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6 | M A C O N M A G A Z I N E D E C E M B E R / J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 8 A re you ready? The holiday season is upon us, ready or not. My Christmas countdown app, which is checked religiously by my 5-year-old son, allows him to claim just 24 "sleeps" until the big day. There are only a few weeks until 2018. If you aren't already making plans, making menus or making memories, then you may feel behind. What can we learn from the lists we keep in this season? Like a story collected in bullet points, our checklists mark the work we set out to do. Plans and lists keep us moving. My family makes use of a great app for grocery shopping. Both my wife and I have a shared list we can add items to – say, for a holiday family meal – that are needed for the recipes we are planning. I can see, in real time, when she crosses off an item from the list while walking aisle by aisle in the grocery store. Which means, I can also add items, as soon as she crosses them off. Whereas she may have planned for the ingredients for broccoli slaw, I may have a little fun and add things like Oreos and bacon every time she crosses off an item. She finds it hilarious when I add "and bacon" to every item. Maybe not hilarious, but a little charming? What do we really want in this season – besides the ingredients for a delicious recipe? How can we be present with the joys, the beauty and the needs around us? If you are like me, this season is marked by perpetual parties and preparations; sales and celebrations. How do these moments shape us? The harried pace of the holidays leaves me with nagging questions: Have we lost the beauty in the busyness of the season? Why do the best of my resolutions only last a few weeks? What if the world needs more from us than holiday decorations? Howard Thurman reminds us of the lasting work of the season. "When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flocks, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among the people, To make music in the heart." This kind of list tells a story as well. The challenge of Thurman's words draws us toward the broken places of our world, so that we can know the power of shining a light. There are specific needs that call us to attend to them. The enormity of that work can make us want to turn away toward easier things. One of the things that happens when we gather during Advent and the light of Epiphany is that we light candles. It is a simple act. Lighting a candle in the darkness can be a powerful act of resistance when you let it. When we light a candle, we are transforming the darkness. We see the faces of people near us. Candles lit and lists crossed, I offer this blessing in the new year: May your plans fall apart. May you laugh in the chaos, and may the gift of time surprise you. Instead of having your face buried in your phone or in your lists, may you truly see the faces of the people around you. May you turn your attention to the needs of our community beyond your well-curated friend list. When it comes time to make a new list of resolutions, may you turn to the work of finding, feeding, healing, rebuilding and making music. Holiday Blessings and a Happy New Year By Jake Hall Editorial Jake Hall is the pastor of Highland Hills Baptist Church.