Christmas Blessings

I have been feeling so blessed this Christmas season... well, this whole year.

This year has been an amazing year of growth for me as I've re-discovered my faith and connected with a church community. I love my church so much! I've made some really great friends; I've gotten involved at a level that I've never done before; and I have found myself again.

I really felt led to this church. I blogged a little about it at the beginning of the year, but I didn't go into a lot of detail at the time. But every step of the way to finding the church, joining it, and getting more and more involved has felt like divine intervention. I really feel like God has been blessing me this year.

The end of the year has been a bit of a financial struggle for me as the economy affected the small businesses with whom my company usually works. Things are starting to slowly pick up again, but every day I felt so fortunate and so richly blessed with the love of my family and friends.

Tonight, two of my friends gave me an amazing Christmas gift that has validated that sense of being blessed in my friendships. I mentioned last week that I wasn't going to be able to buy a Christmas tree this year (due to finances), but that I was still going to decorate and use the little ceramic tree my mom made years ago as my Christmas tree. I knew that I could still have a Christmas-y feel to my house and didn't need a tree.

Earlier this week, they invited me to do something tonight, but wouldn't tell me what it was. When they showed up at my house, they revealed that they wanted to take me out Christmas tree shopping and buy me a tree. We went out and, believe it or not, the very first tree we saw was perfect. I love a fat, little tree, and this tree was absolutely the perfect height, the perfect fatness, perfectly straight, the exact kind of tree I love (short, soft needles), smelled wonderful, and we couldn't see a single flaw on it.

We brought it back to my house, listened to Christmas music and decorated it together. And every time I look at it, I'm going to think of the friendships I have and, the even greater gift than the tree, the love that was given with it. Thanks Mike and Dorothy.

And, thanks to God, for the rich blessings and gifts He has given me in the friendships he has brought to me.