"Christmas will be good as long as...."

"Ultimately

life is good

as long as...."

How would you fill in the blank?

As long as...

my health is good

As long as...

I have a satisfying career

As long as...

I have deep friendships

It's a question my Spiritual Director

has invited me to sift through,

with two types of relationships in mind--

Horizontal relationships...

meaning the people in my life and 

corresponding life's circumstances

And my Vertical relationship...

that which I share with God 

When I'm dependent on people around me 

for the goodness of my life

I immediately run into problems

Because people let me down

and 

life falls apart

and 

my goals are blocked

and 

sometimes my family

doesn't like my dinner

But if 

"ultimately life is good as long as...

I have God,"

the picture looks so different.

Because God

is always present

and God

brings good out of life's pain

and God

never tires of listening to my heart's cry

and God

is my constant

Refuge,

Strength,

Guide,

Hope,

Comfort,

and Lover.

 As I have been turning these myriad of thoughts 

over in my mind,

I hear Him inviting me to respond to 

another question--

"Christmas will be good as long as...." 

As long as what?

Am I going to focus on people and events

for Christmas to hold goodness?

Am I expecting

a Hallmark Christmas card

with a white Christmas

and 

relational bliss,

perfect meals,

quiet evenings

and 

no disappointments??

If so,

I will surely have my spirits dashed 

and deem the goodness of Christmas accordingly.

But if Christmas is solely dependent on my Jesus

it will ultimately be good,

regardless of how life unfolds.

And it's wise for me to look at my heart

in this regard

because 

despite all of the planned celebrations of this season

this is a pretty broken world

and I too

am broken

I

yearn for peace beyond my understanding

and hope in the midst of pain

and guidance in the face of uncertainty

and comfort to cover the edges of disappointment

and rest within the realms of busyness

and love when I'm let down

and I will ONLY

find this in my Jesus!!!

No one and nowhere else

can I turn to

to provide me with a good Christmas.

Christmas will be good as long as I have my Jesus.