Have you felt it the last week or two?? You know, that feeling of stress and pressure building within. There’s too much to do and too little time. And…it seems like people are doing things just to annoy you!! Like, they are moving just a little bit slower than usual, just to bug you. A person is standing right in front of the item you want to pick up at the grocery store and they seem totally unaware that you’re there and won’t step aside to let you get what you need. Your server got your order wrong just to spite you, you’re sure. Your boss or a coworker is giving you extra tasks to do just to make your life difficult. It seems like almost everything is frustrating or annoying you!! Yep, that’s the feeling.
Yes, this is the season when stress levels start rising and the internal pressure builds up because we set our expectations so high. We want Christmas to be perfect. After all, looking through the holiday magazines or seeing other people’s posts on social media…it would certainly seem that everyone else’s Christmas is going smoothly, if not perfectly. But the truth is, magazine pictures are usually staged, and quite often social media posts rarely tell the whole story.
So, back to my original question, have you been feeling stressed? Feeling a bit irritable? Are you just a little bit short-tempered? Yeah, I’ve had my moments too!! ‘Tis the season, as they say.
Just recently I read a post of someone I follow on Facebook, he’s a fellow United Methodist pastor, and he said that he had been in a post office just recently and saw firsthand how rude and downright mean some people were being to the postal staff concerning situations totally beyond their control. He said it was saddening to see people treating other human beings in this manner…especially in this season. This fellow pastor in his post challenged his readers that over the next few weeks, the days leading up to Christmas, that we would all go the extra mile to be kind, encouraging, pleasant, and to even express gratitude toward those who are trying to serve or help us with our own holiday plans and preparations.
Well, just yesterday I got my chance to accept that challenge and live it out. I found myself in the post office here in Mitchell. Because of the winter storm there were very few people in the post office. A clerk was at one window helping another customer. Another clerk was working at a task at a desk. She looked like it had already been a long day…and it was only 10:30 in the morning. She greeted me and I greeted her back.
As she got up to help me, she asked how my day was going. I told her my day was going great! I had very little snow to deal with, helped a neighbor get unstuck, had a good vehicle for this kind of weather, and I made it to the post office. Life is Good!! Then I asked how her day was going. She gave me one of those…so-so gestures and glances. I asked if she was dealing with truck issues, staff not able to get in, and dealing with your own snow to get here? She indicated the snow wasn’t that big a deal, but the other stuff was quite true, and add to it the Christmas rush.
She and I talked for a bit as she helped me process my packages to mail. We laughed about some things and generally had a cheery conversation. I don’t know about her, but I sure felt in higher spirits than when I had walked in. Yes, it was still storming outside, but the truth is, my life is filled with much goodness that God wants me to share with others.
Today, as this winter storm winds down, people are going to realize Christmas is just a week away! ACKKKK! How about we each do what we can to bring more laughter and cheer into this week before Christmas. Let’s leave the irritation and stress behind. We’ll never be perfectly ready for Christmas...and that’s OK. After all, Jesus didn’t come into a perfect world, he came into an imperfect and broken world to show us that even in the brokenness and imperfectness that surrounds us…that God is with us. Yes, the Light has come into the world…and the darkness didn’t, and cannot nor will not, overcome it. Today, spread some love and cheer!! There truly is much good news to share!!
Serving Together,
Pastor Keith