Carded

It's officially Christmas card season. My weekend will be spent signing my name more times than I care to count and addressing enough envelopes to make a postal worker faint. But, as they say, "'tis the season," and I actually enjoy doing it.

Like me, most of you will be sending out cards, and, on the flip side, you'll be getting cards from other people, many of whom we may never communicate with the other eleven months of the year. I mean, sure, I vaguely remember Hank from the place we worked thirty-five years ago, but we haven't spoken since I quit. Why do we trade Christmas cards? (A hypothetical scenario.) Or maybe you're one of those people who never even open the card to see Mildred's latest family portrait on the beach; you toss those suckers straight into the garbage can as soon as you read the return address and make sure you sent them their own Christmas card. Why even send cards in the first place if that's the end result?

Because this is the time of year we long most for a connection to another human being. We intuitively feel this is sacred time, special time, and we want to share it however we can with everyone we can. But I think we can do better than a token Christmas card. Make deep friendships year round. Share your life (not just a month of it) with other people. Shower them in love and care. Tell them -- show them -- the love of Jesus. Invite them over for hot chocolate, tea, coffee, cider, fruit cake, whatever. Open your heart 365 days a year.

And then, if you like, send them a Christmas card when the season rolls around again. Celebrate the birth of Christ together here and share eternal life together at the end of the age.