Little Is Lovely

Sheri Wohlfert proposes an antidote to pre-Christmas anxiety born from a culture that believes bigger is better.

The person who is faithful with small matters is also faithful with great ones. (Luke 16:10)

Our task for the week: seek the SMALL and the SIMPLE! Seriously … I’m not kidding … our motto for the week should be “Little Is Lovely!” (Let me be clear, hips and thighs don’t count!!!) If I had any power of any kind, I would declare it National "Little is Lovely" Week!

Christmas Eve is coming quick and this is just about the time many of us go into our “Christmas Freakout” and completely forget about the coming of a King! We have probably done some of our shopping, and now we start to worry about whether the gifts we’ve purchased are good enough or big enough or fancy enough to outdo what we gave last year. That’s where the trouble starts to brew!

Many of God's greatest gifts are small. Babies, flowers, butterflies, puppies, and a Son who came to save us from our sinfulness are all small, but so completely amazing they can make us stop in our tracks and take notice. God works among the small and simple parts of our lives. He shows His magnificence in the little details, yet we live in a culture that praises, rewards and almost requires bigger, better, bolder and over the top. It’s a good time to think about which influence we’d like to be shaped by. God wanted so badly to make things small and simple, He even took His Ten Commandments and broke them down into two very simple ones: love God and love others. How could we goof up something so simple?

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Sometimes it’s the little things we take for granted. We don’t often think of the simple gift of time as something valuable we can wrap and put under the tree – but it is. Instead of trying to find the newest toy or hottest appliance or trendiest outfit, give the simple gift of time. Give a now and later gift, a small treat or gift card for now and a certificate for a lunch or dinner date together later. A gift from a student one year that really touched my heart was a beautiful cookie, made and wrapped with a bow by the child, complete with a card saying that child and her family had prayed for me and my family at supper each night for a week.

Give the gift of an event, like bowling or a movie together. How about the gift of a promise? It could be a promise to spend an hour or an afternoon doing whatever the recipient wants whether it be playing a game, cleaning the cupboards, or helping with yard work. You could attach your promise to help with spring gardening to a new shovel or pair of work gloves. Be creative … be simple … be small! As you are trying to figure out how to bless the people you love, first remember to pray for them and ask the Creator who knows them best to help you decide how to bless them with a gift.

While we’re on the subject of little, how about spending a little or a little more time in prayer each morning so we can keep our hearts focused on the true meaning of the season. Be simple but be intentional. God loves Christmas and He’s the first one in line to help us keep focused and not overwhelmed by the way our culture can clutter up Christmas.

Click to tweet:
God is the first one in line to help us keep focused and not overwhelmed by the way our culture can clutter up Christmas. #catholicmom

A seed to plant: Set your alarm to get up 15 minutes earlier this week and use those minutes in simple prayer, maybe reading the first two chapters of Luke’s Gospel. Second, take a look at your shopping and to-do list and pick 5 things to do smaller or simpler.

Blessings on your day!