TIS THE SEASON

"Come now, and let us reason together . . ." ~ Isaiah 1:18 ~

Whenever there are holidays, there’s usually stress. For some strange reason, the final season of the year tends to be the most stressful one. Generally, preparing for Thanksgiving seems to ignite our stresses, and then Christmas agendas bring on the big combustion.

Although we celebrate this season repeatedly each year, we still allow stress to overpower us. The more we attempt to make our holidays "merry and bright," the more we’re bothered with stress. The harder we aspire to eliminate issues, the greater we’re bound by anxieties.

People have often said that "Practice makes perfect." They reasoned that the more we do a thing, the better we become at doing it.

Can we honestly say that the more Christmases we deal with stress, the better we become at managing it? Even if we haven’t fully figured out how to keep our stresses at bay, we still should be making progress.

This Christmas season, let’s begin by being reasonable. No doubt, each person’s "reasonable" may vary a little—possibly a lot—but let’s be sensible. Right here and now, determine to know . . .

When to say no
When to let go
When to be spend wisely
When to stop spending
When to stop overeating
When to stop the insanity
When to leave well-enough alone
When to take a time-out
When to turn the lights off
When to sleep at night

After all, the Christmas season was never intended for stress.

Peace I leave with you . . .