Merry Christmas, ,

Are those not the lyrics to that song? Often, when my kids will do something funny, I end up singing silly song lyrics, and they ask, "Is that a real song?" I explain, “Well, yes, I got the melody from a real song, but I made up the lyrics.” Then, of course, I have to play the real song for them. 

When I hear something, sometimes I feel like my kids, "Is that a real saying? Does it mean something else?" For example, recently, I heard the phrase "shalom aleichem," meaning "peace be upon you." For years, I thought the word shalom was simply a Hebrew greeting meaning peace. 

When I think of peace, I often picture myself sitting on a bench, looking out at a landscape covered with freshly fallen snow not yet touched by humans or animals.

But the word shalom goes much deeper. In its literal sense, it encompasses three English words: soundness, wholeness, and completion.

When I was shopping with my kids a few weeks ago, my son saw a sign for a “Black Friday” sale. He asked, “Mommy, what’s Black Friday?” I shared with him the origin that I understood, that at some point in history, it became the biggest shopping day of the year, thus putting businesses “back in the black” financially.

Whether that’s the actual origin or not is irrelevant, but my point here is Black Friday has typically been an American thing. But now, the materialism displayed during Christmas amplifies the world's chaos, even on the other side of the globe. So, how do we quiet our hearts and enjoy the season?

By shifting our focus.

The Christmas season is full of people rushing about. Some are out shopping—buying food for feasts, toys for tots, or socks for those hard-to-shop-for people. Some people are overwhelmed with commitments, some are missing loved ones, and others are just downright tired from daily life.

What if we just stopped?

What if we were still?

What if we just reflected on what Christmas brought?

Jesus, our Prince of Peace, arrived amid a chaotic, broken world. He came to give us peace, but it didn’t look the way we would have expected it. The peace He brought with His arrival did not come in the form of quiet calmness or the absence of war. Instead, He brought shalom. Soundness to the afflicted, wholeness to the sick, and completion to the broken. Oh, how he brought completion!

“For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over every ruler and authority.” 

Colossians 2:9–10, NASB, emphasis mine

I have not mastered the art of being still, but I long for more peace amid the chaos of my life. Maybe you do, too? The busyness of life will always be present and won’t ever stop to a point where we feel at peace. But God is above the chaos, and He wants to bring us His peace—His shalom, but we have to choose to accept it. So perhaps this Christmas, while the turmoil of the world swirls around us, together we can meditate on the full meaning of shalom and dwell on these words of Jesus:

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

John 14:27, NKJV

May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be upon you, shalom aleichem, this Christmas and always!

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Reaching into Silence

World Without Sound, Book 1

The rubella epidemic of 1964-65. The Vietnam War.

Both converge on twelve-year-old Debbie when her sister is born with disabilities and her father may be flying into danger.

Labeled as a “rubella baby,” Debbie’s sister Krista is born blind in one eye and with a hole in her heart. Although she survives risky open-heart surgery, months pass, and she doesn’t babble or crawl like most babies do. Doctors decide Krista is cognitively challenged—she’ll never be able to learn—and they advise her parents to put her in an institution. Just forget about her and raise their three “normal” kids.

Not on Debbie’s watch. She’s sure Krista is deaf, but no one will believe a kid. Along with all the medical drama, Debbie must deal with problems at school—best friends who move away, mean girls who don’t, bullies, and boyfriends. Refusing to give in to self-pity, she soldiers on as Krista’s champion.

However, Debbie’s optimism falters when her father’s next orders will send him to the war in Vietnam. Can she hang tough for her mother, keep helping Krista, and prepare for life without Dad, possibly forever?

Available for pre-order on December 13th through Amazon.com with a delivery date of Dec. 26th! Order the e-book through Dec. 26th for $.99; after that, it will be $3.99.

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