Holiday Reminders - Amy Schisler

Is your Thanksgiving turkey thawing?

Have you started your Christmas to-do list?

Have you begun planning your holiday schedule?

I’ve been hard at work getting my to-do list together, planning my decorating, coordinating activities with my family, putting together our Christmas card, and trying to remember everything else I need to tend to.

As we begin the holiday hoopla, it occurs to me that we all need a few reminders to keep us on track this season. Here are the things that will be at the top of my Reminders List.

Slow down, take a breath, and enjoy the season. Don’t get so caught up in planning that you miss out on the joy of the season. Sit down at a meal with friends. Take a sip of that eggnog. Cherish the time with your family. Christmas 2018.jpg

Make every person you come in contact with feel special. Whether you offer a smile or a wrapped present, you can give every person you see this holiday season a gift–the gift of you. Talk to them, ask how they’re doing, wish them a Happy Thanksgiving or a Merry Christmas. Make them glad they ran into you. You might be the bright spot in their hectic day.

Thank God for everyone and everything, every blessing, trial, and experience in your life. Be grateful for all that you have, no matter how much or how little. Instead of asking for more, be content and thankful for what you have.

Tell your loved ones that you love and appreciate them. Celebrate like this will be the last holiday you have together because nobody knows what tomorrow with bring.

Visit a friend who is sick. Offer to help with her Christmas preparations. Don’t think you have time? God will find the time for you.

Bake an extra plate of cookies for your lonely neighbor, a sick friend, or an under-appreciated co-worker. Offer to hang out with them for a while.

Notice the lights, the music, and the smells of the season. Let them bring you an added layer of cheer. Feel the excitement around you, the joy and the anticipation and not the hustle and bustle of the crowd. Join your kids or grandkids in the snow.

Plan an activity for your family that truly brings the season into your lives. Volunteer at a Thanksgiving dinner or a toy drive, go Christmas caroling, see a holiday play. Years ago, when our children were small, we attended a community theater production of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It was one of the best holiday treats we’ve ever had. We laughed until the tears rolled down our cheeks. To this day, we can’t hear the Christmas story without looking at each other and smiling because…

“Unto you a child is born!”

It’s easy to forget, so we must remind ourselves every day between now and the Twelfth Day of Christmas. A child was born to us! A child who would change the world. A child who would preach peace and love and acceptance and forgiveness and life after death. A child who would ultimately give His life for us!

That’s the number one thing for us to remember this holiday season. Eat, drink, celebrate, give and receive, bake, visit, and satiate your senses. Most of all, show everyone, through your words and actions, what the holidays are all about.

Bethlehem Star — The Nativity Star – Bethlehem

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What I was writing about a year ago this week: To Those Who Wait.

Amy Schisler is an award-winning author of both children’s books and sweet, faith-filled romance novels for readers of all ages. She lives with her husband and three daughters on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Her books, Picture Me, Whispering Vines, and Island of Miracles are all recipients of Illumination Awards, placing them among the top inspirational fiction books of 2015, 2016, and 2017. Whispering Vines was awarded the 2017 LYRA Award for the best romance of 2016. Island of Miracles has outsold all of Amy’s other books worldwide and ranked as high as 600 on Amazon. Her follow up, Island of Promise is a reader favorite. Amy’s children’s book is The Greatest Gift. The suspense novel, Summer’s Squall, and all of Amy’s books, can be found online and in stores. Her latest novel, Island of Promise, was recently awarded First Prize by the Oklahoma Romance Writer’s Association as the best Inspirational Romance of 2018 and was awarded a Gold Medal in the Independent Publisher Book Awards 2019 for Inspirational Fiction. It is the 2019 winner for Best Inspirational Fiction in the RWA Golden Quill Contest, Best Romance in the American Book Awards, and a finalist for the Eric Hoffer Award of Fiction. Amy’s 2019 work, The Devil’s Fortune, is based, in part, on her family history and is garnering many five star reviews.