My Christmas Spirit

If you ask anyone who knows me they will tell you I am a pretty genuine person!  If I say something I mean it.  If I am your friend you can depend on me.  But if I am your friend I may need to depend on you!  That’s how friendship works, any relationship really.  It’s give and take.  I talk you listen, you talk I listen!  It’s a marvelous concept and works well actually.  My earthly relationships work  so well that when I was in that big black hole last year, I had no other choice but to treat God the same way.  I was taking, taking, taking.  It was my turn to talk, talk, talk.  And he listened, listened, listened!  What an amazing feeling to pour out all your troubles to someone who you now loves you no matter what you say!  And it’s like you are having coffee and you are chatting and the waitress keeps coming back to top it off.  But you know how it is when you are out with a friend having coffee and you get that feeling that someone is waiting on your table or your kids or husbands are waiting at home on you to do something!  Well when I talk to God I have His full attention and our cup of coffee has been getting topped off for a long time now!  Our table is reserved for just us!  So just like any good friendship I have to take my turn!  It’s my turn to listen and the things I hear are amazing!  How I hear them?  You will probably think a little unconventional, definitely not God like!  But He created ALL things.  And trust me if He created it, He can talk through it and work through it!  A friend had shared a song with me on Thanksgiving Day.  A beautiful song, but the most amazing thing was that a 10 yr old girl is singing it! She sounds like she is 30.  So yesterday I am with my sister braving the elements of Black Friday which is kind of funny because the title of the song was Dark Waltz! Anyway, she decides to get a haircut so I say cool I am gonna sit in this other chair and put my head phones in while they do hair!  I look this little girl up on YouTube and watch her amazing woman voice come out of her tiny child body; The Dark Waltz.   Then that peaks my curiosity.  What else has she sang! So as I look for more I see where she sings with a famous opera singer.  I begin to listen to it!  So beautiful the voices that take the notes to an octave that I can only dream of.  But then I begin to hear past the angelic voice and “hear” the lyrics, “Time To Say Goodbye”.  I feel just a little tug at my heart and say OK enough of THAT song, NEXT!  Meanwhile Rita and her hairdresser are all this and that with a snip here and a snip there, like ¼ inch is really going to matter?  But Hello!  I do the good sister thing and give her a thumbs up, take off the head phones and tell them, “wonderful, looks good!”  Back with the head phones.  So I go back to YouTube and you all know if you pull up one child singer with a famous person you will get 10,000!  So here is another child singing with Celine Dion.  Beautiful again!  Singing for her mother who is there with her as she sings!  As the song ends once again I feel that tug at my heart as I listen to the lyrics, “Because You Loved Me”

“You were my strength when I was weak, You were my voice when I couldn’t speak, you were my eyes when I couldn’t see you saw the best there was in me.  Lifted me up when I couldn’t reach you gave me faith cause you believed, I’m everything I am because you loved me.

You were always there for me, the tender wind that carried me.  A light in the dark shining your love into my life, you’ve been my inspiration through the lies you were the truth.  My world is a better place because of you!  I’m everything I am because You loved me! 

I raise my head up as the tears start to sting my eyes and Rita and her hair dresser are still in “hair mode”.    Tuck it here, snip it there!  Trivial things!  But yet, still necessary every day moments that we call life!  Yes God talks to me through YouTube!  Just as sure as he talks to me in church on Sunday morning, He was talking to me through those songs!  Telling me, Yes, it’s time to say goodbye but not SADLY!  Say goodbye GLADLY!  I can say goodbye because he loved me!  Danny was my everything and I will carry him with me every day I go forward! He was my encourager, my inspiration, my eyes, my voice, my strength, the wind that carried me!  And yes my world is a better place because of him.  And not only my world but so many others!  God handpicked those songs for me to hear at that moment so that I could say goodbye.  I struggle with the whole “Christmas Spirit” thing!  I don’t like Christmas because that was Danny’s time!  He loved everything about it.  The excitement, the surprised, the wonder of it all!  The children, those young in age and young at heart!  Since he passed I just can’t find my Christmas spirit.  In December 2011 I bought a book called “The Spirit of Christmas”.  A childrens book complete with illustrations!  Because I knew in my heart this would be his last Christmas.  I never read it.  Didn’t want to!  And I was right, it was his last Christmas!  But this book has something for me!  I just don’t know what!  So I sat this book on a shelf in my Living Room!  It stays there all year!  Every season!  It has been there for 2 years, never moved, never opened, never read.  Last Sunday as I go to Jacob’s room to wake him up for church this book falls out of its spot that it has been for 2 years right in front of me!  So I pick it up and yes, acknowledge God with the fact that He put that before me!  “OK God, I get it!  I need to read the book!”  So I take it with me to church and I find time to read it between worship service and play practice.  I squeeze it in my schedule!  But that’s it!  I didn’t want to give it too much time because I knew there was something in there for me!  Well after I read it, I was like, “yeah nice” Christmas Spirit!  I know I need it!  But knowing it and getting it are two different things!  So after the Celine Dion song and trying to hold back the tears I take my head phones off and say alright God, enough of that today!  I came here to shop!  When I step back into reality of the beauty shop, Rita is almost finishing up.  Of course there is music playing inside the shop!  Back to the relationship with God, it’s still my turn to listen, listen, listen!  We are still topping off that cup of coffee!  Just because I said ENOUGH, didn’t mean He was finished talking.  And I have to listen!  After all He listened to me!  So the song playing as I fight back my tears and feel my heart breaking all over again is Faith Fill singing “Where Are You Christmas?”  You know God has to get that last word in!  He is telling me, “yes, it’s ok to say goodbye to Danny because he loved you so much that’s what he wanted for you!”  To move on and be happy!  And above all he wants me to find “My Christmas” not his Christmas spirit; he wants me to find my Christmas spirit!  So I jump out of my chair and tell them I have to get out of there before I cry all over the place and of course they have no idea what’s been going on in my chair!  Had no clue God was pouring it all over me!  So I go out to wait for Rita to finish up and there by the jewelry store I see a necklace with a cross-not just any necklace but the new style, a sideways cross!  Then I say, nice!  No sooner do I say that, turn around and a lady passes right in front of me with that very necklace on.  That sideways cross!  And it’s like ding ding ding ding!  THAT’S my Christmas Spirit!  It’s not the excitement or surprise!  It’s not the lights or tinsel! Not even the presents or the food!  As I read the book, The Christmas Spirit, yet again, right now, this is what it tells me about The Christmas Spirit!

He spoke to me then in a whisper of wings.  “There are gentle things the season brings.”  Snow that lies silent.  As quiet as a mouse. And all roads that lead to your grandmother’s house.  Ten lords – a leaping as seven swans swim.  And of course, Santa Claus, I’m just getting to him!  I lifted my chin and stared up at the ceiling.  I still wasn’t getting that warm Christmas feeling.  That’s when the spirit of Christmas smiled.  “Remember, this all began with a child.  Because it took nothing but love to begin it, it’s not really Christmas if love isn’t in it.”  Your tree may be large as the room will allow with a big yellow star on the uppermost bough, but of one thing I’m certain, I’m sure of one thing.  It is love that makes the angels sing.  And that’s when I got it.  That’s when I knew!  The thing that was missing from Christmas was you!                          Nancy Tillman, “The Spirit of Christmas”

Psalm 39:7

But now, Lord, what do I look for?  My hope is in you.

That’s my Christmas spirit!  My hope is in Christ Jesus who came to earth as a baby to give us a hope and a future!  But it doesn’t stop there, No!  He walked upon this earth just as we do, talked to his heavenly father, just as we do, and he worked all manner of miracles!  But even that wasn’t enough!  He loved, loved, loved!  He loved us so much He died for us!

John 3:16 (KJV)

¹⁶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

That’s my Christmas spirit!  So I may not have a tree with sparkling lights.  I may not have presents under the tree.  I won’t have a wreath on my door but I will have Jesus in my heart and that’s my Christmas spirit! 

My prayer and hope for each of you is that you find “your” Christmas spirit just as I found mine!  And while you are finding your Christmas spirit take just a few moments to find Jesus and let Him fill your heart!  Trust me; it’s the greatest gift of all!  And it will be the start of a beautiful friendship and an “endless cup of coffee”!

Merry Christmas!

Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! (Luke 12:24 NIV)

From emily: reminded

Things are different, but they're also the same.

Just when I think I'm lost in newness and change and loss, things happen that are just familiar enough to remind me. Of what I'm reminded I'm not exactly sure. But I am reminded.

______________________________

A wood stove with a fire in it, a pan of bread sitting on the table, and an old Bible laid open on the counter.

A new garage covered in old license plates and that sawdust smell that never changes.

A sweet old man with a big belt buckle that I've never met who thanks me for the wrapped up plate of food and gives me a hug and it's like I've known him all of my life.

Visiting a family I have known all of my life. His suspenders are bright red and I barely notice the oxygen he's wearing. She's tiny, but she hugs me tight and she's so much like my Grandma that I have to swallow the lump in my throat. So many hugs all around, and another wood stove. While I'm there, she and I pick up right where we left off, like always. We laugh and roll our eyes and it's like we're 13 again.

Praying around the table. Chex mix, mashed potatoes, and stuffing. Stories of when I learned to read the word 'neighbor'.

Visiting another couple I've known forever. They're a lot frailer than I remember but they want to know all about school and about the new buildings in Morgantown. He begins to list all the weddings that he can remember that have ever happened at our church and she chimes in every little bit. More hugs.

New babies and little boys and cousins. Sneaking M&Ms and looking out the window at the dog. Those cookies with the hershey kisses stuck in the middle.

Ravioli from a can and Heiner's bread.

Songs they sang and recorded in 1960. One is about a great speckled bird and the rest are about Jesus.  At the beginning of one they say a little message for him in the army. At the beginnings of all the others, they are shushing several kids.

Long talks sitting on the big bed. Old quilts and new boots.

Going to the hospital (that I've been to a million times) to visit another man that I don't know. More hugs, more thanks, more like I've known them forever.

Even Wal-Mart. Can't go there without seeing at least 14 people you know.

__________________________________

I am thankful for many things, but today, right now, I'm thankful that He reminds me. When I forget, when I feel lost and uncertain, He wraps me up in familiar things and lets me know that no matter where I am or what the circumstances, I am home.

Out of Control

In our society today everything is about control.  We are in control of every aspect of our life.  Modern technology sees to that!  On our smart phone we can control our TV programming from across the nation!  We can pay our bills while sitting in traffic.  Thanks to Spotify and Pandora we even have control of our radio!  Gone are the days when we listened to what the radio DJ played.  We pick which songs, what order, and when we want to hear them- We Control!  While control is good, do we allow Christ in?  Do people see Him in everything we do?  Because if you don’t see Christ in what I am controlling then I am in BAD need of a tune up!

Philippians 1:27-28(NIV)

²⁷ Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel ²⁸ without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God

And I hope someone gives me a clue.  Because I am here to tell ya!  Sometimes I just don’t have a clue!  That’s where my friends and family come in.  God gives us accountability partners. Some folks require more than one!  Hello!  That’s me!  I am a lot of work people and I am not ashamed to tell it!  God wants to do something with me and He is cleaning up a big mess so it’s gonna take a big crew!  Gods PIT crew!  Just when I think I have everything under control! I am rolling along doing what I think He wants me to do and BAM  He changes gears and sometimes He fills me so full with His spirit, I literally bounce off the walls!  Gives a whole new meaning to ADHD!  It’s like I try to control myself but when I pray I sometimes forget that, Yes, He answers!  So Sunday morning I prayed, “Lord just fill me so full of your spirit I am running over with it!”  Well do you know what?  And don’t be surprised, hold on to your britches, but HE DID!

Psalm 37:4 (NIV)

⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart

God knows my heart and right now He is the only one!  Danny was the only person that knew my heart.  Knew it even better than me!  I have prayed and prayed and prayed!  And one day I noticed Oh my goodness, He is listening.  Just when I thought He had given up on me, He was right there waiting for me to finish pouring out my heart!  He waited until I got the whole thing empty!  He wanted it all!  And then I noticed He started filling it back up.  Little by little He took over until one day- this past Sunday- I noticed I was completely out of control!  But the great thing about that was while I was out of control, God was in control!  And oh my, what a feeling!  It’s better than any drug or alcohol high you could ever get!  I couldn’t sit still in my seat, I wanted to meet and greet and just shine for Jesus!  As we sang each song I just knew God was hanging on every note to hear “Oh How We Love”!

 

Colossians 3:16 (NIV)

¹⁶ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

God is just so good and I know He wants us to have control over our lives, but He wants us to know that when we feel that control slipping we have to turn to Him.  We have to say, OK I know I can’t do this but you can!

Matthew 19:26 (NIV)

²⁶ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

As much as I like having control over my situations in my life, I like giving Him the control so much more!  Because I can’t take care of the messes that I make, but He can!  And when I give Him control and let Him drive me around, WOW!  I don’t have to think about things, I just DO!

Philippians 4:13 (NIV)

¹³ I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

I just go and do!  I don’t even make plans anymore.  I literally say, OK God what are we gonna do today?  Where do you want me to go?  How can I help YOU today!  And it never fails, when I give Him the control of my life and follow him wherever, I always receive a blessing.  I always receive far above and beyond anything I could’ve imagined to even ask for.

Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.

God wants us to ask Him to take over our lives, not because He likes control, but because He knows what’s best for us.  He knows how the story ends!  He just wants to help us get there!  I am so glad I have learned His voice and even more thankful that I not only hear it but that I let Him have the control!  After having the control for 47 years and seeing what “I” did, and looking at what He has done with the control after 1 year?!  I am sold!  I am a slow learner when it comes to some things but you don’t have to tell this old girl twice when it comes to allowing the Holy Spirit to have His way!

God has a perfect plan for us.  He never does it all at once just step by step because He wants to teach us to “walk by faith” not by sight.    Anonymous

He is teaching me to walk all over again.  Just as if I was a baby crawling and have just turned toddler age!  I am starting to walk and just as a baby feels like a whole new world has been opened up to them, that’s how I feel!  With Heaven in my view, I can do anything with Christ by my side!  Me out of control= God in control!  Lord, when I forget, help me to remember your promise!

Isaiah 54:10 (NIV)

¹⁰ Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed,”
says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

He has been faithful to me in so many ways!  I know each of you can tell the same stories of His faithfulness, because that’s just who He is!  He is all powerful and can handle anything we dish out!  He wants us to dish it out to Him.  He wants all of our story!

Proverbs 15:23 (NIV)

²³ A person finds joy in giving an apt reply—
and how good is a timely word!

Then after we given Him the story we will give Him the control and He will give us something beautiful!  A fairytale if you will!  Yes I believe Jesus believes in fairytales!  After all the greatest fairytale of all will be when we reach Heaven and look upon His face and know we have an eternity to spend basking in the love of my Lord and Savior!  Now THAT’S a fairytale!

Happy Thanksgiving Y’all!

I can do either if it doesn't snow!

From mark

I go back to work on Jan 4th.  I am off Dec. 24-Jan. 3.  Not sure about Monica's schedule.  I haven't got my current phone setup to blog yet, so this was easier.  Lol

Here's a thought!  What can everyone do on the weekend of the 4 of January ?

We can get more time off from work if we do it the weekend after Christmas.  I would like to do the White Elephant.  For food, maybe a Crockpot lunch???  We could do soups, chili, nacho cheese, cornbread and the fixins.  Happy Thanksgiving to all, love you :)

Christmas/new years

Well my little family it's that time again!  We get the opportunity to come together and EAT!  Y'all thought I was going to say something all mushy and sentimental didn't ya?! Well you know me that will happen before I finish!  God has given us a most precious gift in this family but its up to us to nurture it, weed it,  fertilize it...you get the picture!  While mommy and daddy were here they did that! Well we need some new gardeners!!  We need miracle gro!  We are planning our get together for New Years/Christmas so we want to do it when the most can come!  Because that's the best way to get the miracle gro on!  If the plants aren't here when we spread our fertilizer how can we grow? And believe me ae KNOW how to spread it. Granted the fertilizer goes in the ground(mommy and daddy's home place) but in order for us to receive it we have to go there to get it!  So you guys try to make an effort an extra effort to make arrangements. There are babies in this family I haven't even seen yet and I am almost embarrassed and ashamed to say it!  Do you think if mommy were here she would've allowed that!  I think not!  So!  Lets hear your alls two cents. When can everyone come?  What are we gonna eat? White elephant?  Who is pregnant next!?!?  Important things here y'all!

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. (1 Peter 2:9 NIV)

That's us folks!  We are his chosen people!  Lets start acting like it and claim all those praises that mommy prayed for us all those years!  We got

Grand babies to share our family legacy with. I for one want to tell them first hand of the love their great grandmother and great grandfather had for them and that because of who they were in Christ?! That's why we are who we Are! And that's why they will be who they are! Because grandma prayed!  

Ok. Let me hear from y'all!  Don't make me come down there;)

Love all y'all!

Our daily bread: Christmas edition

Grandpa's Tree  When I first saw the twisted Christmas tree, I wished Grandpa were alive to fix it. He could make any tree beautiful. No matter how bad it looked when we gave it to him, it was beautiful when he gave it back. He would get out his saws and clippers and begin cutting and shaping. When he was done, the tree looked as if it had been grown in a greenhouse where a caring gardener had watered, pruned, and protected it from storms, drought, and nasty bugs. Then Grandpa would turn the tree over to the rest of the family to finish the job. We added lights, ornaments, and garland, and the imperfect tree was ready for a perfect celebration. What a transformation!  Life is like that crooked tree. Each of us comes to God bent and misshapen from the effects of sin. But when we put our faith in Christ as Savior, God lovingly begins His work in us, transforming us from the inside out (Philippians 1:6). Then He puts us into the care of His family, the church, and they continue His work by adding the lights of truth (Ephesians 4:15), the ornaments of encouragement (2 Timothy 4:2), and the garlands of love (1 Peter 4:8). What teamwork! The message of Grandpa’s tree is this: Under God’s loving care, a life marred by sin can become beautiful! —JULIE ACKERMAN LINK What sin has twisted, God’s grace can straighten. Philippians 1:1-11 Ephesians 4:15 2 Timothy 4:2 Philippians 1:1-11 NIV 1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,  To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons :  2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Thanksgiving and Prayer  3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. 8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.  9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. Mark this reading as completed on YouVersion Ephesians 4:15 NIV 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. Mark this reading as completed on YouVersion 2 Timothy 4:2 NIV 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.  20 Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

That video is precious!  Thanks for those few seconds of Mom and Dad for Thanksgiving Trish!  She sounds so young and he plays such clear notes!  Brings back such warm feelings!

And Trish, I am so proud of you following the leading of the Lord!  Yes, his rewards are AWESOME! He does give our hearts desire when it falls within His will for us!  So glad for the medical benefits for you too!

Grandma and Grandpa - I Claim Jesus First

Check out this video on YouTube:

http://youtu.be/-0geNXTeJFQ


Sent from my iPhone

CAN I GET AN AMEN!?!?!  That is wonderful news Trish!!  Congratulations!!  God surely hears and answers our prayers :)

Just got this from pastor Vince

Letting you know about a prayer request... Dad is in gvmcenter er right now. He will be admitted for a broken leg and possible stroke. This has been developing over the past few days. Mom Michelle and susann are down there now. I will go down around 5. Expecting him to be in hospital for a while.
Please lift Dad, Mom and family up in prayers.
Thank you!! Love and prayers!!

I got a full time job at rainelle medical center. When I first applied there I told god tht was the job I wanted. That was my hearts desire. But he gave me the school job. Then as I did the school job Judy saw how good I was with kids and that I was good at that. So she called me for that Job that I didn't ask for. She just now called me for a full time position with benefits at Rainelle medical center. Probably start in two weeks. God told me last week don't sign up for Obama care. Wait. And I did!!! God is truly amazing. And I don't doubt by me being obedient this is his reward! For me! Makes me wanna cry! Which I am!

Way to go Jacob!

Ignited

Ignited

I stand amazed!  Every day-every second, every minute of every day.  When I look around me I am amazed.  This morning I look out my window and see the beautiful breath taking sunrise God has given us!  God knows all of the woods are going to be filled with those eager hunters in their tree stands in the 0 degree weather.  It’s so like Him to say, “Why don’t I remind my children of Me with a beautiful horizon while they wait on that big buck to come in their cross hairs!”  And when I looked out on it from my bedroom, it’s as if the woods were on fire and the glow from the fire illuminates the Heaven!  Its “catchin’”.  You can’t NOT look at it!  He makes it so gorgeous and so pure, so IGNITED, that you have to see it! 

We, the church, are so like the hunter in the woods!  We sit back and wait and watch for something to come in our cross hairs and then when you least expect it He ignites someone and they first light up the whole church.  They illuminate it.  And God, that fire, is “catchin’”.  And just like that sunrise in the sky, you can’t NOT look at who God has ignited in your church.  You see that anointed ignited person and you say, “Boy O Boy!”  I want a little spark of that flame!  And before you know it the whole woods is on fire; your church is on fire for Jesus!  And you sit back and think, wow, what was that!   It was a little spark!  Just a spark!  A spark that started with a word or a deed and God saw potential!  If we are obedient to Him and do it all, do whatever He tells us, even though, yes, we don’t like the taste of it in our mouth but we know it’s for our best interest and we will be better off if we do it!  He will fan that spark!  It will become a flame and as that flame grows it’s going to grab those closest to it.  And then it starts reaching out to the places you don’t even see. The flames are so high that more sparks are flying off and there starts another flame!

God is just so good.  So so good!  He has been fanning my flame for a while and I will be there first to tell you, some of the things He asks me to do I just have to say “Really?”  “You want me to do THAT? OK, here I go!”  But trust me I have a bad taste in my mouth!  But it doesn’t last forever and the quicker I do what He tells me, the faster I get that minty fresh taste back! 

So if God is telling you to do something you better do it because He wants to fan your flame!  He wants you so ignited that the sparks are flying off of you left and right!  So for all you hunters out there, I envy you!  You have a perfect opportunity to be one with the Almighty, plus many get paid vacation days for it!  Now tell me that’s not a divine plan!  God knows how we work!  How we think!  And the biggest most macho man can’t sit out in a tree stand and see what I saw this morning out my window and not fall to His knees and acknowledge and thank the God Almighty in Heaven who created it!

So BE SAFE in the woods this week!  But if a spark flies your way- CATCH IT!

Jacob got this at Steve's!