Another December post.

Tonight I've been listening to my daughter play and sing Sweet Home, Alabama on the guitar. Amazing. She's really good.

Have you ever been on the sidelines of a game and seen a quarterback make history? Sometimes that is how I feel as a parent. I am on the sidelines of my children's lives... as coach, spectator, fan,,, and yes, critic. Then, it all begins to come together. I get to watch as the game unfolds. The ball is taken and the player begins to run. I am inspired and touched.

I am blessed to know this God-sent soul. It's the Christmas season and I think God's greatest gifts are the ones we see all the time. I notice my daughter as she changes into a young woman. Beauty, talent and inward growth has marked this year. I am seeing the rewards of disciplined work begin paying off. Wow.

I think of Christmas as a time that we give gifts to others. Well, God also gives his version of Christmas to each person. Our talents and abilities are God's presents to us. With each new life, there are the gifts; wrapped-up potential in each little body. It waits to be explored.

One of the greatest gifts of Christmas is watching those talents be presented to its bodily owner by God through the process of self-discovery. The joys of newly discovered talents and hearing the soul soar and express itself in song, athletics, and academics is a holy experience.

Lately, someone asked me where self-confidence comes from. After thinking about it, my answer ..tentatively, is that self-confidence comes from believing you have something worth doing --that you can do-- and a worthwhile reason to do it.

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for giving us gifts to be discovered that lie within ourselves..... and that you want us to find them and use them. Thank you for the joy that is ours when we do begin using them. Thank you for the opportunity to watch others express their gifts. This honors and pleases you. Also, thank you, Lord, that the gifts never run dry.