A thought...or two

The following are the lyrics from a song by the group Tenth Avenue North. I have been really struggling with depression over the past two weeks. It has grown intensely and I am growing very weary of dealing with it. This song seemed to fit where I am at the moment and so I share the words:

How long must I pray

Must I pray to You?

How long must I wait

Must I wait for You?

How long till I see Your face

See You shining through

I’m on my knees

Begging You to notice me

I’m on my knees

Father, will You turn to me

One tear in the driving rain

One voice in a sea of pain

Could the maker of the stars

Hear the sound of my breaking heart

One life, that’s all I am

Right now I can barely stand

If You’re everything You say You are

Would You come close and hold my heart

I’ve been so afraid, afraid to close my eyes

So much can slip away before I say goodbye

But if there’s no other way

I’m done asking why
So many questions without answers

Your promises remain

I can’t see but I’ll take my chances

To hear you call my name

To hear you call my name

Merry Christmas

Today I am so very thankful that the words of the prophet Isaiah came true.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called

Wonderful Counselor

Mighty God

Everlasting Father

Prince of Peace.

Because the Christ child was born, we have an amazing chance to have an amazing relationship with God-who is and will be everything we may ever need and more.

Merry Christmas!

A Christmas Thought...

(First of all-sorry- I took yesterday off of work and literally took the day off. I spent it with my kids-so I guess really I am not that sorry. I did spend some time thinking about this post though, but thinking was as far as I got.)

Luke 1:26-38,46-55

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”
Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she’s now in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.”
Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.

Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed. For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me. He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him. His mighty arm has done tremendous things!

He has scattered the proud and haughty ones. He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things

and sent the rich away with empty hands. He has helped his servant Israel

and remembered to be merciful. For he made this promise to our ancestors,

to Abraham and his children forever.”

I love to consider Mary and the position she was placed in. I also love her response-she was willing. I think often times we tend to elevate Mary to some kind of saintly status. I do think God chose her because He knew she would be willing, that she would trust God, that she was the perfect person to be the mother of Christ.

God knew exactly what He was asking of exactly who He was asking. He did not attempt to find a willing party by auditioning or interviewing multiple people. He did not fret over whether Mary would do an "OK" job or if she would be too overwhelmed or inconvenienced by the task.

The same is true of each of us. God does not ask us to do something that He wonders if we will be capable of carrying out. The problem then lies with us. We are the ones that worry about the impossibility or inconvenience of the task God has asked us to take on. God knows exactly who He is asking. So if God is asking you to do something, no matter how impossible it seems, no matter if it would cause you to be inconvenienced--He has not made a mistake. He has chosen you to do that specific task, just as He chose Mary to be the mother of Christ.

Keep this in mind:

For nothing is impossible with God.

Our response should then be:

I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true.

Today I am Thankful for...

...a brand new niece. Kaitlyn Nicole Maxson was born yesterday morning.

...a chance to catch up with a friend tomorrow.

...the first of our family Christmas gatherings this weekend, which includes my Grandfather from PA.

...children who make me smile each day before I leave for work. Sometimes it's because they are acting silly and sometimes it is just because they are being themselves.

...the goodness of the LORD.

Wait for His Goodness

I am still confident of this:

I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

Wait for the LORD;

be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

Psalm 27:13-14

The past few days I have felt a myriad of emotions. I have been thrilled and excited about the chance to shop for and give gifts to family and friends. I have been frustrated with the people rushing rudely through the stores. I have been saddened by our culture that would rather watch a man play golf than save his family. I have been in awe of God as He provided a huge offering from our church for missions work in the Dominican Repulic and also for our own community. I have been waiting in anticipation for the birth of my niece. I have been caught up in the hectic pace of this season. I have felt so exhausted and wanted to just run away from this mess. I have been reminded of the simple way that Christ came into this world and how very few even knew He was here.

I believe the verses above. I do see the goodness of the LORD. However, I fail to see it when I don't stop and wait for Him. So this is my goal for the next two weeks. Each time I am wished a Merry Christmas, or each time I am somehow reminded of this holiday season (rudely or otherwise) I will wait for the LORD and look for His goodness. What about you? Will you join me?

Today I am Thankful for...

...warmth. I have no idea why I have been allowed to have this gift while others do not. I only know that I am so very grateful. God knows that I have enough trouble staying warm even when it is not 7 degrees with a windchill of -13. I did want to go out this morning and pick up all the kids that had to walk to school and have them all pile into my van, it doesn't seem quite right to make a child endure this weather for more than is absolutely necessary.


...the perspective of giving it all away. Our kids are not asking about gifts and what they want. They are also really excited to go shopping for other kids this weekend. It is so amazing to watch them as they get into the spirit of giving. It is also fun to know that we are able to bring joy to others. I am so thankful that God has blessed us and that His message of serving and loving others is being "caught" by our kids.


...God's blessings and sovereignty in our lives. While we pray and hope to enjoy His blessings for many years, we also know that if it all was taken away we would still have the greatest blessing of all: Christ. God has blessed us with many things, but also with family, friends, and His grace. I am truly humbled and blessed and oh so grateful!

Check this out

Here is a link to a great giveaway. Check it out and get yourself entered to win. How fun!!!

Concert

The post below has pictures from last night. Last night our church hosted the Veggie Tales and Matthew West (Grammy nominated Christian recording artist). As you can see Bob and Larry were there to meet and greet the kids. Matthew did an amazing job of blending Christmas music with worship. It was an amazing concert. The concert ended with Matthew singing with a group of kids from our church. All three of the boys were so excited to be a part of this event. They sang Matthew's new Christmas song (from the Veggie Tales movie) and Silent Night. Yes they really did give 35 kids fire. It was an absolutely amazing evening. We had a lot of fun as well as a good time in the presence of God.

Matthew West Concert

Click here to view these pictures larger

Thankful for...

Emma finally getting on board with potty training. She used the bathroom for the entire day yesterday and today was trying it out with big girl underwear. YIPPEE! The end is in sight. (We have been buying diapers for almost 10 straight years.)

tea, coffee, and space heaters. Anything that keeps me warm at work. And a special thanks to the group of ladies that makes lap blankets for people, because I am currently using one.

people who love snow. Hey, someone has to enjoy it. :-)

my co-workers. I can't wait to party with them tomorrow night.

A thought...or two

We are not saved BY good works, we are saved FOR good works.

These words have been playing over and over in my mind since our pastor said them two weeks ago. We are currently as a church discussing "giving it all away". As Christ-followers we are called to go into the world and help the needy, the widow, the orphans. In fact a verse that stands out to me about this is James 1:27. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after the orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Jesus spoke about the poor and needy often and yet we as Americans find it hard to not become disillusioned and hardened to the needs of this world. If it's not right in front of me I tend to turn a blind eye. Another thing that our pastor has challenged us with is this: it doesn't matter how or why a person is poor and needy, we are just called to obey and offer them help and hope. I find myself all too often caught up with rationalizing why I shouldn't offer someone help because of their poor decisions, or sins, or whatever. I have been told to give food, water, clothes, etc...to the least of these in the name of Jesus. (PERIOD) Matthew 25:31-46

In the verse I quoted above I have always been struck by the last part. I can grasp the giving and helping of the needy, but how does that tie into keeping oneself from being polluted by the world? As we have been talking to our kids about giving Christmas away this year and how we can make a difference in someone else's life I am finding just how polluted we have become. We are so wealthy (and I do mean money). We have so many extras in our lives: cable, Internet, cell phones, multiple cars, and the list could go on. How many of those things do we really need? I mean REALLY need. None of them. We could make it work without all of those things and more. But we don't want to be uncomfortable. We may even think we deserve or are entitled to those things. I know I get caught thinking that.

What about you? If you "gave it all away" this Christmas what would it look like? What if instead of just "giving it all away" at Christmas you made a commitment to do something every month, week, day? How would your life change? More importantly how would the lives of others change?

I am sure I will post more on this topic over the next few weeks. Our family is committed to Christmas looking different at our house this year. And then moving into the new year, we want to continue to give back to God what He gave us in the first place. Stay tuned to see how Aaron and I are challenged and changed as well as the kids.