If You Can’t Lick ‘Em – Join ‘Em

It's been "beginning to look a lot like Christmas" for months now. The big box stores have been touting us with their holiday wares since before Spring ended.This year I’m noticing even more folks skipping right over Thanksgiving and putting up their Christmas trees, house lights and decorations. Their home covered in a blanket of snow was all one of my friends needed to get her home all decorated with Christmas. One of the young volunteers who works with me at Children’s Hospital, along with her sister, put up their Christmas tree, fully decorated, while their mom was at work – completely against their mom’s desire to wait until after Thanksgiving.

Time for confession. I caved. Seems I’m still nostalgic with remembering nine years ago when I decorated our home for Christmas before Thanksgiving just before my husband passed away. I had never done that before and never since, but this year I can’t help myself. I've got a mishmosh going on -- Thanksgiving décor mixed with Christmas décor. My family will be getting two great celebration seasons rolled into one when they come in for Thanksgiving next week.

I was amused hearing some folks complaining about the early sales of Christmas decorations and hearing Christmas music playing since back in September. I understand retail stores want their bottom lines increased so they amp it up to get us into the "buying" frenzy way before the Christmas season. I can’t fault them for that. In order to vacate those shelves as quickly as possible, there are already 50% off sales.

Most of us want to embrace each season and make it as memorable as we can. We want to savor Fall with the leaves changing colors, pumpkin spice aromas and coffee, autumn décor. We want to remember the first Thanksgiving and the pilgrims and we want to make the Fall season special and meaningful. But, what's the big deal? Why should it matter when people begin to celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas? What matters is that we open our hearts and our homes to gratitude at Thanksgiving and to the joys, delights, and celebrations of Christmas. Actually, both seasons could easily be merged together as one. So, here I am -- on board the early Christmas train!

Both of these beautiful seasons tend to make us more thankful, kinder, and expressing gratitude for God's blessings and for celebrating Christ’s birth. Joy to the world; the Lord has come. It really is the most wonderful time of the year. I’m already allowing myself to get caught up in the miraculous Christmas story as I set out my many manger and Holy Family scenes. And, as I’m embracing and pondering all that Christmas means, when my family is together here in Frisco next week, this mode of thanksgiving, will simply open the door for all the joys and beauty of Christmas.

I've honed into this beautiful journey that will lead to the most Holy Day when our Savior was born – and, it would have been okay if I started way back in July! After all, it’s more than a season or a day. It's our reason for unspeakable joy, indescribable love, and amazing sacrifice – that the ONE Who placed the stars in the sky and Who knows them all by name -- chose to come to this earth as a little baby to be with me, understand me, live in this world like me. He totally gets me and my frailties, but better yet, He is my all powerful, incomparable, awesome and amazing God. That's plenty reason to celebrate all read round! So, the next time we're tempted to complain about "too early", let's turn that around and welcome the reminder to thank God for the Reason for the season. It’s just too great a story to compact it into only one celebration.

Help! I Need Directions!

I’m so thankful for my phone's GPS app. Such a time saver. Such a stress reliever. Such great comfort as I take so many road trips by myself. I remember the days of getting lost trying to find a location. I wonder how we made it so well before GPS? How did they make it in the old days before pavement roads or signs? Oh, I know. God was with them, just like He is so present with us today.

While my car wasn't starting on Saturday and trying to resolve the issue, I was going through my car’s Owner’s Manual to try to find an answer to the problem. Besides the car not starting, the outside lights would not turn off. I knew the battery would drain if I couldn't figure it out. The outside lights were on “Automatic” and the manual said I needed to “turn” the knob to “Off”, but the knob was stuck. It wouldn’t turn. Instead of unsticking it, I pushed the knob casing right into the dashboard. Lord, have mercy! I thought: "Something else to be charged for at the repair shop!" I tried grabbing hold of it to pull it out, but couldn’t get it to stay. I used a large screwdriver and pliers – but nada! I quit trying and went back to my prayer time and again, that scripture came to me “Do not fear. Only believe.” Shortly after that I remembered my small eyeglasses screwdriver, used it to pop it back in! And, whoa-la, and praise God -- it worked!

Seriously, my friends, I know it’s not a magic potion, but I know God is with me. He is with us. His Holy Spirit is in us and He knows everything about everything. He is our wisdom provider, our common-sense initiator, our comfort-giver, and our source of any and everything we need. He is so much more than a GPS!

I’m hearing the message loud and clear – that we should be communicating with Him as we would with a friend with us in the car, or, across the table from us. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6 Those ways include car troubles, family troubles, and life troubles. They include good times and not-so-good times.

Having a little conversation with Him Who knows everything about everything -- provides directions when and to where we want to go. That's huge when we consider those who refuse to ask for directions -- men AND women. They'll go around the same block or same area of town over and over again before they're willing to ask directions. But, in this case.....if we just have a little one-on-one with Him Who is the Supreme KNOW-IT-ALL, He will direct our paths. We'll get to our destination in record time, even get cars repaired. Expert advice!

Perhaps you're looking for direction on decisions that you are having to make today. Just maybe this "Word" is your "Word" too. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways (while driving, washing dishes, mowing the lawn, waiting in a store line, etc., acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths."

Bring on the Spotlights -- It's Lent!

I think I get my frugal and prudent spending habits and mindset from parents who were products of the Great Depression when every penny counted. My Mom would sing out “Shut off the lights! Turn up the air conditioner!” And, in the winter, “Turn down the heat and put on a sweater!” So here I am, in the 21st Century and I see her in me. I keep my heat at 63 degrees at night and push it up only a few degrees in the day time and I wear a sweater. I am so conscious of the electric bill that I often shut lights off so much that I have to cautiously maneuver my way through the house to get to the next room.

I promise. I’m going somewhere with my history and economics lesson. Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. It’s the start of the 40-days moving toward Resurrection Sunday. Hallelujah! It’s a time of an interior check-up. A time of turning on the lights, brighter than ever inside the rooms of our hearts, to search out areas that need a good cleaning. Lent is a beautiful time because it helps us to amp up becoming the very best version-of-ourselves. But it doesn’t happen by accident. It happens through an exciting collaboration between us and God.
Psalm 139:23-24 says: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Here’s the deal: Inside our hearts, over time, some less-than-ideal habits show up in our lives. Habits like crankiness, unforgiveness, complaining, worry, unbelief, fault-finding, and other areas that need to be exterminated and cleaned out. The Bible illuminates (lights up) those areas. Brace yourself, I’m lighting up this scripture and, yikes, it packs a punch: “From within the man, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.” (Mark 7:21-23)

Lord, have mercy! And, bring on the high beams! I don’t like those “evils” because they all represent darkness and I sure don’t want them in my heart or my life. Psalm 119:105 says “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
Placing the Bible (the lamp) at the center of our lives is like walking through the house turning on lights. “Ahh, that’s better. Yes, that’s brighter." I love how The Message Bible paraphrases that scripture: “By your words, I can see where I’m going; they throw a beam of light on my dark path.” Exactly so. The light of His Word keeps us from stumbling and helps us find our way.
This Lenten season can be the most freeing, cleaning-up-and-out all those dark places in our hearts. Lord, bring in your cleaning crew with their spotlights and clean out all the crevices, corners and hiding places and make my life fresh and new so I will be more like you!

"Change my heart oh God. Make it ever true. Change my heart oh God. May I be like You."

The Bright Light of Christmas is With Us

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While "The Wallace's" and I were driving home from Austin yesterday, I was already thinking "I'm going to take down my Christmas decor' as soon as possible since I'll be going out of town next week and I want to come back home to a fresh clean slate in the new year of new beginnings and new conquests."

But, when I drove down my street -- the Christmas lights were still glowing on my neighbors' homes, and my home. I walked into my home and I started putting on the Christmas lights because I wanted "that atmosphere" to linger a little longer. Yes, all the anticipation and excitement of the Christmas season is rapidly coming to a close, but the joy and peace of Christmas is still very present. I’m still captivated by the Christmas lights that are still glowing brightly and and the sweet and tender Christmas atmosphere. The reality is the reassurance we have that the atmosphere of Christmas will remain if we continue to acknowledge that the babe in the manger is no longer a baby. He is here with us because He is Emmanuel, “God with us”!

All thirteen of us, together, in Austin, made for lots of laughter and high energy that included all of us going to see a Christmas movie, eating in and eating out, the children running around, lots of picture taking, sweet conversations and many hugs and kisses. From all that activity to walking into my quiet, non-busy home could really be a downer if I dwelt on who and what I didn't have. I could dwell on being alone or even lonely. My main word of encouragement for many friends and ME, during this season has been "Emmanuel" (God with us). Many have been going through "stuff" and it is still my word for all of us. We are never alone, because God is with us. He cares. He loves. He gives. He holds.

Today, I will return to my daily routine of spending time with Jesus as I pray, praise, read His Word and take notes on what He's saying back to me. Maybe I'll spend a few minutes or many minutes -- it doesn't matter to Him, but it does to me. I need Him like I need breath to breathe. When I breathe Him (His presence) in -- He brings me peace. He is with me during my everyday life. I purpose to live my days remembering that God is with me, so as anyone that would be a passenger in my car, or a guest at my dinner table, I will talk to Him. I will talk to Him about any, and everything. I will thank Him for the “favors” that come, like green lights, the parking places close to the doors of the store, the “bargains” that I may find. Because I stay close to Him during my days, when the times of unexpected challenges come, I just remember, I’m not facing anything alone, because God is with me…..and I feel His peace right away. I know He will bring about what’s best for me. I urge you to KNOW Him – to know Emmanuel – He is with me – He is with YOU!

I desire to get so caught up in "God With Me" this year. My main goal for 2018 is to become more desperate for God than I have ever been before -- not because I am in a crisis-or-needy-mode, but because I want more of Him, and less of me. I desire Emmanuel -- God with me -- morning, noon and night.....and all the in-between time. This is one of my favorite songs that describes breathing in the holy presence of God. Please listen, soak it up and may it resonate with you and perhaps it will become your song too. The bright LIGHT of Christmas is WITH US!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTzXpzSXtdQ