Your Worst Christmas

Maybe you recall a Christmas that was simply awful—a time you were heartbroken, or homeless, or broke, or far from home, or jilted, or frightened, or sick—and your future looked bleak.

You remember it as the worst Christmas ever.

But I invite you to think again.

Writing a memoir can be such a blessed project. Memoir requires taking long, deep looks at the past. Memoir involves pondering, re-thinking, unearthing, and finding gems we might not have known were there.

Sometimes what seems to be our biggest disaster

turns out to be a blessing—

one we couldn’t have received without the difficulty.

Sometimes we think a calamity will destroy us, but God works in the midst of our situations and, in the way only He can do it, He turns everything inside out and upside down and—instead of destroying us—it makes us stronger and better.

Failures. Tangled messes. Catastrophes, Tragedies. Conflicts. Blows. Adversity. Upheavals. Disasters. Setbacks. Unwelcome surprises.

God can use our deep disappointments to get our attention,

shake us up a little,

clear our heads,

help us see we were putting our hope in something we shouldn’t,

open new doors for us,

give us new perspectives,

tenderize our souls,

give us fresh starts.

God can do all that.

That’s what Romans 8:28 is about:  “…God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purposes for them.”  (NLT)

A long time ago, H.C. Trumbull told this story:

“The floods washed away home and mill, all the poor man had in the world. But as he stood on the scene of his loss, after the water had subsided, brokenhearted and discouraged, he saw something shining in the bank which the waters had washed bare. ‘It looks like gold,’ he said. It was gold. The flood which had beggared him made him rich. So it is ofttimes in life.” (Quoted by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman, Streams in the Desert, January 20 selection.)

When turnarounds and relief and solutions eventually come our way, it’s so easy to snatch them, run with them, and never look back. We too easily fail to recognize God’s intervention on our behalf, and we pay too little attention to the good He has brought to us out of the midst of our hardships.

Take time—make time—to dig through the dirt and ashes of what you thought was your most disastrous Christmas, and mine those bits of gold.

Search for evidence of God’s healing, new directions He offered you, new friends, and new hope.

Pinpoint the ways He strengthened your faith for the future.

Recognize these were all part of God’s unique plan for you and your life.

Gather those discoveries and write stories in your memoir that detail the ways God was with you in the midst of your worst Christmas ever.

Write stories about the way He took a disaster and turned it into something good—blessings you couldn’t have received without that difficulty. Instead of destroying you, it made you stronger and better.

If you’ll make time to do that, you can receive heaps of blessings.

But it doesn’t end there. Your readers can benefit, too.

Like Jeff Goins said:

You have all this evidence: Write about it!

You can't see God's hands or face or look into His eyes.

You can't take a photo of Him or of His promises, but God does give evidence of His involvement in your life.

He gives tangible evidence of His love, His power to help, His creation, protection, guidance, and forgiveness. He gives perceptible evidence when He answers your prayers.

"God has blessed his people—just look at the evidence!" (2 Chronicles 31:10b, The Message).

God ". . . never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness" (Acts 14:17, NLT).

"There's no end to what has happened to you—it's beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives" (1 Corinthians 1:4, The Message).

"Everyone will see this. No one can miss it—unavoidable, indisputable evidence that I, God, personally did this...." (Isaiah 41:20).

This is important: Remember . . . that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced . . . the Lord, . . . his majesty, his mighty hand.... It was not your children who saw what he did for you in the desert until you arrived at this place...." (Deuteronomy 11:2-7, NIV).

Do you grasp what these words mean? They mean you have a story that only you can share.

"You have all this evidence confirmed by your own eyes and ears. Shouldn't you be talking about it...? (Isaiah 48:6, The Message).

You need to write your stories!

If you don't write them, someone else might try,

but only you know the whole, accurate story.

What "unavoidable, indisputable evidence" do you have that God has acted on your behalf?

Maybe He helped you with a financial need.

Perhaps He caused someone to notice and help when you were in danger.

Maybe God sent someone to sit with you and pray for you when you were desperately ill or brokenhearted or frightened.

This list—your list—goes on and on....

Writing stories of God's involvement in your life will strengthen your faith—for today and for the future, whatever it holds.

Writing your stories will also strengthen your readers' faith.

Who knows what they'll face in their lives?

God can use your stories to prepare them,

and mature them,

and use them,

and bless them.

Let's write our stories so that this can be said of you and me:

"Our children will hear about the wonders of the Lord.

His righteous acts will be told to those yet unborn.

They will hear about everything he has done."

(Psalm 22:30-31, NLT)

Your worst Christmas

Maybe you recall a Christmas that was simply awful—a time you were heartbroken, or homeless, or broke, or far from home, or jilted, or frightened, or sick—a time of anguish and sorrow, and life looked bleak.

You remember it as the worst Christmas ever.

But I’d like to ask you to think again.

Writing a memoir can be such a blessed project: Memoir requires taking long, deep looks at the past. Memoir involves pondering, examining, re-thinking, digging deep and finding gems we might not have known were there.

illustration in public domain

Sometimes what seems to be our biggest disaster or heartache turns out to be a blessing—one we couldn’t have received without the difficulty.

Sometimes we think a calamity will destroy us but God is in the midst of our situations and, in the way only He can do it, He turns everything inside out and upside down and—instead of destroying us—it makes us stronger and better.

Failures. Tangled messes. Catastrophes. Tragedies. Conflicts. Blows. Adversity. Upheavals. Disasters. Setbacks. Unwelcome surprises.

God can use our deep disappointments to get our attention,

shake us up a little,

clear our heads,

help us see we were putting our hope in something we shouldn’t,

open new doors for us,

give us new perspectives,

tenderize our souls,

and give us fresh starts.

God can do all that.

That’s what Romans 8:28 is all about: 

“…God causes everything to work together 

for the good of those who love God 

and are called according to his purpose for them.” 

(NLT)

A long time ago, H.C. Trumbull told this story:

“The floods washed away home and mill, all the poor man had in the world. But as he stood on the scene of his loss, after the water had subsided, brokenhearted and discouraged, he saw something shining in the bank which the waters had washed bare. ‘It looks like gold,’ he said. It was gold. The flood which had beggared him made him rich. So it is ofttimes in life.” (Quoted by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman, Streams in the Desert, January 20 selection.)

When turn-arounds and relief and solutions eventually come our way, it’s so easy to snatch them, run with them, and never look back. We too easily fail to recognize God’s loving intervention on our behalf, and we fail to recognize the good He has brought to us out of the midst of our hardships.

Take time—make time—to dig through the dirt and ashes of what you thought was your most disastrous Christmas, and mine those bits of gold.  

Search for evidence of God’s healing, new directions He provided for your life, new friends, and new hope.

Pinpoint the ways He strengthened your faith for the future.

Recognize these were all part of God’s unique plan for you and your life.

Gather all those discoveries and write memoir vignettes detailing the ways God was in the midst of your worst Christmas ever.

Write stories about the way He took a disaster or heartache and turned it inside out and upside down and turned it into something good—blessings you couldn’t have received without that difficulty. Instead of destroying you, it made you stronger and better.

If you’ll make time to do that, 

you can receive heaps of blessings.

Give it a try!

Related post:

What is memoir?

Evidence: Write about it! 

Evidence! Shouldn't you be writing about it?

Have you ever held in your hands a chunk of God's love?

Silly question, I know.

You and I can't hold in our hands a chunk of God's love.

We can't take a photo of Him or His promises, but when we live each day by faith, God gives us evidence of who He is and evidence that He's involved in our lives.

He gives us tangible evidence of His love, His power to help, His creation, His protection, guidance, forgiveness, and answers to prayer.

"God has blessed his people—just look at the evidence!" (2 Chronicles 31:10b, The Message).

Shouldn't you be writing your stories about all this?

“ … But he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts” (Acts 14:17 NLT).

“There's no end to what has happened in you—it's beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives” (1 Corinthians 1:4, The Message).

 The poor and homeless are desperate for water,
   their tongues parched and no water to be found.
But I'm there to be found, I'm there for them,
   and I, God of Israel, will not leave them thirsty.
I'll open up rivers for them on the barren hills,
   spout fountains in the valleys.
I'll turn the baked-clay badlands into a cool pond,
   the waterless waste into splashing creeks.
I'll plant the red cedar in that treeless wasteland,
   also acacia, myrtle, and olive.
I'll place the cypress in the desert,
   with plenty of oaks and pines.
Everyone will see this. No one can miss it—
   unavoidable, indisputable evidence
That I, God, personally did this.
   It's created and signed by The Holy of Israel (Isaiah 41:17-20, The Message).

What “unavoidable, indisputable evidence” do you have that God has acted on your behalf?

Perhaps He provided for you in a time of financial crisis.

Maybe He caused someone to notice you were in danger and call for help.

Maybe someone prayed for you and sat with you when you were desperately ill, or brokenhearted—as if God Himself had sat beside you with His arm around you. 

Perhaps there was a time you were "desperate for water, ... tongues parched and no water to be found," maybe literally, maybe figuratively, and yet you experienced God's assurance, "But I'm there to be found, I'm there for them, and I, God of Israel, will not leave them thirsty" (Isaiah 41:17-20, The Message).

What do those verses symbolize in your life? 

In what specific ways were your "hills barren" and what "rivers" did God open up for you?

What were your "baked-clay badlands" and what was the "cool pond" God created for you?

What caused your "treeless wasteland" and what were the "cedar, acacia, myrtle, and olive trees" God planted in it?

When did you find yourself in the "desert" but God provided "cypress, oaks, and pines"?

You have all this evidence confirmed by your own eyes and ears. Shouldn't you be talking about it...? (Isaiah 48:6, The Message).

Write your stories of the "unavoidable, indisputable evidence that...God personally did this."

Writing your stories of God's involvement in your life will strengthen your faith—for today and for the future, whatever it holds.

Writing your stories will also strengthen your readers' faith.

Who knows what they'll face in their lives?

God can use your stories to prepare them 

and mature them

and use them 

and bless them

in the future.

Evidence: Write about it!

You can't hold in your hands a chunk of God's love.

You can't take a photo of Him, or of His promises, but God does give you evidence of his attributes and activity in your life.

He gives tangible evidence of His love, His power to help, His creation, protection, guidance, forgiveness, His attention to your prayers, and His answers.

“God has blessed his people – just look at the evidence!” (2 Chronicles 31:10b, The Message).

“ … But [God] never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts” (Acts 14:17 NLT).

“There's no end to what has happened in you—it's beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives” (1 Corinthians 1:4, The Message).

“The poor and the homeless are desperate for water.… But I'm there to be found, I'm there for them, and I, God of Israel, will not leave them thirsty. I'll open up rivers for them on the barren hills, spouts of fountains in the valleys. I'll turn the baked-clay badlands into a cool pond.… Everyone will see this. No one can miss it—unavoidable, indisputable evidence that I, God, personally did this...” Isaiah 41:17-20 (The Message).

“You have all this evidence confirmed by your own eyes and ears. Shouldn't you be talking about it...?” (Isaiah 48:6, The Message).

This is important: Remember … that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced … the Lord,… his majesty, his mighty hand…. It was not your children who saw what he did for you in the desert until you arrived at this place… Deuteronomy 11:2-7 (NIV).

Do you grasp what those words mean? They mean you have a story inside that only you can share. You need to write your stories!

Let this be said of you and of me:

“Our children will hear about the wonders of the Lord.

His righteous acts will be told to those yet unborn.

They will hear about everything He has done.”

(Psalm 22:30-31 NLT)