Twas the night before Christmas

149720_252752494853111_1321915030_n

Twas the night before Jesus came and all through the house.

Not a creature was praying, not one in the house

Their Bibles were lain on the shelf without care

In hope that Jesus would not come there.

The children were dressing to crawl into bed

Not once ever knelling or bowing a head.

And Mum in her rocker with baby on her lap

Was watching the Late Show while I took a nap.

When out of the East there arose such a clatter.

I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open  the shutters and threw up the sash!

When what to my wondering eyes should appear

But angels proclaiming that Jesus was here.

With a light like the sun sending forth a ray

I knew in a moment this must  be THE DAY!

The light of His face made me cover my head

It was Jesus returning just like He had said.

And though I possessed wisdom and wealth,

I cried when I saw Him in spite of myself.

In the Book of Life which He held in His Hand

Was written the name of every saved man,

He spoke not a word as He searched for my name;

When He said “Its not here” my head hung in shame.

The people whose names had been written with love

He gathered to take to His Father above.

With those who were ready He rose without a sound.

While all the rest were left standing around.

I feel to my knees but it was too late;

I had waited too long and this sealed my fate,

I stood and I cried as they rose out of sight;

Oh! If only I had been ready tonight.

In the words of this poem the meaning is clear;

The coming of Jesus is drawing near.

There’s only one way life and when comes the call

We’ll find that the Bible was true after all!

CHALLENGE: Since there are approximately 300 prophecies about His first coming and over 1500 prophesying He will come again, His second advent is imminent. In the middle of all the hustle and bustle in preparing to celebrate His Birth do we even give it a thought to prepare for His second coming?

What Can Shatter Your Christmas?

 

Screen Shot 2015-12-13 at 1.18.10 PM“Dear Child,
The joy of the season is found in relationships not in things!
Firstly a restored relationship with Me, and then the grace that I give that you may restore broken relationships with others. Love cannot be displayed without relationships. In loving you find the meaning for living.
Love is only love when you give it away, and in order to give you must have someone to give it to. Therefore you must invest in relationships. If you are giving with the right motivation you will have joy for it is more blessed to give than to receive. If you don’t have joy in giving, look inside and check the motivation.”
Thus saith Papa.
Nothing is more of a joy breaker than broken relationships at the holidays.
They can shatter your Christmas!

Christmas List Suggestions

Screen Shot 2015-12-12 at 1.11.21 PM

Add these gift suggestions to your Christmas list:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service. 
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect:

Merry Christmas From Rockefeller Center

thumb_IMG_0195_1024

thumb_IMG_0189_1024

thumb_IMG_0187_1024

thumb_FullSizeRender_1024

thumb_IMG_0192_1024

thumb_IMG_0194_1024

thumb_IMG_0193_1024

thumb_IMG_0196_1024

Taking a day to just enjoy Christmas in New York City with the smell of chestnuts and pretzels wafting in the air to the backdrop of the sound of Christmas carols everywhere and the Salvation Army ringing bells collecting for the less fortunate. After enjoying lunch at Saks, we spent the afternoon leisurely strolling down Fifth Avenue taking in the Christmas sounds and scenes as we stop to admire the decor and window displays from Saks,  Bergdorf Goodmans, Lord & Taylor and many other stores all with their own unique style. Although the avenue was packed with the usual hustle and bustle of busy Christmas shoppers, many were taking the time to flock into the beautiful old Fifth Avenue Presbyterian church to hear Handles Messiah. Even though the weather was not seasonable for Christmas in New York with a high of 60 degrees we still felt the wonder of Christmas. I may appreciate the peace and quiet of living out in the country but sometimes I just love the quote from the old TV show Green Acres. “Darling I love you but give me Fifth Avenue!”

Unraveling the Stress of the Christmas Season

images

As we head into heat of the Christmas season with the frustrating lines in the stores, the tangled lights that don’t work after hours of decorating, the strained relationships especially within families, the baking that was a flop, the stress to fit all the activities into your calendar are only examples of  the pressure cooker we make of the season as we blow our tops and lose the joy of the season, I am cautioned by this word my heavenly Papa dropped into my heart.

Dear Child,

The pressure and stress that robs you of the joy of this season has been manufactured by man and led man into slavery when this season was to set man free from the bondage of this world. The angels cry “Joy to the world” not “Stress to the world”.

Do not try to package my gift in wrapping paper of stress tied up with a bow of pressure!

My gift came wrapped in joy and tied with love.

May the joy of the season overflow from your hearts as you extend your arms as ribbons of love to others.

Thus saith Papa

Luke 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

Luke 2:14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. 

CHALLENGE: Do not let the world pour you into its mold of stress during this season of joy.