It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas?

I had to make a few stops on my way to work today.  By the second stop, my anxiety level began to rise.  All of the sudden I felt like I was late for something, I had missed an appointment or a deadline.  Then I realized it was because everywhere I looked there were Christmas decorations. Not just a few, but aisles full of blinking Santas and twinkling lights.  The ceilings were adorned with snowflakes and Happy Holiday signs.  All of this was before 10am!  November 1st!  Halloween was a mere 10 hours ago!  Had they been working all night?  And what about Thanksgiving, are we supposed to skip it?  

Then I heard God whisper "Be still."  (He has to say that to me from time to time!)  So, I took a deep breath in and let all of the anxiety of not being ready for Christmas drain out of me.  I recognized that what I was feeling about not being ready for Christmas had nothing to do with Christmas.  It was the "did I get a present for everyone I was supposed to get a present for?  Do I have enough stocking stuffers?  Did I get all of the Santa stuff taken care of?" feelings.   

Advent begins this year on November 28th.  It is the start of our 4 week preparation of the coming of our Lord.  So I am challenging myself to be still.  I will leisurely enjoy the month of November and Thanksgiving with my family.  And I will use the coming days to prepare my heart for the Advent season and what it brings with it.  Then, and only then will I be able to be truly ready for Christmas.