{"id":21952,"date":"2017-12-11T00:05:33","date_gmt":"2017-12-11T08:05:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/?p=21952"},"modified":"2017-12-07T10:34:27","modified_gmt":"2017-12-07T18:34:27","slug":"december-11-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/2017\/12\/11\/december-11-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"December 11, 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cTherefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.\u201d<\/em> 1 Peter 5:6-7<\/p>\n

Casting Cares<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Oh, my, now I remember how I usually end up in such a tizzy at Christmas time. Every year I say to myself, \u201cSelf, don\u2019t let it happen again!\u201d Seriously, I don\u2019t want to come to the end of the season and secretly be glad the whole merry mess is over. No, absolutely not, NOT this year!<\/p>\n

I realize now, while I still have my wits about me, that there\u2019s a reason this stress, this panic, this hyperventilating happens to me: it all starts with just four little words—YOU–ARE–EXPECTED–TO\u2026 keep the entire Christmas season rolling as planned, as anticipated, as required, as, as, as, USUAL! Surely, everyone\u2019s entire happiness depends on ME! Oh, dear Lord, I\u2019m doing it again. Really? Apparently, I\u2019m quite an indispensible figure in the scheme of the universe. And I CAN\u2019T BREATHE!<\/p>\n

Well, wait just a minute here. Last time I checked, the only indispensible Person is Jesus Christ our Lord\u2014and it\u2019s His<\/em> birthday! To be honest, the best, most genuine Christmas I can remember in my adult life was 40 years ago when I was going through a divorce and had taken a low-paying job as a motel maid to survive. My life was, well, truly in the toilet (that was the season I scrubbed approximately 5,345 commodes). Though I couldn\u2019t buy gifts for anyone that year, I started singing in the church choir, and God met me in a most amazing way. True joy and peace filled my heart in the simplest things and I\u2019ve never, ever forgotten that gift.<\/p>\n

These days, the sheer avalanche of things we have to sift through to get back to basics can be entirely overwhelming. All the magazines, the TV ads, and the store displays point to how to have the most beautiful table, best decorated home, jolly husbands, children and pets. But will any of that feed our hungry souls? Probably not.<\/p>\n

This year, all this stuff that\u2019s trying to rob me of the joy of the season? Well, I think I know where to put it (hmmm). And the deep cares of my heart, fear, anxiety, and pain? I know where that belongs too\u2014cast upon Jesus, for He cares for me.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, Lord, thank You for taking our cares upon Yourself\u2014we definitely can\u2019t handle it alone!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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