On the Wednesday before Christmas, the unthinkable happened.  I lost my cell phone.

I knew it was in the house somewhere, but no matter how long I spent looking for it, I realized it wasn't going to turn up before we left town to spend Christmas with family and friends back home.  There were about eight different get-togethers in a span of four days and I was worried that without being able to access the numbers stored in my phone, my GPS, my email and my phone's camera, chaos was sure to ensue.

During the trip, before we arrived at our first destination, the Word of Life gave me a big sense of calm:

"Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths." (Lk 3:4)

My phone, which was constantly attached to my hand, was keeping me from making straight the path. Without it distracting me, I could love those in front of me better and more readily welcome Jesus for Christmas.

The vacation was beautiful and we got to everywhere we needed to be without a hitch.  I didn't miss my phone and didn't even make  plans to get a new one because I felt so free.  Then, exactly one week after last seeing it, I found the phone...

...in my purse.

L.K., Texas