Much love to you all…
Is your Heart at Home this Christmas?
It’s almost Christmas! Where will you be when you celebrate the birth of Jesus? Are you going “home” this year? Until the last several years, our Walker family of four had never celebrated Christmas in our own house. We always packed up everything and went “home” to MS where I grew up. But now that we live a little more than an hour away from “home,” my mom is packing up and coming to stay with us for Christmas.
We went “home” this past weekend and had wonderful time with extended family. We laughed and laughed!
My sister, Rebecca
My brother, Chris
All of the “Crawford” grandchildren
The only thing missing was my daddy. He went to live with Jesus 15 years ago on the 27th of this month. We miss him a lot, even after 15 years. He was our town’s Santa Claus, and he was a fantastic Jesus-loving Santa!
Daddy with a little girl who is now a sophomore in college
There is something special about going “home” for Christmas ~ and there is also something special about staying “home” for Christmas. “Home” and Christmas seem to go sweetly together.
I read an Advent devotional about home and Christmas that was a tender call to the heart. Whether or not your body is “home” for Christmas this year, your heart can be…
GOD CALLS us to come home for Christmas. God calls us to come back from all those places where we have settled for less than the fullness of life promised to us in Christ.
God calls us back from all the ambitions and possessions we have pursued, thinking they would satisfy us.
God calls us to let go of any bitterness and resistance to forgive that block the light of love from warming us.
Preparing for Christmas means looking deep within ourselves and asking if our heats are truly at home in the lives we are living.
God calls us to come home and to rest, to be embraced by one who loves us as we are. God offers us a place where we are fully known and also fully accepted.
-Mary Lou Redding
While We Wait
From page 45 of While We Wait: Living the Questions of Advent by Mary Lou Redding.
Merry, Merry Christmas weekend~
Jennifer
"I am the Lord’s Servant" – A Wonderful Advent Devotional on Mary
“I am the Lord’s Servant”
by Nancy Guthrie
It’s hard to imagine how frightening it must have been for teenage Mary to see an angel and hear him speaking to her. The Bible says that “Gabriel appeared to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored women! The Lord is with you!’ Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. ‘Don’t be afraid, Mary,’ the angel told her, ‘for you have found favor with God!'” (Luke 1:28-30). We can’t help but wonder what the angel looked like and what he sounded like.
As frightening as it must have been to see and hear an angel speaking to her, it must have been even more frightening for Mary to process what the angel was telling her–that she was going to become pregnant, even though she had never been intimate with a man. This would be a scandal in her village. Everyone would whisper about her. She would be shunned and perhaps sent away by her fiance, Joseph, because he would think she had been unfaithful to him. And yet, even though she probably had a million questions and concerns, Mary responded to the angel by welcoming whatever God wanted to do. She said, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true” (Luke 1:38). In a
sense she said to God, “I’m yours. You can do anything you want with me,” even though she must have known that this situation would be very hard for her, for Joseph, and for her whole family.
It’s easy to label what we consider “good things” in our lives as gifts from God and to welcome them with gratitude. But when difficult things happen, we don’t look at them as part of God’s good plan for us. Mary’s example shows us we can also welcome those things we would not necessarily label “good,” confident that God’s gifts sometimes come in perplexing and even painful packages. When we belong to God, we know he will use whatever he allows into our lives for good. Somehow, in God’s hands, these things also become gifts of his grace toward us.
It takes faith–faith to rest in who God is and his love for us; faith to be confident that he is doing something good in and through our difficult circumstances–to see the hard things in our lives as gifts of God’s grace.
PRAYER
God, give us faith to surrender ourselves to you even in the hard places of life. We want to be your servants. We believe that anything you ask of us will be good and right because you love us. Fill us with faith to trust you with whatever you ask of us.
DISCUSSION STARTERS
* What thoughts do you think went through Mary’s mind when the angel was speaking to her?
* What did Mary believe about God and his promises that allowed her to respond with a song of praise?
* What difficult things has God asked our family to do or endure? How might these difficult things be God’s gifts to us?
Today’s devotional reading is taken from “Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room” by Nancy Guthrie. Used by permission. Learn more: http://click.lists.biblegateway.com/?qs=2a39e31c57868a43da36285758d4758752825dd5bb6c930e55085e4434e805a2
A fabulous entertaining idea – Hot Chocolate & Hot Apple Cider Bar
If you’re looking for a fun new addition to your entertaining this season, try a hot chocolate bar and/or a hot apple cider bar like “Your Homebased Mom” did. She writes a wonderful blog full of family ideas to make everyday life special. I especially like her entertaining ideas… like her hot chocolate and hot apple cider bar.
Hop over here to read all about it. I’m thinking it would be a fun New Year’s Eve tradition to begin….
May the Lord bless each of you this week as you seek to keep Him as the Center of this Season.
🙂 Jennifer
"The Days Before Christmas" poem
This anonymous poem went around the internet years ago. Since no one knows who wrote it, I took the liberty of changing it a just a bit to make a point for myself and my family. I hope it blesses you with a smile on your face and a pause in your heart as you continue to strive to Keep Christ AS Christmas this year.
The Days before Christmas
T’was the days before Christmas and all through the town
Not a sign of Baby Jesus was anywhere to be found.
The people were all busy with Christmas time chores
Like decorating, and baking, and shopping in stores.
No “Away in a manger, no crib for a bed.”
Instead, songs of Santa dressed up in bright red.
Mama watched “Martha” while Papa took a nap.
As hour upon hour, the presents they’d wrap.
When what from the T.V. did suddenly appear?
A brand new add for a big sale at Sears.
So away to the mall they all flew like a flash…
Buying some things on credit, and others with cash!
And as they made their way home from their trip to the mall,
Did they think about Jesus? Oh no, not at all.
Their lives were so busy with their Christmastime things.
They forgot about Jesus, The Savior, The King.
To pray to the Savior, they had no time to stop…
Because they needed more time to “shop till they dropped!”
On Wal-Mart! On K-Mart! On Target! On Penny’s!
On Hallmark! On Zales! And a quick lunch at Denny’s.
From the big stores downtown to the stores at the mall,
They would dash away, dash away, and visit them all!
At home on the roof, there arose such a clatter
As Grandpa hung lights with his brand new step ladder.
He hung lights that would flash. He hung lights that would twirl.
Yet, he forgot Jesus… The Light of the World.
Christ’s eyes… how they twinkle!
Christ’s Spirit… how merry!
Christ’s love… how enormous!
All our burdens… He’ll carry!
So instead of being busy, overworked, and uptight,
Seek Jesus this Christmas, and all will be right.
Original author of the poem is unknown. Adaptations were made by Jennifer Walker.
“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” Mat. 6:33 (NLT)
Need a fresh approach to Christmas this year?
Read Keeping Christ AS Christmas
Read Keeping Christ AS Christmas
an e-book by Jennifer Walker
A practical and inspirational approach to seeking and finding Jesus this Christmas season, Keeping Christ AS Christmas offers simple strategies and sanity savers to help your Christmas be meaningful in a new and treasured way. Prepare your hearts, households, and homes for Peace this Christmas season by Keeping Christ AS Christmas.
$4.99 Amazon.com
ChristASChristmas.com (for all other e-book formats)
