Peace and Joy

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My Christmas Wish

"For the grace of God that brings salvation (Jesus) has appeared to all men."

Titus 2:11

"You can never truly enjoy Christmas until you can look up into the Father's face and tell Him that you have received His Christmas gift."

~ John Rice

For it is by grace that I have been saved through faith and this not of myself, it is the gift of God. I can take no credit for it. (Ephesians 2:8-9). My Christmas wish is for you to receive God's gift of faith so that you can receive His gift of salvation through Jesus this Christmas.

And the Word Became Flesh

Here's a thought...

the God of the universe actually took on human form and came to earth...

... because He loves us

...and He wants us to know Him...

...and we can't "know" Him in our sinfulness, except on His terms...through believing that Jesus is God and that He took on our sin and paid the penalty for us, making a way for us to have access to the Father

"The Word became a human being and lived here with us.
We saw his true glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father.
From him all the kindness and all the truth of God
have come down to us." John 1:14

Light looked down and beheld Darkness.

"Thither will I go," said the Light.

Peace looked down and beheld War.

"Thither will I go," said Peace.

Love looked down and saw Hatred.

"Thither will I go," said Love.

So came Light and shone.

So came Peace and gave rest.

So came Love and brought Life.

~Laurence Housman

"God showed his love for us when he sent his only Son into the world to give us life. Real love isn't our love for God, but his love for us. God sent his Son to be the sacrifice by which our sins are forgiven. " I John 4:10

The First Noel

Did you know that "Noel" is the French word for Christmas? Probably so. Well, anyway, the word is spelled "Nowells" in old English and it means tidings. In French we use the word "nouvelles" which means "news". This little word history reminded me that Jesus' birth was and is the good news that we all need and the good tidings that the angels proclaimed on that night to the shepherds in Bethlehem.

I have been doing some reading on the origins of Christmas traditions. One source stated that because of its pagan origins, Christians really shouldn't participate in traditions such as wreaths, Christmas trees, and gift giving. I don't know which came first, the pagan traditions or the Christian ones, but I do know that it is the spirit in which we celebrate that brings meaning to the holiday for us today. We are celebrating Christmas as the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the One through whom we can have a restored relationship with God in this life and after this life. He is the way that we can live in peace and joy in the midst of trials and difficulty. He is the One that enables us to love and to enjoy life. He truly is the reason for this season. Let us not forget the true story of Christmas and the reason that we celebrate.

"If you have a troubled heart,

listen to the angel's song:

"I bring you good tidings of great joy!"

Jesus did not come to condemn you.

If you want to define Christ rightly,

then pay heed to how the angel defines Him:

"A Great Joy!"

~ Martin Luther

Perilous Pestilence

Sometimes I am ready to just throw in the towel and move back to the good ole US of A. It has been one of those mornings. The battle with the fleas continues. SA has had mysterious bites that I wasn't sure about and I have had a few as well. Just when I had repented from freaking out and not trusting in the Lord to protect us from the "perilous pestilence" (Ps. 91), the fleas are back! I saw one this morning! I thought they were gone, but I guess some eggs have hatched. UGGGH! I am totally disgusted. I have for the third time doused the living room and all the carpet in the house with spray and am about to vacuum again for the gazillionth time. I am reeling from the fumes even though the windows are open in this lovely 36 degree December day. It's hard to believe that anthing could have survived these chemicals but I just found a flea on SA! I think I may have to resort to "the bomb". Where is Terminix when I need them? Apparently the French think that it is healthier to buy their own sprays for the pests in their homes instead of seeking professional help. I do not agree! I would rather me and my children not inhale dangerous fumes! In addition to the fleas, I discovered two HUGE, nasty spiders in the attic just now which, by the way is right next door to the baby's room! I was looking for my wreath hanger which has gone missing. I inhaled more lethal fumes up there after spraying the heck out the attic. No one puts up wreaths over here, so I may be out of luck in the wreath department this year. The picture above is of a spider that we found dead in SA's bed last year next to her head, but it isn't as big as the two I just sprayed! It's not that surprising that we have "pests" when you consider the fact that I have to open and close the windows every day twice a day to open and close the shutters and there is a crack under our door that any number of small creatures could fit under. Help!

Our Family Christmas Picture

Most of you should've gotten your Christmas cards by now. Look closely. Aren't you glad that I didn't send you this one? This family photo shoot was a quite eventful one! CG had a typical breastfed baby's explosion. Would you believe that this was one of the first pictures that we took? We just changed the diaper and removed the slip and kept shooting more pictures.

It Is Well With My Soul

As I was unloading the dishwasher this afternoon, I felt like singing this hymn. Here is the incredible story behind this hymn and the words in case you're interested. http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/i/t/i/itiswell.htm

And here's the story and a video clip of the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYP--c2LTfg

My girls are both asleep, and there is a tremendous amount of peace in my heart today. Yesterday, I was assaulted. It was an assault in my mind, but a real assault nevertheless. It took a phone call home and my mom to point out to me that I was being taken captive by fear and that I needed to stand against it as a spiritual assault. She was right. I hate how Satan likes to play mind games with us and gets us to think that there are real logical reasons for us think and behave as we are behaving. In my case there were a few fleas, and I got on the internet and totally freaked out about having a huge flea infestation. This on the end of a sad week- losing Bailey, my mom leaving- I am missing being around family, and my emotions are pretty raw right now. A friend reminded me that we are "shells of ourselves" after giving birth for the first 6 months. Anyway, I am back on track and trusting in my Source of help and strength, so I can say honestly, "It is well with my soul."

Though Satan should buffet,
though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul!

In Loving Memory of Bailey

Bailey didn't make it through the night at the vet's. D brought her home and we buried her in the garden that she loved to adventure out and explore in. My mom even carved a marker for the grave and we took flowers and put them there and thanked God for giving her to us. I know that all sounds melodramatic, but it has helped me deal with my sadness and feelings of guilt. It is still hard though. I cried through the verse of "Old MacDonald" with SA today when she wanted to sing "Old MacDonald had a kitty cat". I keep anticipating that I am going to see Bailey at the door or the kitchen window meowing to come in or out and then remembering that she is gone. I don't know what to do with the cat food that I just bought and it was hard to pass the pet aisle at the grocery store today.

College days, first job frustrations, and my parent's divorce, seminary days, dating D, marrying D, first pregnancy, first baby, moving to a foreign country, living in a foreign country while my husband travels, second pregnancy, second baby... These are all things Bailey was with me through. She was always there with me cuddling up close- in the good times and the hard times. I miss her. I don't know if kitty cats go to heaven, but I hope so. If they do, I know that Bailey is there.

A Sad Day

I can't sleep. Today (now yesterday) was a sad day. I feel guilty. My sweet kitty- friend for over 10 years now has had fleas. She would not stay out of the baby's bed. I put her out after catching her for the third time in the baby's bed. She cried to come in. I was trying to wait to let her in after I gave her a bath with flea shampoo. For the first time ever, two dogs came into our yard. They attacked her and I recovered her broken body from under the bushes and rushed her to the vet. The vet said that it looked like it was past an emergency. After an initial 5 minute diagnosis, she said thatBailey has a brain injury and a broken jaw. She wouldn't believe that it was dogs. She said it looked like Bailey had been hit by a car. I know that is was 2 dogs because I chased them out of the yard. She was lying on the steps outside the kitchen while I was making dinner and then 10 minutes later my mom saw the dogs in the yard. I never heard a bark or a meow. Bailey is at the vet's tonight and I am supposed to call in the morning. When I called las t night, the vet said that she had come out of "shock"(I think- it's all in French and I don't understand everything). The vet is not that nice and she doesn't speak English. She says that if she has brain damage that I need to "stop the pain" by having her euthanized. I can't write anymore. Would y'all please pray for Bailey and for me too?