Christmas Wishes

It's hard to believe that 2011 is almost gone!

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to you all.
And, Best wishes for 2012.

May you draw closer to the God who loves you with an everlasting love...

and believe that all things are possible with Him!

Christmas blessings,

Jeanne

An-ti-ci-pa-tion!!

....No, not the ketchup commercial, the coming Messiah; for thousands of years people lived in expectation of His arrival. Every Jewish maiden hoped she would be the one to bear the Deliverer. Prophets told of the circumstances of His birth and then silence fell over the land…not another word was heard for 400 years.

 The silence was broken by visits from the Angel Gabriel, first to Zacharias and then to a young Jewish girl named, Mary.  The messenger brought word--earth-shaking news—and His name was Jesus. An old barren woman conceived a son who would be the one to prepare the way of the Lord; A young virgin conceived before her marriage and traveled to Bethlehem with her husband, Joseph because of the census ruling; Shepherds witnessed, Simeon saw the Lord’s deliverer just as God promised, and, Anna saw with her own eyes and told everyone of the great news; Jesus the messiah was born in Bethlehem.

Rumblings of the promise ripple outward, for nothing is impossible with God. The Savior has come.

We celebrate Christmas and remember the story of the anticipated messiah. Yet, there is more to the story. On December 26^th the songs on the radio are hushed, paper and bows are on the discount racks, and Christmas is silenced for another year. Yet, prophets told of His coming…again.

Promises are made for His kingdom reign. And we are the ones with the good news that must be given to all who will listen. Jesus is coming again. Is your heart prepared to make room for Him as King of Kings and Lord of Lords?

Wishing you all a wonderful week as you prepare for His coming,

Jeanne

Notice the Amazing and Ponder its Message

I have been cloistered at home, fighting sickness last week; I was itching to get outside to breathe the fresh air and to get some exercise. I bundled up warm; the chill in the air belied the beautiful sunshine. I began to walk—it felt good to move my muscles. It was quiet except for a few woodland birds and rustling of leaves. As I walked, I took in sights of an area I have never walked before (I had only driven down this road)…A crumbling bee’s nest clinging to a wispy branch, a stone foundation which may have been an animal pen, a barn or some sort of root cellar, and an ancient Chevy car hood buried on the side of the road. I began to wonder, to ponder these things. Did the bee’s nest come down during the past storms? How extensive a building could this have been? Who could have lived here and how long ago? Whose vintage car and how long had it been camouflaged here on the woodland floor?

It’s rather like when we are traveling through life—it feels we are going so fast, like my car zipping down the road. I wonder how different things would look if I slowed my pace to take notice?

As I prepare for Christmas, I read the story in Luke chapters one and two—I noticed that the Christmas characters had much to think about. Sprinkled throughout, there are truths for us to ponder. I discovered reminders about being chosen, our disgrace being removed, having Him with us, being filled with the Holy Spirit and being redeemed. Amazing!

The events leading up to and after Jesus’ birth jumped off the page and became a living story. Angelic visits, priestly duty, a young girl, and a barren woman, all becoming the stars in the event that was promised ‘in the fullness of time’. And, Mary pondered all of these things in her heart. Her mind must have been reeling with everything that occurred during those months. But, it said she pondered—she slowed down and began to process just what it meant to have borne the Savior of the world.

So, I am learning to take notice of things that are happening around me. God speaks in the midst of our everyday events just like He did in centuries past. And who can say what our part might play in His bigger story that will cause another to ponder the things of God.

May you ponder the events that brought us the Savior,

Jeanne