The Coolest Gifts Ever

I took my last 1/2 day of vacation for the year this afternoon. (Probably good to use that thing up!) I stopped by the grocery store (twice), worked around the house, and got in a 4.6-mile run. It was a bit snowy and windy for running!

This Christmas, I received two very special gifts. I've learned that I'm kind of an emotional guy and both of these resulted in some seriously watery eyes. The first came in the form of a totally unexpected Christmas card. In this modern era of instant communication, Christmas cards almost seem to be a ritual of the past. Yet, I still send them - and receive them. This year, an unexpected card ended up in my mailbox and included some words that were so encouraging that I was truly awestruck. The second gift came in the form of a tin of cookies. On Tuesday, I sat down at my desk and right in front of me was this tin of cookies with a card on top. My first thought was, "How the heck did someone get into my office and leave a tin of cookies?" However, I read the accompanying card and, again, just sat their awestruck.

Too often, I find it easy to slip down that dangerous slope of sadness and woefulness - to question what the heck is going on - to wonder if this thing called kingdom-building really is possible - to struggle with a sense of purpose. These two gifts provided a huge reality check that there is a larger purpose - that other things are going on that most of the time I don't even see.

Happy New Year!!

Todd