Did you get everything you want for Christmas? I did!

We do our Christmas family gathering on Christmas Eve each year, and each year I find that the best part is being with my family full of devout Christians who understand the real reason for the season, and who are not afraid to talk about it.

Sadly, one muclear family unit at our celebration had to leave early to go to a gathering for another part of the their family. Neither parent wanted to go. My 2-month-old grandson didn't much care where they went, as long as he got to be with his mom! But they were headed from a family who focuses on God, who knows and appreciates Christ, whose every member strives to make the gathering as fun and fulfilling as possible, to a gathering where God is not the center and family dysfunction is. (Don't get me wrong - my family is dysfunctional, just as all families are in some way or another - but we've learned to work around it, not live through it as the means of our existence).

So what did I want for Christmas? My mom & dad, my grandmother, my son & his young, small family, and my own family unit all together in one place sharing stories I've heard year after year, introducing my new daughter-in-law to our traditions, and the palpable and loved presence of God tying us more closely together.

I got what I wanted for Christmas!