Life doesn’t happen by accident. 

I don’t know about you, but I have had to learn that the hard way. 

And anyone (else) who has waited too long to buy Christmas presents knows what I am talking about. Anyone who waited too long to find out what their people want for Christmas, birthday, or Valentines Day has found this out. 

And anyone who has missed an opportunity to tell someone how they really feel knows what I am talking about. 

And if you are just floating through life without direction or trying to make sense of it all, I suspect this might ring true for you.

Life is a series of experiments.  We come up with an experiment.  We try.  Sometimes we succeed and sometimes we fail. 

We experiment with what we say. We experiment with how we act. We experiment with what we choose not to do or say.  We experiment with the gifts we buy for someone else and set them under the tree with anticipation about the response. 

Will our experiment be a success or a failure?  

Life doesn’t happen by accident. 

Sure we are blessed in so many ways. God’s hand of blessing on us is something we should be acutely aware of this time of year as today marks the ultimate of gifts. The gift of a Savior. 

Life happens because of a series of choices we make about our own behavior and the way we act towards others. When we decide to be intentional and look beyond our own nose and the things that concern us, there is a whole world around us that needs to be loved and seen and cared for. 

We are in relationship with people either by family or by choice. People we reached out to or found ourselves having common interests with. People we work with. People we chase common goals with. Our people. Our teams. Our friends. Our families. 

So this Christmas, the question is simple.

Will we be intentional?

Intentional about having good conversations that uplift and edify another. Intentional about seeing and noticing and listening. Intentional about willing the good of another. Intentional about love.

Or intentional about pushing our agenda. Intentional about making sure everyone focuses on us. What I get.  Intentional about me and what I want. I lived in this season for a long time when I was so focused on my races, my training, my nutrition, my work, my triathlon. 

Without knowing it, my intentionality was leaving those that mattered most to me in the wake of my preoccupation with myself. And as I look back on that season, I am thankful for my family who intentionally supported me even when I was all about me. 

And I have boxes of medals and several books worth of lessons that I learned from that series of experiments. At least I hope I have learned the right lessons…

Life is a series of experiments. How can we experiment in the life of another to make their day better?  To make them see their value. To make sure they are known. 

What if we all were intentional to bless another every day?  

What if we were very intentional? At Christmas. To those we celebrate with. To add value to them. To notice them. To love them. To encourage them on their journey. To bless them. What would that be like?

And even better- what if it carried on beyond Christmas into our workplaces and the places we meet and share life with people?

I want to be a part of that world. I think our greatest gift, Jesus, wants us to be a part of that world. 

Go be intentional. Get out there and #WINtheNOW for another. I believe in you!