Christmas Time

Christmas time...A time for family and friends,food and presents. A celebration of the birth of Jesus....all to often put at the end of a thought. With all the hustle and bustle, parties and decorating, we are left exhausted and  filled with discontent.  You may be resentful of obligations to go places you don’t want to, spend money you don’t have, spend time with people you don’t like. You may envy those with the funds to have a beautiful Christmas celebration and those families that seem to have the “perfect” life. The reason for the season can become all about you, and you ask “What is the significance of it all?” 

Stop! Look around you at the everyday things; the way your child’s eyes light up when they smile, the stars twinkling at night, the way the sun glistens on the snow- or the turquoise water at the beach... 

They entered the house and saw the child in the arms of Mary, his mother. Overcome, they kneeled and worshiped him. Then they opened their luggage and presented gifts: gold, frankincense, myrrh. Matthew 2:11

In the ordinary things and places.  That is where the wise men found the baby Jesus. In an ordinary barn , in an ordinary manger, birthed by an ordinary woman. 

They came bearing gifts. Gold, a gift for kings.  Frankincense, an incense used in temples to worship God. Myrrh, a spice used on the dead.  All this acknowledging  Jesus is God, King and Savior. 

What will you bring to Jesus for his birthday this year? What can you possibly give? Trust. Yourself. Time. When you trust Jesus you are also having faith, giving yourself and your time to Him will help you grow in that faith and really get to know Him better, as a result you trust even more.  

For the next week think about the new year. What will you trust in? The economy? Yourself? will you trust someone else or will you trust Jesus? 

We’ll talk next Monday....

Merry Christmas!

What is the size of your world?

 The size of your world can vary from large to small depending on what you are doing, but over all what perspective do you see the world from?  

Are you watching from the 5th floor or are you at ground level? 

One misconception I hear is that you have to look out for number one.  In fact one of my old sayings was, “You have to look out for number one because if you don’t no one else will.”  and that is the way I lived my life.  I remember one of my children when about 3 or 4 years old, was always giving the toys away to other kids.  I reprimanded and explained - “if you give them away there will be nothing left for you.” It wasn’t that there weren’t enough toys, the aunts, grandparents and “Santa” always gave too much. We were over run with “stuff”. My world was small, a ground floor perception, and I was transferring it to my child. Ya, sad right....

Don’t do anything for selfish purposes, but with humility think of others as better than yourselves. 4 Instead of each person watching out for their own good, watch out for what is better for others. Philippians 2:3-4 CEB

Later when I truly surrendered all of myself to God my world grew too. I then had a 5th floor perspective of the world.  I realized that it wasn’t God himself  or just God’s purpose for “me” alone I should be seeking, but God’s purpose for us all.  

Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing.       1 Peter 3:8-9 MSG

God wants us to love, care and give to others. It takes empathy and mercy to succeed.  These traits may not come naturally to you, but they can be learned.  I look back at that past situation and wonder- who was the child and who was the adult?  God was trying to teach through my child at that time, but I wasn’t listening. I was caught up in my selfish, all about me perspective.

My pastor reminded me in his weekend sermon that : Self righteousness is worse than unrighteousness. 

Bridges could’ve been burned by my selfish, self righteous ways, but fortunately my family and friends stayed with me in spite of myself and that ground floor view.  So glad God got a hold of me, not only can I feel better by thinking of others, but I could have ended up on an episode of  Hoarders: Buried Alive, or then again, American Pickers wouldn't have been so bad....

Learning to Let Go

Forgiveness can be a difficult thing to do for a lot of people, but forgetting is even harder.  When the hurt comes from a family member or a Christian it can be even more difficult to deal with so knowing what to say and what not to say becomes an issue.  

A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.  Proverbs 15:1

Oh how hard choosing those gentle words can be, I become torn between showing my feelings and trying not to hurt the other person.  My inside crazy freak out woman says “Oh no you didn’t just say that...” While the Christian Mother says, “ Well now bless their heart, they don’t really mean that....”  So at times I become paralyzed and do nothing.  I let my mind go over every word, every past hurt, every past mistake and the downward spiral continues until I can apply the emergency break. 

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:6

God is the emergency break. Realizing what is God’s job and what is your job will put the breaks on the emotional roller coaster. Being grateful for all God has done and will do for you will also apply the breaks- It is very difficult if not impossible to have a grateful heart and a tormented heart at the same time. 

When someone receives God into their heart, God doesn’t want to let them go.  He stays within our hearts always. 

Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it. Proverbs 22:6

A comforting verse, I know first hand it is true, I have seen it and lived it.  So I will learn to let go, forgive, forget and let God do His job....mine is simply to love, be available when needed & pray.

God Still Loves a Freaked Out Woman

Ever have one of those days when you felt like the world was crashing around you?  I immediately go into to the ‘where did I go wrong’ mode. which takes me to Matthew 25:23

“The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’Matthew 25:23

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17

Then more panic- I know it is not true, but I think that God is pleased with me and  loves me more when I am “sane”, so how can He care for this crazy freaked out woman?  I clearly have not been faithful in handling the small stuff. How can I possibly think I can minister to others when I cannot even minister to myself? Why would God give me more responsibilities?  Uggg. The old stories start playing in my head until I am worked up into a full emotional mess.  I hate when that happens.  Sound familiar?  Maybe you have been there too, just don’t go overboard like I tend to do. 

So where do I go wrong?  First remembering who or should I say forgetting who I am.  Through Christ, God has given us all a new identity.  We tend to look to our surroundings, jobs, family, and activities to determine who we are; hoping these things will please others or even God. We are a vulnerable species, we humans, often needing reassurance to feel fore-filled.

But we have power over all these things through Jesus Who loves us so much. 38 For I know that nothing can keep us from the love of God. Death cannot! Life cannot! Angels cannot! Leaders cannot! Any other power cannot! Hard things now or in the future cannot! 39 The world above or the world below cannot! Any other living thing cannot keep us away from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans  8:37-39 NLV

That is my reassurance. I need to get this verse deep into my heart so that it is available when I feel that freaky woman coming out; I have power over her through Jesus who loves me.  I will listen for God to say “You are my daughter whom I love and am pleased.” He loves me  and is pleased with me; not because of my activities and performance, but unconditionally  just as I am, faults and all.  He knows I am a work in progress.  Not because I deserve it, just given freely.