The Best Christmas Present of All

Life and Light

 ¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

²He was with God in the beginning.  ³Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
⁴In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
¹⁴The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only,^[d] who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Matthew 1:21 (NIV) 

²¹She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,^[a] because he will save his people from their sins."

Luke 2: 8 (KJV)
⁸And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
 ⁹And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
 ¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
 ¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
 ¹²And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
 ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
 ¹⁴Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Wow! What love God showed for us, that he would send His only Son, Jesus to live among us, to give us light, hope, peace, joy and life!



How do you celebrate Christmas?


For us we have two celebrations.


Celebration of Light - Light Festival

Celebration of Life Banquet & Service


We celebrate Jesus' birthday with a dedication to Him. We light candles and lights, and go see lights that others have put up. As we ride around we listen to Christmas music, talk about Jesus and thank Him for coming to be our Savior. We were glad to see many nativity scenes up and signs that celebrate the true meaning of Christmas this year. 


During the holidays we also remember to give to others, of our time, service and food.  We show God's love with kindness and smiles and pray that more people know Jesus this season.


During Christmas we give gifts, but they are to show thanks to God for his blessings, and to bless others, so in doing it is as if we are giving these gifts to Christ.  His gift is our dedication to Him from our own hearts. We end Christmas with a re-dedication of our lives to Christ.


Often we celebrate the Twelve days of Advent and Festival of Lights along with our own traditions.  The more celebrations the merrier. 


People around the world celebrate Christmas in many ways. The most important thing to remember is Christmas is not about Santa, presents, trees or stress. It is not about families gathering, although it is good when they do. 


It is about the birth of our Savior, Jesus, who was born among us, lived as we live, and who died for our sins, and rose again, so that we could have eternal life with Him.



This holiday season, however you celebrate, thank Jesus for being born our light and life. Do you want to know Jesus? Ask him into your heart and life this holiday season, so that you can enjoy the full meaning of Christmas and God's life and light.


To know who he is, here is a link from International Bible Society, a short video about Who Jesus Is.
 
The true gift of light and life for all of us.
Seasons Greetings and Good Will to All!

Jesus: Our Connection to God

Hebrews 1:1-2

KJV

 ¹God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

 ²Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

NIV

¹In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 

²but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.

~~~

It used to be that God would speak to the fathers through prophets. Now God speaks through His Son, Jesus, to us.  Likewise, when we want to talk to God, we talk to Jesus.

The veil that divided us has rent, and now we have direct access to the Father through his Son, the Word, who came to live among us.

Isn’t that great? We don’t have to go to a prophet, or priest to get mediation. 

We can go directly to our High Priest, Jesus Christ!

Jesus is heir of all things. His love and grace cover the spectrum of the universe. How vast and great is our God, and his son, who is the Word, and yet how caring and mindful of us God, who is Father, Son and Spirit, is, that He would speak with us.

waiting

Psalm 27:14 (KJV)

Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD

 

Waiting has never been easy for me. Like a child who knows when she wakes up in the morning of her birthday, she will find presents, I look every day to see what God is giving me. What glorious promise will come true? Will there be a new color in the sunrise? Will a need be met that I was praying about? Will I hear good news in the daily news? Or will I meet someone new who will share the gospel or joy of knowing Jesus as Savior?

In a world where Christianity is persecuted, and people believe God is a myth, and say that Jesus never existed, it seems like there is no good news out there.However, there is,and we must remain patient and look for it, and spread some good news of our own. Those who deny Christ have not met him. If they did, they would feel life so real, it makes sense that they would never deny his reality. Sure there is a recession, but God owns everything. Sure there are those who hate, but there are also those who love. There is filth, but Jesus blood washes everything clean.

We get impatient and want everyone's view to be our view instantly, but we need patience and understanding, love and compassion. We need to think of our first steps up to Christ.  When patience breeds faith, wonderful events take place.


Good news is Jesus saves. Good news is waking up in the morning knowing God has something special planned for us, our redemption for those who do not know Him, and His favor to those who do.

Every day i am pleasantly surprised. Tonight my husbands date with me was a game of chess at our house, in the front patio. We usually go out to a cafe or back patio. To have that single difference made our date feel new. When you know Jesus that single difference makes life new.

Sure it is hard to flow up river when everyone washes downstream in easy creek, but try it, hang on and climb the rocks. Look for some good news, and have patience, for the strength you need to keep climbing builds with the momentum of each patient step,

Blessed Rain

I was looking at Bible Gateway's verse of the day, Joel 2:23, today. That is a verse so full of hope!

"Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month."

I like rain. Not a dangerous rain, but the kind of shower that cleans the air, washes the car on occasion and waters the ground so that plants can grow.  I love the way the air smells  after the rain stops.


We live in an area where water is most important, for crops that supply part of the nation.  When it doesn't rain, we miss it. The ground gets so hard we can't dig without trouble.  Then once the water pours, we have ground full of muddy pits. ;-D How like life that is!

We can get so dry, when we wander away from God's purpose in our lives.  People distance themselves from speaking to God, or hearing him, or even caring whether He exists, until they live in a dry and thirsty land and need him. We humans get so far in a pit if the rain did come, we couldn't feel it. Then we whine to God about not getting increase.  Why is that?  

Or we may be like the farmer who takes the twin stick out to the ground to try to find water when there is a faucet nearby. We'll search and search in the wrong places, and the spirit will feel dry, distant, but not for seeming lack of trying. Then all of a sudden, maybe we get it and turn the faucet on.  Or we may feel so muddy we don't think we'll ever wash clean.


But there is good news, in that God promised the rain. Regardless of our situation, or attitude, God will rain on our heads. That rain can feel hard with sleet and knock us down one, or can cause us to grow.  God knows we'll be grateful for it, once the waters abate and when our lawn is nice and green and our plants come up.

In Joel, God says I will pour on the rain. The former rain, the latter rain, the abundance of rain.  He already gave us blessings. Past, present and future, That rain--God's love--His blessings of hope--they are all guaranteed, sent and ready for those who accept it.  Have faith and look up. 

As I said, I like the rain. I like my roses watered. I like the rain as an analogy of blessings pouring down.  However, the rain I love the most, is when God waters my spirit. When the rain washes all the dust out of the air, all of the things that formed a cloud between Him and I. When he cleanses me and sets me right, so i can breathe and see what is real, instead of wandering without hope.
 
When you feel dry and alone, just look up and trust God to send the rain. He already has, he is, and he will again.

Walk In the Light as He is In the Light

I love to take strolls out to the yard at night, when the stars are bright and I can look up and see the constellations. I feel a sense of wonder, what is up there, what does it look like. Imagine looking up at the stars and not seeing a brick on the ground. oops. Splat. For that reason I walk carefully and make sure when I look up, I am holding onto something.

Looking up, holding on...Good spiritual advice too.

That same sense of wonder happens when I catch the first dew on a rose, when I feel a calm breeze, or hear birds chatter. It happens when a family of bluebirds light on my lawn. Why then, risk limb and pride to walk out at night? Why else but I am curious and I write Science Fiction. Otherwise, I can't explain it, except there is something special for me about seeing the stars, of seeing God's creation in such unexplainable splendor.

At any time, I walk confident, because I know God's peace is with me. I feel His presence and I don't have to worry about stumbling, because he keeps me, as long as I am on the path He has chosen for me. On that path, I am looking up at him always in faith, and He is holding onto me.

Walking in the light does not just mean walking in daylight. It means walking in HIS light, and his light is eternal, it is everywhere, even at the darkest hour before dawn. Like the sun, moon and stars, and the infinite beyond, God's peace shines everywhere, all the time. It is not a light you have to see. It is a light you have to carry.

So go on, walk outside and look up, and be careful of your step, stay on the path God has chosen for you, and keep God with you in your heart.

A Tribute To Mom

July 20th, my mother went home to be with the Lord.
I will always cherish her memory and miss her.

I feel she is here with me in spirit, as well as in Heaven. She was a beautiful light.

She was my best coffee buddy. We would sit out on the patio and sip coffee and watch the sunset together. Many days were spent talking shop (writing and worldbuilding), watching old movies, favorite tv series, and singing our favorite songs.

She loved talking about Louis L'amour, one of her favorite authors, or Agatha Christie or Rex Stout. She loved the classic mysteries and westerns and old movies. She decorated cakes. She decorated our 25th anniversary cake.

In the end, she was surrounded by people who loved and cared for her. She slipped quietly away in the night, in a peaceful sleep. I am grateful that she knew my love for her was without end.

We see her in everything, everywhere. We know her light will always shine wherever we go. Her legacy was love. To love one another. Her favorite prayer was The Lord's Prayer. Her favorite song was I Must Tell Jesus. Now I guess she is telling him everything. :-)

We would like to offer our thanks to the following people:
The Doctors and Staff at Golden Living Center, Clovis; The Chaplain and staff of Asera Hospice, Clovis; Nova Cremation Service, David Loper, Belmont Memorial Gardens, Dr Soghomonian; Dr Kraeger, Our precious friends and family and all who have shown us care during this time, you have our deepest sincere gratitude.

To my husband, you are my champion. I am so grateful for all of your loving care of me during this time.

And to all of our family, our sympathy and prayers are with you.

As her memorial verse says:

The Eternal God is thy refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms...
Deuteronomy 33:27 KJV

Arise! Shine!

What exhuberance those two words sound with!

I am not a morning person. Okay? Let's get that straight. I come from a long line of night owls. However, lately I have come to enjoy the hours between dawn and sunrise, so much so I risk losing sleep. I love the way the sun glows amber light against the clouds, and the way the trees seem to lean toward the light. In fact, light is one of my favorite topics. Light and Peace, those two words say so much using so little.

Isaiah 60: 1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

I recall going to a women's retreat (uhhem) many years ago where this scripture was its theme. I did not count myself that much a Christian at the time, I was trapped in a hole of depression and thought surely God was mad at me. The woman who spoke kept looking my way. Surely I could hide. I stayed quiet, in the back. She kept looking. She kept speaking. I felt as if she were cutting past the crowd, slicing me open and spilling the contents of her message inside my heart. Now, understand, she was not preaching. She was not yelling or condemning. She hardly spoke but a few words.

She read this verse: Arise, Shine, for the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

We sang that song in the retreat. We said that scripture over and over, yet never before did it have the meaning it had after...

The woman did something unexpected. She looked right at me, and said in a whisper, Come here, love.

Okay, embarassed I went..what else was I supposed to do?

She looked at me, smiled, touched my forehead and whispered--yes whispered...Peace.

I slumped to the floor and cried. For me there was no peace, I said. She sat on the floor beside me and said it again. And she prayed with me until Gods love proved it to me.

Peace.

As if on cue, the sunlight, from the beach sun, shone in a stained glass window. Sure the sun was brilliant. The colors of the stained glass were beautiful. Yet the love of God on that woman's face, was more brilliant than all of the other light.

At that moment, I felt what it was to know Christ, and to feel His love.

Everyone in that retreat felt that light in one manner or another. We all left happy and full of promise and purpose. Was it that woman's doing? No. She simply obeyed God's call to her. She knew what Jesus wanted her to do and she did it. she smiled. She loved. She gave hope. She spoke peace.

Love is profound that way. It doesn't take much to start it. You will know the author of it. There is no escaping its brightness. But the most beautiful part is, when you feel it, others will too. Sometimes it is a lot of work, other times it is very simple.

What is God asking you to do today? Remember, You Are Woman. You can do this. You are God's light. Now get up and smile. Shine to the world, and let them know through your love that one tiny word.

"Peace."

How has God shown his love and light in your life this week?

Dear Jesus, help me to remember your light when........., to be a light for.........and to give peace to..............

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Thank you for reading.
Peace to you!