I couldn't wait to get out my Christmas decorations. I'd bought a few new things the day after Christmas last year like 80% off at the Big K (K-mart, if you will) and I was pumped about them. Couldn't wait for our house to be a winter wonderland. Then I put all the decorations up and looked around and thought..
"hm..... This is it?
No, I love it. I love it!
Nope. Quit lying.
I want more. I need more decorations!!!!"

It's never ending.
I will always want more.
Is there ever freedom from wanting more?

I want more money so I can buy more Christmas presents.
I want more time in the day to do all the things that keep me busy.
I want more clothes in my closet.
I want more time with my husband.
I want more.
You name it. I probably want more of it.

Chris Hanchey, one of the teaching pastors at my church, shared this quote with us from C.S. Lewis:

This reminded me of an experience I had on my honeymoon. Don't go there you crazy head, I'm talking about scenery! For Beck and I's honeymoon we went to Banff National Park in Canada. I probably saw the most beautiful scenery I'll ever see in this life! It was pretty amazing (bachelor date style), but the way I felt about a particular scene really surprised me.

There she is- Lake Louise in all her glorious glacier water.

As I looked at this unbelievable sight I simultaneously thought these two things:

"This is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
"Is this it?"

I would have NEVER told Beck Hanes that second thought. He had planned, prayed, sweat, bled, cried, done all the things to get us on this particular honeymoon to see this particular scene. And I couldn't have been more grateful for that sweet time we got together in the most incredible place. But something deep in me screamed "There has got to be more!" The voice didn't follow with "and you should be dissatisfied with this." But it left me with excitement. And gratitude that I was designed to want more than this world has to offer me. The sights we see now shouldn't satisfy those deep parts of our soul that can only be satisfied by infinite communion with our savior. Our souls want more and they always will.

We don't have freedom from wanting more.
We have freedom TO want more.

So what am I suppose to do with my ongoing desire for more..all the time? If I can't find THE Christmas Spirit, joy, and fulfillment in all the things I always have then where can I find it? Aside from Christmas, if we always want our bodies to look more perfect, accomplish more things than we actually can, or just be MORE.. what are we suppose to do with that desire?

I believe our "more" is in a place we would never expect to look and that is in our obedience. I think the "more" we long for is to know Him and what a good Father to place that desire in us. I believe our deepest desire this Christmas season is knowing Him and that can come through our obedience. I'm asking myself what does obedience look like for me this Christmas? What does it look like for you?

The promises of God are of no value to us until by obedience we understand the nature of God. We read some things in the Bible three hundred and sixty-five times and they mean nothing to us; then all of a sudden we see what God means, because in some particular we have obeyed God, and instantly His nature is opened up. “All the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen.” The “yea” must be born of obedience; when by the obedience of our lives we say “Amen” to a promise, then that promise is ours.

-Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest