We are now in full “holiday mode” – planning, preparing and plotting how to make this celebration perfect. So much time and energy we expend chasing the “to do” list.

We are so busy getting caught up in the hustle and bustle that we sometimes miss the best part. We see events, but don’t get their meaning; we hear the words, but don’t grasp their significance. We often stay stuck where we are and don’t grow.

Think of all the wonderful things that happen to us every day: the sunrise, the freshness after a rain, the smell of a rose, a small kindness, laughter, a hug, a winter fire, a new idea, an old friend.

We have so many lights to light our day teaching us that life is a blessing, and that our good God is with us for sure. So many lights that go unnoticed and unnamed.

Sad things and hard things may also come into our daily lives. They too, have much to teach us. Our failures, our bodily pains, our pains of the spirit, our disappointments and our losses, our grieving and our weeping: these are part of all our lives and God does not shield us from their pain.

But in each – no matter how terrible, is an invitation to life, an invitation from God to become more: more whole, more true, and more happy.

And hidden there along with the invitation is always God’s promise to give us all the power and strength that are needed.

But, too often we sleep through these messages. And their light does not lighten our darkness.

So during this season of light, let’s look for the signs that God is sending us in so many different forms in each moment.

Let’s not turn our back on that light. Let us watch for it each moment, take it in, and let it give light to our whole house.