Tag Archives: Christmas

Father, Forgive Them . . .

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I’ve been watching movies today while I iron shirts and blouses. As I sat up the board and poured water into my iron, I caught the last few minutes of a Christmas movie – I don’t recall the name. It was a familiar theme: a court room, a youngster on the witness stand, a kindly judge, a heartless lawyer and a benevolent lawyer proving to the courtroom and to us the viewing audience that Santa Claus is the heart of Christmas. He is the hero of the season; he is someone for children to believe in; someone to remind us and inspire us all to remember that Christmas is about love, forgiveness and family.  And I thought how clever! Wonder whose idea it was to take a fictitious character give him supernatural powers to know what gift every boy and girl on planet earth wants, to know which child has been good and which child has not but then what does it matter because all children get gifts from Santa on Christmas; but that’s not all Santa delivers these gifts to every house in the world in one night with the help of 8 reindeer who can fly! Wow! How fantastic is that?!

How much better would it have been just to have told the truth to the children? That the REAL GOD sent His only Son into the world as a human baby who grew from infant to man. He really and truly has supernatural powers. He healed the sick, caused the lame to walk, gave sight to the blind, even raised the dead; did the right thing even when humans did the wrong thing to Him. He laughed, He cried, He learned to walk and talk, read and write, played with friends, loved His Mother, His foster-father, His brothers and sisters, and that barely even begins to tell how He  demonstrated to the world that He loves us, that He desires for us to be His family, that He Himself came to enable us to love, forgive others, do good for one another and be a family.  And then added to all that He died our substitutionary eternal death and after three days arose from the dead, never to die again and made the way for us to live eternally and today He is STILL healing and still bringing the dead to life – that beats Santa Claus hands down, if you ask me!

But GOD just wasn’t good enough, was He? He just was not quite Christmas-y enough was He? He just didn’t give us the warm fuzzies, did He? He just wasn’t reason enough for the children to dash off to bed with so much excitement they could hardly sleep waiting to see what wonderful gifts they would be getting in the morning, was He?

Can you imagine the bewilderment of the angels who gave the GOOD NEWS to the Shepherds as they hear us tell our little white lies to the children? Can you imagine their faces as they watch the madness of the Season: Black Friday shoppers storming the door of a Wal-Mart leaving one man dead this year as they trampled him under the door; businesses vying  for every Christmas buying dollar yet refusing to acknowledge that JESUS even came? What else? What other ‘Christmas’ goings on are you privy to that have nothing to do with JESUS? How do the angels feel about that? How does JESUS feel about that?  Perhaps He is saying, ‘Father forgive them for they know not what they do.’

This I know: I am forever grateful that He has said, ‘Father, forgive her.’ I too have had some Christmas celebrations that gave little remembrance and not much resemblance to JESUS.  I pray to learn better.

Holy Christmas my friends,

Kathie

For Thought

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Good Monday Morning!

JT and I hope you have had a remarkable Thanksgiving and are ready now to move into a Christ honoring celebrating His Birth Season. I saw something on Facebook moments ago that I liked.

Jesus cameNo other child coming from a womb was/is like JESUS but let us remember they all are precious.

What does it mean to you that JESUS, fully GOD, fully human, arrived here as a baby; don’t mean to offend but truth is He came through a birth canal as did you and I? What’s that tell you?

Kathie

14 The Word became a human being and lived with us, and we saw his Sh’khinah, the Sh’khinah of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.

via John 1 KJV;CJB – In the beginning was the Word, and the – Bible Gateway

Celebratory

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Reflecting I think my family has not been celebratory people. Each day was in good part esteemed as any other day. Of course, Christmas Day there was a gathering for special foods and gift giving; Thanksgiving – turkey and dressing, green beans, cranberry sauce, for starters and perhaps a ham too; Easter – chicken and dressing and again perhaps a ham; birthdays would come and go with hardly a notice; Sunday was Sunday School, preaching, lunch, a nap or a ride in the truck, back to church for Training Union, preaching, home for roast beef sandwiches with mustard and Bonanza.  (Word on Google is that Bonanza aired for the first two years on Saturday night then moved to Sunday nights.)  Such ramblings this morning to get to my point.

I don’t recall us being a celebratory people as to certain days being high occasions. I’m not so sure that was good but I’ll not proceed too far down that road with you today.  What is done is done. What is to come can be anything we enlist ABBA’s help to make it.  The fact is ABBA is celebratory.  Want proof? How many Feasts – Festivals a year did He give to His people as HIS FEASTS?  Seven.  That’s a lot of celebrating.  And there are reasons. One: family. Celebrating with family is designed to promote love and harmony. The trouble is celebrating without GOD often brings disharmony and even hatefulness in families.  That is not ABBA’s will. Celebrating according to His Feasts fixes our hearts on His Messiah to the world –  we call Him JESUS. Some call Him YESHUA.

Passover

Unleavened Bread

Firstfruits

Pentecost

Feasts of Trumpets

Day of Atonement

Feasts of Tabernacles

[source]

But celebrating is not limited only to His Feasts.  Look at a portion of Psalm 47 with me. I read every day celebrating! Do you?

(1) Clap your hands, all you peoples!
Shout to God with cries of joy!
3 (2) For Adonai ‘Elyon is awesome,
a great king over all the earth.

[source]

And further into the Psalm we read:

(6) Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our king, sing praises!
8 (7) For God is king of all the earth;
sing praises in a maskil.

[source]

For GOD is king of all the earth! Amen and amen. I can celebrate that! Not only can I celebrate, I can rest, be glad and KNOW I am secure since HE is KING!

Let the celebrating begin!!

Thank You ABBA. Teach me to be celebratory. Teach me to lead others to be celebratory. To celebrate You and what You have done for us and who You are making us to be in CHRIST JESUS. Thank You. I am remembering people in my heart today with doctor visits and petitions that You heal them of cancer; another grieving the loss of a beloved husband – she misses him so much; a parent with an estranged child – the hurt is so deep, we pray for reconciliation; and there are many more and Readers who come here, come with petitions of their own and so we collectively and individually bring our requests with our praise and we thank You in advance for Your Perfect answers in perfect time. Amen and amen.
Kathie

Colors (again)

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IDOK DEVOTION FOR MONDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2009
Colors

I’ve been thinking about something on and off since last Wednesday:  DADDY GOD loves color and variety.  Wednesday I was privileged to attend the Christmas Sing-A-long at Daphne Elementary School and as I sat and watched all the 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders file in and take their places on the shiny hardwood floor I had this beautiful, sweet, pleasant, loving sense of Jesus loving the children.  Can you tell it moved me?  There they sat with various textures and colors of hair and skin tones.  They were beautiful! Every single one of them and Jesus loves every single one of them!  The quiet ones, the mischievous ones, all of them – Jesus loves them and He came so they could live!  There was a sadness there for me though.  No teacher or speaker said Christmas is about Jesus. No songs were sung to ring out His Name. I did rejoice though each time I heard Merry Christmas sang or spoken rather than Happy Holidays; I’ll take my blessings however they come!   And yet this I know even though He was not exalted by name, He was there!  And He overwhelmed me with His love for color and variety in the little frames and faces of those precious little people.  Oh may it be that many saints will be raised up and empowered to demonstrate to children that Jesus loves them!

And then on Friday I attended First Baptist of North Mobile’s Christian School Christmas Pageant.  Now that was a Christmas Celebration!  I worshipped and cried and laughed and loved every minute of it!!  And again I was overwhelmed with that sense that ABBA loves color and variety.  Again there were beautiful children with various textures and colors of hair and skin tones.  Moreover, there was a song wherein the children came up the isles of the sanctuary dressed in costumes representing the country for the flag they were holding.  I loved it!  I am convinced when our God looks at the faces of humankind, He sees beauty in the differences.  He loves the shades and colors of our faces.  He did it on purpose!  

The following comes from this website:

http://library.timelesstruths.org/music/Jesus_Loves_the_Little_Children/

  1. Jesus calls the children dear,
    “Come to Me and never fear,
    For I love the little children of the world;
    I will take you by the hand,
    Lead you to the better land,
    For I love the little children of the world.”

    • Refrain:
      *Jesus loves the little children,
      [*Jesus died for all the children,]
      All the children of the world;
      Red and yellow, black and white,
      All are precious in His sight,
      *Jesus loves the little children of the world.
      [*Jesus died for all the children of the world.]
  2. Jesus is the Shepherd true,
    And He’ll always stand by you,
    For He loves the little children of the world;
    He’s a Savior great and strong,
    And He’ll shield you from the wrong,
    For He loves the little children of the world.
  3. I am coming, Lord, to Thee,
    And Your soldier I will be,
    For You love the little children of the world;
    And Your cross I’ll always bear,
    And for You I’ll do and dare,
    For You love the little children of the world.

Of all that we can do is there anything of more value than demonstrating to the children that Jesus loves them? Matthew 19:13-15 (New King James Version)

13 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” 15 And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.

DADDY GOD, I am late again this morning at many things on my list. Thank You for the impressions You gave me with colors and variety; please, Holy Spirit, don’t let me forget it for as long as I breathe here on this planet.  I pray that You will take this today and do Your Will with it. I pray for all of us this day that we will demonstrate to the children in our lives that You LIVE and You LOVE them; not just children but the big people in our lives too. And we pray too for all these whose names will be spoken, bless and comfort and heal as they need to glorify Your Name to the world.  Comfort and protect our IDOK Troops we pray and bring them home safe and sound at the appointed time.  I pray Your Sweet Presence to be felt and experienced by our IDOKs and our Readers today; keep us safe and holy in walk in this world for Jesus sake. Save America and give Israel Peace, I pray.  Amen and amen.  

Kathie

Paint on the Wall

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I saw two pictures today.  Splotches of paint on a wall. From picture one I thought that’s a huge paint sample to throw on a wall; there will be some wall painting going on right quick.

And then I saw picture two.

Picture two changed my mind about picture one. A lot.

Perspective.

So important!

The first swatch of paint looked like a brush stroke made by a woman taller than me, or perhaps, an adventurous preschooler with a chair; but when compared to the light switch plate in picture two – well that swatch of paint was not nearly so large.

Here’s my thought.

When life throws paint on our walls it can seem overwhelming. It’s just too much!  A touch up will never do. But …

A little perspective will bring abundant relief.

A little comparing of the circumstance; a little pulling back of that camera eye to get a glimpse of our ABBA’s resources and strength and that wall is not going to take near the work we thought at first blush.

13 Be strong, and let us show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people and for the cities of our God; and may the Lord do what is good in His sight.”

via 1 Chronicles 19:12-14 NASB – He said, “If the Arameans are too – Bible Gateway.

Amen.

2013 is on its way!

Blessings of Joy and Peace,