Candles flickered as I straightened my back, the picture of poise on my friend’s couch.

I’d just been spilling out all my wedding planning woes, but now I needed to say something else, to share this vivid picture in my mind.

“It’s like a postage shop,” I told her. “One of those old-timey ones where the postmaster also owns the general store. And in the back room, he has all these wooden drawers.”

My friend nodded, pulling her blanket closer. On the other side of her blinds, the night had drawn close and silent, as if the whole world hung on the edge of the singing cricket’s tale.

“And when I come to God–he’s the postmaster–he always has something in the back for me. Inside each of the drawers is a bundle of grace. He pulls out one and inside there’s peace, or healing my eating disorder, or wholeness.”

I imagined the bundles as I talked. In my mind’s eye, grace bundles look like brown paper packages tied up with string.

“Even though I’m worried that my wedding won’t turn out well, that’s what I fall back on.” I could feel the strength of my words like a strong tree at my back, bracing my spine.

“I know deep down inside that God created me to be a woman of grace and strength and joy. And when my wedding day comes, that’s who I’m going to be. And all of these hard things right now…” I broke off, remembering all the challenges. “They’re just leading me to a new parcel of grace.”

The more I think about it…

The more that I think about God as a postmaster, the more the image is ingraining itself in my heart.

It’s so easy for us to think of God as the owner of that same general store…but instead of picking up our mail, we’re ordering groceries.

You might tell a general store owner that you want three apples and a half-pound of licorice…and he’ll weigh out the licorice and the apples and bag them up for you.

But once he’s done, you still have to pay.

That’s NOT how God is. He gives gifts freely. He’s the one grinning and rushing to the back room when the bell over the door jingles to announce your entrance.

He’s the one standing behind the counter, waiting to surprise you with the good things he’s stowed in the back room.

Jesus is the light of the world, and I’m dedicated filling my life with him.

But I want to fill my mind with a true picture of him.

• God’s not a father who is stingy with his gifts (Matthew 7:9-10).
• He delights in his children (Zephaniah 3:17).

How to live it + announcing my wedding date:

I feel like this is the time of year where we meditate on cozy images. Where we fill our lives with light!

And I’m all for it. 🙂

I hope the postage shop picture I shared helps you understand God’s warmth for you this Christmas. If it connected with you at all, please share this article with a friend and spread the LIGHT.

Also…I want to wish you all a merry early Christmas. I’m getting married next week, so you won’t hear from me for a little bit. <3

May God fill you with all light and joy and peace and hope and love for the rest of this year!

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Want a playlist to help you FILL YOUR LIFE WITH LIGHT? I gotchu.