Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

This post has taken me a while to write, in fact, over a month. Not because of writers block; however, due to fear of what others may think and it is not traditional to life and leadership. I say this; however, faith is an integral part of all of our lives no matter if you are a Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, atheist, agnostic, and the list goes on. I will write more on faith in a different post and how it is integral in who we are as individuals and the impact it has in our lives and in our leading. The fear came in and the hustle and bustle of the position I work until I am able to support myself off of this idea of Path of One. Then I remembered my tag line Be Bold! Be Courageous! Be Fearless! Regardless of what you believe or think about what this post is about and this season, my prayer is that your heart and mind will be open and that you will find some hope, peace, joy, and love.

For those that don’t know me personally, I am a follower of the Way. You might ask yourself, what or who is a follower of the Way. A follower of the Way in modern terms is a Christian. If you like to know more about why I say this feel free to message me and I would be happy to discuss. So here we go!

Christmas has always been a favorite time of year for me. Growing up in Texas, we didn’t get much snow or cold weather, in fact, often times we could wear shorts and t-shirts. I would watch A Christmas Carol adaptions multiple times and would sing O, Holy Night whenever I could. In fact, I probably have a least 100 different renditions of O, Holy Night on my iTunes account and constantly look to find more versions every year. There is something so serene, powerful, peaceful, and hopeful that comes through these lyrics. For those that don’t know the song, I am adding the first verse so you can at least know what I am speaking of.

O Holy night! The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of our dear Savior's birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
'Til He appears and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn
Fall on your knees; O hear the Angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born
O night, O Holy night, O night divine!

To me Christmas is more than just about giving and receiving gifts. It is about the gift of the Creator taking human form and being born into our world. You can read the Christmas narrative from the New Testament in Luke 1-2 and Matthew 1-2. I will attest that the day we celebrate Christmas now, Dec. 25th, is not the actual date of his birth; however, the date was decided and we celebrate and remember this gift.

Some may say, well, I won’t believe a word you say because you believe in Jesus Christ, God the Father, and God the Holy Spirit. To those that say this that is perfectly okay with me; however, I can chose to believe and have faith and I respect your belief to disagree with me. Yet I digress.

Christmas is about hope and peace. It is about joy and love. It is about sacrifice. It is about so much more than what we know of it today. I was having some conversations with fellow associates the other day about how it really hasn’t felt like Christmas or the holiday’s this year. As I drove home that night I pondered why. So much has been thrown around in the media, social media, and life in general that the miracle of Christmas is getting drowned out.

We get so busy from Thanksgiving to New Years Eve finishing the work year off strong. Finishing up projects, meeting deadlines, goal casting for next year, shopping for all those that you need to shop for, holiday parties, end of a semester, finals, and so much more. We get so busy we forget that this time is to celebrate and enjoy life. Be merry. We are so worried and wrapped up with ourselves, our dreams, our goals, what will happen in the future that we miss the biggest aspects of our lives. That is being present in the lives of those we love as we are not promised a tomorrow.

In our society today, we are so scattered brained, exhausted, depleted mind, soul, and body, that we just go through the motions of life. We have no hope, no joy, no love, no nothing. We are empty and depleted and have nothing to give and just hoping that we can make it until the end of the year. This time of year should not be about ]getting a huge to-do list done, getting busy doing whatever it is you have to get done. But to enjoy the gift of friendship, love, and family. There is hope, there is peace, and there is joy in this season. We all just have to pause and remember that. As for me I pause and remember what Christmas Eve and Day is about. I remember the hope, peace, joy, and love that it brings. If you don’t align with me that is your choice and I respect your choice. Just know that despite our differences in beliefs here, just remember that it’s not about gifts it is about time to celebrate with others.

May His peace be with you. May His light shine upon you and in you. May His love radiate around you and through you. May His joy fill you.

I wish you a Merry Christmas! To our Jewish friends Happy Hanukkah! To everyone else Happy Holidays!

Be Bold! Be Courageous! Be Fearless!

Joel