Wish List

"I wanna a Commando Baby Crawl-along and a Quiche-chef Ken.""Gimme a Clay-dough 'You Are There' Appendectomy Kit... and money... lots of money to spend at the mall- just in case there's something else I decide I want that you missed." "Oh, and I wish for three more wishes."

Ever feel like your kids see you as a big genie when you're gearing up for the Christmas shopping season? Didn't I catch one of mine rubbing my belly last year? What amazes me is that even after considerable belly-rubbing, I actually do find myself fighting traffic, wading through sale tables, sifting through the noise of a thousand parents crying out for the last, lone, coveted appendectomy kit. Sounds like one of Ali Baba's curses, doesn't it?

But have you ever looked at what the Psalmist wanted in chapter 27, verse 4? He says, "I'm asking God for one thing, only one thing... " Asking for only one thing? It's almost absurd, isn't it? Surely this passage isn't meant for Christmas. Didn't he understand that celebrating Christ is almost always followed by a humongous list of wants? One thing? But the Psalmist says, "I'm asking God for one thing, only one thing: To live with him in his house my whole life long. I'll contemplate his beauty; I'll study at his feet." (Psalm 27:4, The Message).

It's easy to get caught up in the noise of the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season and forget to remember what it is- and Who it is- we're celebrating. Christmas is about God's Son coming in human form to pay for our sin and to make it possible for us to live in his house for all eternity. Isn't it sad that it's so easy to get distracted by the noise and miss the beauty?

The next verse tells us that contemplating His beauty and studying at his feet is really the only way to beat the noise. "That's the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world, the perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic." (verse 5)

What could be better than the promise of living with our magnificent Savior our whole lives long? What could be better than studying at His feet, soaking in His beauty? When we come face to face with His glorious beauty, I think that every other temporary treasure in life- even the "Commandos" and "Clay-doughs" - everything we've ever seen as a "must have," will suddenly become a "What was I thinking?" We could be bottled up for thousands of years and still find that true satisfaction doesn't come from where we are or what we have, but that it's really all about Who we know.

Let's do our best to herd our kids toward Christ this Christmas, and to His Word. It might help if we remind them that His Word is a "lamp" to our feet. Okay, maybe not the genie kind. But if we'll say our own "open sesame" as we open His Word and contemplate His beauty, we can find unspeakable family treasure studying at His feet.

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Rhonda Rhea writes for dozens of Christian publications and speaks at conferences and events across the country. You can find her newest books, "Soup for the Soul-Tastes Just Like Chicken", and "Amusing Grace", at your local Christian bookstore. "Who Put the Cat in the Fridge-Serving Up Hope and Hilarity Family Style", will be available in March. Rhonda's husband, Richie Rhea, is a pastor in Troy, Missouri. You can reach them through her Web site.