As homeschool moms, we’ve all been there—too much to do in too little time. I remember the month of December as especially hectic: presents to buy and wrap, goodies to bake, decorations to put up, and special meals to make. And then a mom was also expected to have a home ready for entertaining, to help with the children’s Christmas program, to get all the Christmas cards sent, and oh, by the way, to keep up with all the schoolwork!
After my ninth child graduated, I thought life would get easier. It has in many ways. But the stack of presents needing to be bought for our 9 children, their 5 spouses, and our 11 grandchildren keeps growing as quickly as the amount of food and space needed to feed and accommodate them. Last year after another holiday (Thanksgiving) of trying to pack people into our home, I checked to see if our church was available for Christmas. It was. We missed the home atmosphere, but the large kitchen, extra space, and reduced noise level was worth it. We had our Christmas there again this year; but as you can see from the picture, we still managed to have a good share of (joyful) Christmas chaos.
World Chaos
Our little bit of holiday chaos got me thinking about the tragic chaos we humans have made of the world. It is filled with poverty, sickness, terrorism, unjust governance, and war. And the natural human heart, filled as it is with sin, has no way to fix the brokenness. But, praise be to God:
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 KJV
The End of Chaos
Christians know that there will be no end to world chaos until the child spoken of, Jesus Christ—who was born in Bethlehem, who died for our sins on the cross, who rose from the dead, and who ascended into heaven—comes again to reign forever. About Isaiah 9:6, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary reads:
Isn’t it wonderful that God has provided the Way for homeschool moms (and all others) to have peace even in a world of chaos?