Last year at about this time, I had an idea for a story that I thought would make a great Christmas book. In the first flush of excitement, I thought I would write the story and publish it for Christmas 2020. It didn't take long for reality to set in, and I set my sights on publishing the book for Christmas 2021.
As the story progressed to completion, I thought that it would be a fun thing to do to send copies of the Christmas book to family and friends as a surprise. One of those friends gave me a wonderful gift in return in the form of a text. She texted me this: "Thank you so much for making me think about my faith as I was reading your story".
The greatest gift an author can receive is the knowledge that their work struck the chord they were trying to strike, and that message told me that I had hit the target with at least one reader.
Gifts are somewhat of a theme in the book, gifts of time and kindness and generosity as well as material gifts. I am able to share my beliefs through the words of my characters, and this passage from "Christmas Blessings" is one of the most strongly held beliefs I have. These are Rosadel's words, talking about Harriet Marshall.
“Momma Harriet told me that she learned from me how important it was to love God and thank Him even when life is hard. She told me that she had never personally experienced the kind of hardship that Daddy, Mama and I were going through, and from helping us she saw real faith in action. I was stunned. To me, Momma Harriet is like an angel on earth. Always helping, always trying to make sure everyone in her world has everything they need. I look up to her still as faith in action.
“She told me faith is easy when life is easy, and that without people allowing her to help them, she would never have the opportunity to grow in her faith. She said the only way for people who are abundantly blessed to grow in the love of the Lord is through service. So, lots of words to get to one simple thing. You are helping people when you allow them to help you. Thank God for them, and remember that the time will come when you will be the helper instead of the helped.”
It can be incredibly difficult to admit when we need help, and harder still to ask for help and accept it. But for many people, being allowed to help is the greatest gift they can receive.
For everyone reading this, I hope your life is easy, and you are allowed to grow in your faith by helping others. But we all know life is not like that. So my prayer for you is that God gives you the strength to ask for and accept help when you need it.
