CHRISTMAS EXPECTATIONS VS. REALITY: HOW TO EMBRACE UNEXPECTED GIFTS

Do you struggle when your Christmas expectations do not measure up to reality? Does the unexpected interest or inconvenience you? Do you find unexpected gifts exciting or disappointing? I guess it depends, right? How can we change our perspective so that we embrace the unexpected this Christmas?

CHRISTMAS EXPECTATIONS

THE EXPECTATION: ARE THERE UNEXPECTED GIFTS ANYMORE?

I am asking this question because as my kids grow older and life seems to move faster, there seems to be so little that surprises or delights anymore. Either everything is orchestrated to the smallest detail or everyone is moving too fast to notice the simple joys of life. We are losing the magic and wonder of the season, and it makes me sad.

I guess the reality hit me this week as my teenage and grown children began emailing me their Christmas lists with links copied and pasted so I could click, go directly to the site, add the items to my cart, and have them shipped directly to my front door. While extremely convenient and easy for someone who dreads going to the mall, it also takes some of the fun out of gift-giving, doesn’t it?

No thrill of hunting for and finding the perfect gift, no surprising them with something totally unexpected, no wide-eyed looks of amazement and joy.

Bah-humbug.

While there is satisfaction in getting exactly what you asked for, what about the pure joy of being pleasantly surprised by something unexpected?

THE REALITY: CHRISTMAS GIVES US THE MOST UNEXPECTED GIFT

I believe we need the unexpected in our lives. Especially at Christmas.

The unexpected will interrupt, inconvenience, and interfere with our plans. And that is not always a bad thing.

If you are reading my Advent devotional, Have Yourself a Mary Little Christmas, this week (the second week of Advent) we examine Mary’s reaction to the angel Gabriel’s announcement.  She could have responded in so many ways to the unexpected gift God was about to give the world through her. I think back to myself as a teenage girl dreaming about being in love and hoping to get married. I think my reaction may have gone something like this:

You don’t understand…I have plans. Big plans! I am going to get married.  

What will I tell my parents? Joseph?  

Who is ever going to believe me?

This is crazy…how will this even work?  

I am going to be ruined for life! Don’t you realize that?

I’m sorry, but I think you have the wrong girl.

Not Mary, however.  She instead replies:

“I am the Lord’s servant.  May everything you have said about come true.”

Luke 1:38 (NLT)

She saw this interruption, inconvenience, and interference in her life and her plans as a gift.

An unexpected gift.

And instead of fighting it, resisting it, or trying to give it back, she quietly and humbly accepted it.

HOW TO LET GO OF CHRISTMAS EXPECTATIONS

LEARNING TO EMBRACE UNEXPECTED GIFTS

As we prepare for Christmas this year, I think it is worth taking the time to focus and reflect on how we accept unexpected gifts.

Do we even see these gifts, or are we too busy rushing on to the next thing?

Or are we disappointed, hoping for something more?

What if we realize, like Mary, that the unexpected is a place where God shows up?

What if, instead of resisting the unexpected, we search for it, anticipate it, and even (dare I say?) embrace it?

TAKE THE UNEXPECTED GIFTS CHALLENGE

Since gift-giving is my love language, I want to reclaim the joy of discovering unexpected gifts. I am taking a different approach this Christmas and want to invite you to join me!

For 12 DAYS throughout the month of December, I am going to be on a treasure hunt for 🎁 UNEXPECTED GIFTS 🎁

I will be posting photos of these unexpected gifts on Instagram (@carlagasseratc) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/carlagasseratc) a few times each week and sharing what they mean to me using this acrostic I created for G-I-F-T:

🙌🏻 GRATITUDE – Why I am thankful for this gift.

🌟INSPIRATION – How this gift inspires me and influences my life.

✝️ FAITH – How this gift has impacted my faith and shown me more about God.

📖 TRUTH – What truth I can pass on from receiving this gift.

If you want to join me, follow me on Instagram and Facebook and post photos of your UNEXPECTED GIFTS on your social media accounts! Tag me or use the hashtag #christmasunexpectedgifts. I think it would be so fun and encouraging to create a list of all the UNEXPECTED GIFTS that God graciously gives us not only at Christmas but all year long!

And if you still would like a copy of my Advent devotional, it is not too late!