‘Tis the season of singing and listening to age old Christmas carols. The classic line “Do you see what I see?” had been joyfully resounding in my thoughts.  However, my mind kept saying “no” in response to the question.

So, I thought about it. I certainly had the time as I sat in traffic on the busy road leading to my eye-doctor appointment.  The toddler strapped in her car seat in the vehicle next to mine observed with her eyes the exact scene I viewed with mine.  Waiting it out at the same intersection for the third cycle of red, the child was nothing but delighted as she looked out upon the idling cars surrounding us both.  Even though I understood that the extra delays at the lights were caused by a heavier flow of cars at this time of year, I was nothing but a grinch. I wish I saw what she saw.

That little child guided me back to the delight of the world instead of the inconveniences that side track us from seeing the joy that accompanies us on a daily basis. We could see what she saw if we took a minute to observe our moments the way a toddler does instead of being drawn only to what irks us. When I catch myself being “grinchy” or down, I make it a point to ask the Lord to allow me to be joyful.  He is with us! That is cause for joy. So are the little things like a blue sky, my dog’s antics, my husband’s old jokes, a good cup of coffee, a call from a friend or sibling, a bright red cardinal on a branch outside my kitchen window.  Open my eyes, Lord, every day to the simple joys that pile up on my doorstep!

We have tidings of great joy always in our midst.  The Bible tells us so. Thus it was so for the shepherds of long ago and three kings from afar who were given a message from above to be delivered to the world eternally.  It was tidings of great joy in the form of a tiny infant whom they would find if they were willing to search.  So then, each of them let go of their distractions in life and set off to find this great joy.  The destination was reached when the foretold infant was found. Each observed with different eyes, but all observed the same profound joy. They each found the one Truth.  His name is Jesus.