorations while our home was on the market.  I think many of you thought I was complaining but I wasn’t.  Not at all.

We had so much to do to get the house ready to sell.  Painting, repairing, and moving 1/3 of our entire house into Pods for staging.  Then came the job of keeping things perfect every day on the chance that we’d receive a request for a showing.  Keeping a home perfect with two dogs is a chore, and hiding the fact that we have dogs is nigh unto impossible!

“Did you check under the couch for tennis balls?”

“I did.  There were seven of them.”

“What about doggie piles on the grass?”

“All clear, We’re good to go.”

You get the picture 🙂

So in reality, even the thought of pulling out the boxes (a huge mess maker in and of itself) and beginning the days long affair of decorating, was beyond what I had the energy left to accomplish.

There were several comments on my post disagreeing with my stager’s recommendations (which in the end turned out to be very good recommendations – which I’m not yet allowed to share) but there was one comment on my lack of decor that really struck me.

The comment came from my friend Debbie at www.debbieputnam.com and this is what she had to say:

       “…the lack of decorations this year reminds me that Jesus’ birth was without the trappings of a King.”

Wow!  Think about that.  Does that touch your heart as much as it touched mine?

My imagination immediately took me to a dark stable where a young girl name Mary cried out in pain as she labored.  Her beloved Joseph knelt by her side and comforted her while the animals in the stable grew silent, listening.  When the baby was born Mary cradled him in her arms as Joseph gathered straw from the stable floor, and placed it in an empty manger.  A humble bed for King Jesus.

A stable, a manger, straw, curious animals, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus. Not the usual trappings of a King. Click To Tweet

I love Christmas and I love decorating for the holiday.  But we truly can get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of decorating, shopping, parties, and even good things like church programs, that we have no time left to reflect on the true meaning of the Season and be thankful for the fact that God sent His Son to fill our longing hearts.   Something that all the beautiful Christmas decorations in the world can never do.

This will be my last post of the year.  Christmas will be quiet in our home this year as Mr. OTN will be working, spreading cheer at the hospital to those who’d rather not be there AT ALL.  Even this morning he left for work wearing his green Snoopy Christmas T-Shirt, a red plaid overshirt and red scarf (this man makes me smile). When he’s done at work, late on Christmas night, we will take a walk downtown and enjoy the quiet beauty of the city.   

Following Christmas we will be spending some extended vacation time with family, which means I won’t be back until mid January.  When I do come back I hope to have some fun news to share with you. 

Now, before I sign off for the year I want to tell you how much I appreciate you all.  I am incredibly thankful that you take the time to come by and read the thoughts I have to share from this perfectly imperfect life of mine.  The friends I’ve made here are REAL friends and the love you’ve shown toward me makes this blogging journey all worth it!   My heart overflows with God’s love for you. 

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and huge blessings in the year to come.

Love & hugs (great BIG ones),

I’ve been known to link up to the following great parties!!!

Sunday:

SundaysAtHome, TheDIYShowoff, LifeOnLakeshoreDrive, SilverPenniesSundays,RusticAndRefined, Spiritual Sundays

Monday:

IShouldBeMoppingTheFloor, TheDedicatedHouse, Dwellings, ProjectInspired, InspireMeMonday, BetweenNapsOnThePorch, CelebrateYourStory, What Joy is Mine/Monday Musings, Darling Downs Diaries, The Art of Homemaking, MomentsOfHope,Glimpses, SittingAmongFriends, InspireMeMonday, GodSizedDreams

 

Tuesday:

TalkOfTheTown, HomeStoriesAtoZ, AStrollThruLife, CoastalCharm, CedarHillFarmhouse,TuesdaysAtOurHome, TheWinthropChronicles,  Rich Faith Rising Unite Linky, Testimony Tuesday,Cheerleaders of Faith,Tell His Story

Wednesday:

SavvySouthernStyle, A Wise Woman Builds Her Home, Woman to Woman Word Filled Wednesdays, Coffee for Your Heart, MessyMarriage,ThreeWordWednesday,  WriterWednesday

Thursday:

ShareYourStyle, ImpartingGrace, EmbracingChange, HaveADailyCupOfMrsOlson,MyRepurposedLife, ADelightsomeLife, KatherinesCorner,  Thought Provoking Thursday,SincerelyPaulas, ThoughtfulThursday, Tune-inThursday

Friday:

FrenchCountryCottage, TheCharmOfHome, TheDedicatedHouseAnythingBlueFriday,ShabbyliciousFriday, Sweet Inspiration,  Faith’nFriends, Missional Women Faith Filled Fridays, Dance With Jesus FreshMarketFriday

Saturday:

FunkyJunkInteriors, OneMoreTimeEvents,  SaturdaySparks, TheInspirationGallery, Make My Saturday Sweet