Getting Into the Spirit of Christmas

I attended the performance of a singing Christmas tree the other night. The music warmed my heart and the story reminded me of the Great God that we have. The story fit present day realities in our country. A man had lost his job, couldn't provide for his family and couldn't seem to find another job. His wife was a Christian, but he was not. He could not figure out how a babe in a manger could offer him hope in the midst of his dilemma. With the help of a man he met while drinking coffee, he was to start at the manger, but not to stop there. He told him to trace the little baby's life as he grew, became a man, entered His ministry, died on the cross, was buried and rose again. As I watched the progression of the story and the man's journey, to faith I was reminded of how great and gracious our God truly is. I was reminded how He is with His children in whatever we face in life and how He is our hope. As I listened to the Hallelujah Chorus being sung, I was reminded that one day the kingdoms of this earth will become the kingdom of our Lord and God and He shall reign forever as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Hallelujah!


Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all. May God's richest blessings be yours.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

    Christmas is a wonderful time of the year. Most people seem a little nicer, a little more concerned about others and a little more cheerful. Unfortunately, most people end up a little more or a lot more in debt after Christmas. Possibly this once a year occurrence of people being their very best selves and going deeper into debt, could be assuaged if people remembered the true meaning of Christmas is not temporal or material.
    God the Father sent His Son to be born as a baby that He might experience life as one of us yet without sin. He lived, minstered and died on a cross to pay for the sins of all mankind. He was buried but rose again on the third day. Remembering that the babe in the manager grew up, became the Savior and rose again as the victorious Lord of life, can help each of us remember that Christmas is a constant thing. As we remember this, maybe we will be our best selves all of the time and will remember that Christ is the secret of a truly wonderful and successful life. As Dr. Adrian Rogers use to say, "If you want to find out how rich you really are, add up what money can't by and death cannot take away."
If this babe in the manager has become your personal Savior and Lord, truly you can experience the true meaing of Christmas all year round. Merry Christmas to all.

Give Thanks With A Grateful Heart

Thursday is Thanksgiving again in the United States. It's a day when we here celebrate the holiday with our friends, family and loved ones around us. This year has been one of not so good economic news for most all of us. It has been a year of unexpected health news for some of us. It has been a year of changes, some good and some bad. We have had some victories and some losses in our lives. If each of us was asked what we are thankful for, the answers would be as varied as each individual. However, for those of us who are Christians each of us should always be thankful for the God who loved us enough to send His Son to die in our place so that we might have forgiveness of sins and be able to spend an eternity with Him in a place called Heaven. Whatever our earthly lot, we always have God, his grace, mercy, love and salvation for which to be thankful. My friend, be thankful this Thursday with a grateful heart for God who never changes, who never leaves us nor forsakes us, and will see us through the twists and turns of this life and will take us home to heaven to be with Him when this life is over. God bless you and yours this Thanksgiving.

The Unexpected

This past Thursday I received some distressing health news. I was diagnosised with a condition that plagues some members of my family, as well as many Americans. Because of my family history, I had tried for years to dodge the bullet. Watching my diet, exercising and whatever else I could do to prevent it, was the routine I religiously observed. My doctor told that my regimen t had prevented its early onset, but that genetics had worked against me. I had tried to prevent the unpreventable. What lesson have I learned? I have learned that despite our best efforts some things are inevitable and sometimes life throws us curves. Therefore, we must face whatever we are given and by the grace of God deal with it.

Your Daily Routine

Does your daily routine have you in a rut. Do you feel that the more you try the less you accomplish? Take heart my friend. We all feel like that. Sometimes it is difficult to keep on keeping on when you feel like you're not getting anywhere. Elizabeth Elliot, a Christian writer, challenges us to trust God and "do the next thing." We dare not sit down, ring our hands and give up. Galatians 6: 9 instructs us not to lost heart in doing well, for we shall reap in due season if we do not grow weary. We must take the long view and keep plodding along, trusting God to give us strength for each day. Live the present day in God's strength and tomorrow and the next day. Until we are able to look back and realize that our routine days have turned into a fruitful life.

Mondays

Most everyone I know dreads Mondays. I guess that makes me unusal. I see Monday as a brand new opportunity to start something new or finish something I did not have time to finish last week. This attitude may stem from the fact that I am a teacher and I enjoy my occupation. I look forward to the challenge of teaching my students some new concept or making sure they have indeed mastered the concept I tried to teach them last week.

Whether you are a teacher or not, let me challenge you to see Mondays as God-given opportunities to have another chance at finishing something you need to finish or to start something brand new. After all, none of us know how many Mondays we have on this earth. Carpe diem.

Deborah's Books and Such

Deborah's Books and Such

The Enjoyment and Hard Work of Writing

For those of you who enjoy writing, I understand completely. I enjoy it tremendously. Writing can be cathartic. It can transport you from your present circumstances to a more idyllic place. Working out your character's problem or problems as you write can give you a sense of accomplishment and a means of seeing your own problems and their solutions a little clearer. Writing can give you a platform to say all of those things you cannot say in a speech or everyday conversation.
Writing is truly an enjoyable experience, but it is also hard work. It can be an exasperating experience when you are trying to find just the right word or words to express exactly what you are trying to say. You want to make sure that you are getting your point across to the reader. It is a writer's joy to be able to carry the reader into the depths of the characters' lives as the story unfolds. To accomplish this requires patience and hard work. A writer must hone and re-hone the words and the sentences of his/her work in order to paint word pictures that excite the reader's interest and imagination. The goal is to keep the reader wanting more so that he/she will keep reading. All of the hardwork is worth it, especially when someone tells you, " I really liked what you wrote. It inspired me."