Thursday, December 13, 2012

Don't Miss It!!...from Covenant Kids



Don't Miss It!!

This time of year is extraordinarily busy - gift shopping, tree decorating, food cooking, family gathering, and finishing up end of the year projects.  We are inevitably tied to our phones and computers, not to mention the distraction of television, Internet and radio. Our lives can get very loud with the sound of work, school, church, appointments and life in general.  Sometimes things get so loud, in fact, that we miss listening to what is most important. We may miss our child asking for attention or comfort; we may miss our spouse asking for quality time or even out on a date; and we all too often miss the still quiet voice of our Savior, asking us to remember He is the reason for the celebration of the season. In a magazine article I read recently, one adoptive father recognized the busyness that deters his attention and affection from his precious daughter. Therefore, he and his daughter began what they call the daily "One Minute Hug". The father simply sits his daughter on the counter, sets the oven timer for one minute, and holds her for the entire minute.  He blocks out the cares of the world and this tells his daughter that for one full minute she is the most important thing in his life - no distractions. We may think just one minute sounds insignificant, but I wonder how many of us don't set aside any amount of undistracted, uninterrupted time to focus on our child. My challenge is that the one minute, once it becomes a habit, grows into two minutes, then three minutes and so on.  When this man's daughter is grown, this daughter can have these special one-minute memories.  Reading this father's article challenged me - have I had my one minute hug with my girls today? Have I taken the time to block out the world and focus wholehearted on each girl and their preciousness? Have I stopped to thank God for his wonderful gift of these children, and for this new day he has given me?  Taking this a step further, have I allowed God to embrace me in his powerful and strong hug today? We are, after all, his children. What an honor that the God of the universe desires to hold us in his embrace! Please don't be so busy that you miss all the really important things in your life. Stop the busyness, and intentionally slow down enough to bask in the wonder of Jesus and the family he has blessed you with today.
  
"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." Psalm 46:10

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