Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas
when you stop opening presents and listen.
~ Bobby, age 7
Only a 7-year-old could say it so well and create such a sweet image. According to American humorist, Andy Rooney, a living room strewn with wrapping paper on Christmas morning is “one of the most glorious messes in the world. Another astute observer reminds us that Christmas “doesn’t just come in neatly wrapped presents, but in our beautiful, messy attempts to love each other.”
There’s a distinct sound to love. Not just at Christmas, but every time a carefully wrapped heart opens up to hear it. There’s nothing more eloquent to me than the fumbling attempts of fallible humans to express the deepest, most genuine sentiments of our hearts. And the deepest of these, you ask? If you were to stop whatever you’re doing right now and close your eyes for a moment, I believe you might hear something similar to a 7-year-old’s definition of love. It’s everywhere, all the time, but especially at Christmas it seems… just waiting for us to stop and listen.
We heard it last Friday night at the opening event of the Emergent Summit hosted by UnbridledACTS. We saw it in the faces of the audience, rapt in some of the most beautiful songs, stories, and scripts I’ve ever witnessed. We were moved by generous expressions of honor between generations as hearts turned toward God, toward each other, and toward the discovery of our unique and ultimate contributions as creative entrepreneurs exploring the possibilities of what it looks like to affect change…for profit, for purpose, for ever.
Our heart-felt thanks to all who listened and heard our hearts, our stories of life together in an UnbridledACTS community, and our great hopes for the emergence of the next generation. Love was in the room and in the air. The Broadmoor seemed completely wrapped in it…a glorious display of the Gift that is Christmas and the Hope that it brings.
