The indescribable gift...

Enjoy some snapshots of what our house looks like this Christmas... it's a bit more dressed up this year than the past few years. And I'm happy about that...



We "dressed" up the house a bit more this year because my parents were coming in for an early Christmas celebration. And if family was coming into town for Christmas that meant that the previous years' Christmas-ficus simply wasn't going to do. It was time for decking the halls a bit more...



So, deck the halls we did...


Here you are looking at a sled all decked out with greenery and ornaments and shiny/glitzy things...






And the kitchen table centerpiece, top view... we gathered up leftover branches at the tree farm when we picked out our tree. You'll see them all over the place...



Side view of the centerpiece...



Where the Christmas cards are perched and hung...






The centerpiece by the front door.... pine scented candle...




Garland over french doors... poinsettias, berries and lights...



Basket of cinnamon-scented pinecones, silk flowers, etc...




And the manger... without the manger none of this would mean ANYTHING.





"Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!" 2 Corinthians 9:15

Overjoyed and Saddened

The planning and rushing and standing in line and spending and all of that…

the never-ending discussions of what to get for kids of certain ages, where to find great deals, whose name was pulled for the gift exchange

and what in the world you are going to get for them...

It all saddened me so deeply today,

that I cried...

Tears fell for hurting and lost people.

Tears stung my cheeks for those who do not know

{or choose not to celebrate} the real reason for this season…

the birth of Jesus Christ, the most important reason we celebrate this season.

My heart tore in two …

And yet this has been one of the most joyous Christmases I've had for a very long time: I had the privilege of spending time with my parents... something I haven't done at Christmas time in over 10 years! We laughed together, we cried together... we enjoyed precious time together.

But I come back to this...

it does not matter that your children did/did not get the newest toy,

or that they are/are not wearing the newest clothing fads.

It does not matter that you couldn’t spend as much this year on presents.

It merely doesn’t matter…

What matters is… a babe was born in a stable.

Jesus Christ was sent to this earth by God the Father.

He walked among us, lived a Godly example here on earth,

shared God’s Great Commission,

was mocked and beaten and eventually sacrificed His life

for ME, for YOU, for generations to come...

This man who walked among us gave us the best gift we could ever, ever, ever ask for {and we didn’t even know we needed it}:

He gave us His unconditional love, His forgiveness, a hope and a future.

Click here for the Story of the birth of Christ, as told in the gospel of Luke

This year, more than ever, I celebrate Christ’s birth in a new way: by humbly serving Him more every day and searching out His will for my life.

It is my pleasure to sit at His feet and listen.

To sit in awe and be still with Him… with Him I can just be still.

I wish you and your family the most merry of Christmases…

as we celebrate Christ’s birth together.

From our home to yours, Merry CHRISTmas...

At the starting line…

feeling anticipation {but not anxious}.
feeling excitement {but not thrilled}.
feeling apprehensive {but not fearful}.

deep in my soul… I feel a stirring.

I sense a renewing, some change getting ready to take place.

I can almost see God creating something new in me as I sit here and type.

I so look forward to seeing what it is… to seeing that change happen before my eyes.

I look forward to realizing that what I’ve been anticipating has come to fruition.

And yet somehow I know that’s a long way out…

benediction:

show me where you want me to go, Lord…

I am your servant.

lead your way in me and show me what you would have me do,

who to serve, how to be YOU on this earth…


I’ll start with the first step… obeying you.

I'm standing here at the starting line… ready for the journey…

A {strong} challenge...

Today I stopped in to read up on a blog I check out from time to time... and I was hit square between the eyes with a challenge...



blog to visit: Only speak words that make souls stronger



I've now got this printable plaque posted in just about every room of my house, my office wall, the bathroom mirror, the truck, as a bookmark, in my checkbook (do I really still use a checkbook)... you get the point!



As I contemplated this today several things were apparent:
1) Sometimes those words are loving/gentle words
2) Sometimes those words are direct/strong words
3) Sometimes those words are painful
4) Sometimes those words are tough to say
5) Most importantly, those words should be God's words

Will you take MY challenge?

If so, do 3 things for me:
1) Read the above blog
2) Print up a few copies of the "plaque" and post it in several places
3) Contemplate on what it means to you, how you can act it out