Forgotten Christmas...

Christmas is only 66 days away.....ahhhh!!!!!

Now this news probably does send some of you into a panic. Your mind is racing with lists already. Some of you have had your lists made for months, in fact some of you have even checked it twice. Then there are those of you who are thinking I've got plenty of time...after all that's what Christmas Eve is for...to buy presents! 

Every year our family tries to do something different with how we give gifts to one another. We try to avoid overspending and at the same time make the gifts meaningful and fun. A few years ago we had a theme for our Christmas...simply put our Christmas that year was JOY.

  Jesus

    Others 

You

Our first focus that season was of course on Jesus. Our next focus was on others, and then we focused on each other, or you. One very practical way we reached out to others was by forgoing a Christmas tree that year. Choosing and cutting down our tree is always a big thing to us, so by not getting one this year, it made a big impact on us all. We chose to take the money we would have used on a tree and purchased fruit trees for a person who needed the fruit to survive. This small sacrifice on our part is still impacting people to this day. And yes, our Christmas was just as special without the tree!

Gospel for Asia is one of  a few ministries that makes available a Christmas catalog where you can purchase things ranging from chickens to water buffalo to houses for people who can't afford these things on their own. They have put together a web site called Forgotten Christmas. The following video explains what the website is all about. 

**WARNING....this video is convicting!**

So, as you begin to make your lists for Christmas, I challenge you to prayerfully consider buying one less thing this year, or set a smaller spending limit. The average person spends at least $500 on Christmas. In some parts of the world that is more money than they will even see in a year! Imagine if we all could take just a portion of that money and buy someone the gift of hope, love and encouragement. A small gift on our part is a huge gift can be multiplied over and over again to the forgotten people!

As we are celebrating the birth of our Savior let us not forget that 2,700,000,000 people have not yet heard that Jesus was even born! 


In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ Acts 20:35


Linking up with:

 

Word Filled Wednesday...my rock!

Navigating Through Life...

I told my hubby today that I was having a brain freeze as far as an idea on what to blog about. So Brian offered to by my guest blogger today! Please make him feel welcome!

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Our family finally broke down and bought a navigational system for our car.  My cell phone has this technology: I used it on a trip to Washington DC once, but it costs $9.99 per month.  When our family has gone on trips we have borrowed from friends.  Finally we decided enough is enough, we need to know where we are going.  Brenda found a great deal on line and we bought one!

Photo Credit

I know it goes against everything a man stands for.  We aren’t supposed to ask for directions.  But these things are really amazing.  They tell you distances, speed, where rest stops are and of course the best of all, they calculate what time you will arrive at your destination.  Amazing!  Her name?  Bonnie.  That is what Brenda decided to name her.  So I need to tell you about Bonnie.  She isn’t perfect!  The first time Brenda used her she was going to a bridal shop to potentially pick out a wedding dress for our daughter Ashley.  Pretty important destination.  Well, Bonnie took Brenda to a residential neighborhood.  The coordinates or address or something was off.  Thankfully Brenda went the day before and was able to find the real location.

If only there were such a device to help me navigate through my life!  How do I make decisions.  Where should I work? Where should I live? There are so many questions I have in life that I need help answering.  I need direction!  Well, I do have a place we can turn for clear directions.  I do have a tested and approved way to navigate through the most difficult turns of life. 

I have the Bible.  I know it seems like the Bible is a difficult book to understand.  It does take some work to figure it out.  Well, so does any GPS device.  It takes time to figure out how they work.  How to put in the coordinates, how to understand the data that this GPS device is giving to me.   When we take the time to figure out how it works it truly can guide and direct us through life.

This is so much like the Bible.  There is great direction, teaching, instruction in the pages of the Bible.  We can learn from the mistakes people have made in the past.  We have the Bible, prayer and the Holy Spirit to help us navigate through this life.  We live in a time where we need direction.  We need a true North to help guide us.  The Bible is that book God has given us to guide and direct us through difficult times.  Most people have one or many Bibles in their house.  Pick it up, read it, you will be glad you did.  If for some reason you don’t have a Bible you can read it on the computer, go to Bible Gateway. We don’t have an excuse!

If you are tired of getting lost, losing direction?  Turn to the tested and true navigational system.  The bestselling book of all time that will never give you bad directions: The Bible.

Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light for my path. 

Psalm 119:105

Of salsa and Jesus...

I remember it well, the very first time I ever tried salsa. You would think it was when I was little, but no, I was 20 at the time. I was working at a place called the Lazy T in Estes Park, Co. My coworkers and I were sharing a late sight snack they called chips and salsa. I remember thinking wow, this salsa stuff is good, must be something new on the market! Well, imagine my surprise when I was told salsa had been around for awhile, in fact the first jar of Pace Picante Sauce was sold in 1947! How could I have missed it? Did the salsa industry forget to sell to Iowa? Or was I just really that oblivious, I mean I even worked in a grocery store in high school. Somehow, this amazing product escaped my radar for 20 years!!!

There was something else I missed growing up too....Jesus! I didn't really cross paths with Him until I was 18. I grew up going to church, I even prayed regularly and owned a Bible. Somehow, I missed Jesus, just like I had missed salsa. He was right there ready for me to see Him, but I just didn't.

The summer I accepted Christ was a pretty crazy one for me. I had just graduated high school and was preparing for college. My parents decided to divorce and I found myself living with my aunt and uncle. Nothing was normal, everything was changing and changing fast. Our youth group went to an event in Estes Park, Co (the same place I would discover salsa in two more years). During that week, something happened, somewhere in the midst of all the workshops and games, I came face to face with the Gospel. It was a major aha moment. One I took in quietly, I prayed to become a Christian, and thought I was good.

I wish I could say, everything changed at the moment, life suddenly made sense and I became a strong believer overnight. No, I kind of put Jesus on a shelf, not intentionally, but because I was so shy and private at the time I told nobody of my decision and therefore I had no one to tell me there was more to Christianity than that one prayer. I went off to college and had an interesting year. I wanted to be like my Christian roommate Lynn, but I also wanted to have some fun. I slept in on Sunday mornings, feeling a bit guilty about seeing Lynn leave for church, but my Saturday night fun was more important at the time.

 Lynn had a strange habit that totally fascinated me...she read her Bible. In fact, she even wrote in it! That totally blew my mind. I mean weren't Bibles for looking good on a shelf? You weren't supposed to write in them, right? What was she doing every day reading and marking in her Bible? This was another aha moment in my life, similar to discovering Jesus and salsa. I thought well maybe just maybe I should find my Bible and read it too.

 Another aha moment was when my friend Teresa became a Christian. People were congratulating her and when I finally found out why I remember saying, "Hey, I'm a Christian too then, because I also accepted Jesus."  Slowly over the next year, I let my guard down and figured this whole Christianity thing out.

God had one more aha moment for me in that time frame. The end of my sophomore year, I was asked out by of all people, Brian Haynes. Oh was I thrilled. I never thought someone like him would like someone like me! During those final few months of that school year, Brian began taking me to church. Not just any church, but one that taught out of the Bible, in fact is was called the Bible Church. I'd never seen people actually carry their Bibles to church. This is where is all started to click for me. Aha..there is more to Christianity than just praying a pray, there is more to it than reading your Bible, there is more to it than attending any old church. It's where I realized Christianity wasn't just an extracurricular activity, it is a way of life!

I still had a long way to go, but as I look back over all those years, I see growth in my life. I did not come out of the gate a strong Christian with all the answers, but God was patient and has taught me so much. I still don't have all the answers (even though I like to think I do!), life is full of aha moments with God and it so much fun, challenging and crazy all at the same time.

My relationship with salsa has ended, it is now an enemy of my body; but my relationship with Jesus is much more spicy and flavorful than anything salsa could ever be for me!

The fruit of the Spirit is much better than any old jar of salsa!

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. 
Against such things there is no law.

Galatians 5:21-23

Linking up Today with:

Encouraging Words Wednesday

The LORD is my strength...

I am so thankful for all my children who walk with the Lord. As my son is in his final year of high school I feel so blessed to see him become someone who not only loves the Lord, but defends Him.

The LORD is my strength and my song;
   he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
   my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

Exodus 15:2

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. 

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone 

 who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. 

But do this with gentleness and respect.

1 Peter 3:15