Pay Attention

 

With each passing day, the homes and yards of my neighborhood grow more and more full with signs of holiday cheer. Christmas decorations adorn the trees, the bushes, the lawns and the roofs of the houses. I almost missed this little guy who was settled in a bird bath in a little garden under a tree. I am almost certain I have seen him before, but I never noticed his apparel. After all, who really notices how a frog dresses? This frog is sporting his Santa coat as Christmas draws near. I will certainly pay more attention to such details from now on.

My favorite author is Frederick Beuchner. He writes, “From the simplest lyric to the most complex novel, literature is asking us to pay attention. Pay attention to the frog. Pay attention to the west wind. Pay attention to the boy on the raft, the lady on the tower, the old man on the train. In sum, pay attention to the world and all that dwells therein and thereby learn at last to pay attention to yourself and all that dwells therein.” The writer of the letter to the Ephesians speaks of “having the eyes of your hearts enlightened”. There is great truth to be found and much about life to be learned in the details which are so easy to miss.

As Christmas approaches, I hope to take in all the details of the story. I hope to see what God is doing, not in the staged and sanitized images of holiday cards, but in the beauty and mess of real life in which the story unfolds. I want to see the story in all the details, both harsh and beautiful. I long to see God at work in this story of life and death, of taxes and empire, of mystery and faith. I don’t want to miss a detail, for that detail might be exactly what I need this Christmas. In the big wave of activity that is the holiday season, as we have many big things to accomplish and experience, let us not forget to pay attention to the details. In them we may find our best gift.

Peace.