Jesus brings joy

We had Mark's extended family Christmas gathering this last weekend.  There is still the tradition of sitting around singing Christmas carols, reading the story of Christmas and then opening gifts.  They also have a time of sharing.  I don't know if it was my pregnancy hormones combined with being very tired, but I was feeling very weepy during the singing this year.  Adalyn and her cousin Isabelle were twirling and dancing in the middle of the group the whole time we were singing.  They had such big, beautiful smiles on their faces, laughing and 'singing' too, not caring at all what anyone else would think, just happy and so very innocent and free in their joy.  The singing is always very enthusiastic and loud at this gathering and I thought maybe the little girls were being a bit distracting, but as I looked around the room and saw the smiles and laughter on others faces, I knew this is what worship is about and though I wasn't necessarily thinking about the words of the songs, I was drawn to think about Jesus and the message of Christmas.  Two words we often hear at Christmas are joy and peace.  Jesus came to bring joy and peace on earth, and I really felt His presence there in that moment, in the joy and love on the faces of all 45 some people in that room.   It is such a beautiful thing in this world to see how when a family follows Jesus and teaches their children about Jesus how true that message becomes.  Especially in this day when you look around at the world and see all the heartache, pain, and trouble that has come as a result of sin.  I am so very thankful for the family God has blessed me with.   Both in Mark's family that I married into and my own family.  Praise God from whom all blessings flow!  Praise Him for sending Jesus to save us from our sins, so we can be free to experience and know real peace, joy and love and all things good!