When Christmas Feels Like a Failed Hallmark Movie

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. Psalm 145:18

Last Christmas was a tender time for our family as we were missing our two oldest sons. Isaiah, our youngest, asked us to wait to open his gift until the end. Nothing could’ve prepared me for his gift. When he began to explain the “why” behind it, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.

As we each opened a box with an engraved ring, he began to read a letter he’d written on a bus ride after a basketball game.

As a student athlete, this guy puts in the work. He lifts weights 7 days a week, arrives to practice early and stays late to put up a bazillion shots. Adrenaline pumping, he goes to each game with an active-wait mindset because at any given moment the coach might call on him to step onto the court.

He likened it to the wait we’re all experiencing on different levels - waiting for:

• opportunities to arise

• relationships to heal

• and simply for wisdom on how to walk forward

As he talked, the song, “Wait on You” played in the background. It’s kinda been our family anthem this year and so he created rings for each us engraved with, “Become the Eagle”.

It’s a reference to Isaiah 40:31 and how eagles approach a storm. They don’t duck for cover, but wield the winds to draw them higher and higher until they finally soar above the storm where the sun warms their wings.

The inside of the ring are the Hebrew letters for qavah which means to wait actively. Just like Isaiah is actively ready to step on the court when his coach says “go”, he wanted to remind us to be active as we wait for the Lord to provide.

He ended with this: Even though this is a qavah Christmas of sorts, let's continue to actively worship while we wait to see His faithful promises fulfilled!

Psalm 145 gives us a template for praise that serves a dual purpose: David praises God in the wait while reminding himself of WHOM he waits: a God who, “always keeps his promises and is gracious in all he does. He IS close to all who call on Him and helps those bent beneath their loads.”

There will be moments in life that feel like a failed Hallmark movie without the cheesy ending, but it’s important to remember that though the wait is long, it’s not the end. God hears our cries for help and WILL rescue us! Let’s be like the eagle, who draws near to the sun, while we wait for our Son to provide!