see you next year!

i am leaving today to visit my family in pennsylvania. my parents don't have internet access (can you believe it?!) so i won't be checking in for about a week. i hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a happy happy new year!

merry bleep

i remember in past years hearing people talk about not liking the phrase "happy holidays" and wanting to keep Christ in "Christ"mas, but this year i think i have heard it more than all previous years combined.

i am not sure why we as believers expect unbelievers to see the meaning of saying "merry christmas." i do understand why many choose to not use the word christmas when speaking to a large group or to a stranger - they want to recognize the various celebrations of this season - remember, they aren't believers.

and i have to admit that i am proud and so thankful to live in a country of religious freedom; a country where we are free to worship as we wish and to observe whatever celebrations are a part of the beliefs we choose. aren't Christians so often upset that tolerance is preached but not practiced toward them? i think that may be where this opposition to the simple phrase "happy holidays" comes from. christians feel that their beliefs are under attack. i feel like a kind "happy holidays" from someone is a recoginition of the various beliefs of their fellow citizens - their attempt to actually include all beliefs and not to exclude any. of course, my hope and prayer is that all would have their eyes opened to the truth of the Bible and the forgiveness found in the blood of Jesus, but i realize that not everyone will accept the truth. and because of this realization i am not offended or upset when someone wishes me a happy holiday.

i can not expect behavior, beliefs, or actions of a believer from an unbeliever. all i can do is live out and speak out when possible the truth of the saving grace of Jesus Christ. and i can kindly accept a greeting of "happy holidays" and offer a "merry christmas" to those i come across this time of year.

hark! the herald angels stress...

i am pretty sure the herald angels were singing and not stressing, but it is easy to forget about the singing this time of year. i haven't noticed it in past years so much, but this Christmas i find myself looking like this:


it started with the decorations - put the tree up, don't put the tree up; decorate only the living room, decorate any room with a surface to decorate; too many decorations, not enough decorations.

followed by the card - send a card, don't send a card; pay extra for a photo card, send a simple card; send a card to every person you have made eye contact with since kindergarten, send a card to family and close friends.

then came the shopping - so many people, so little money. it seems like there just isn't enough cash to buy decent gifts for everyone on our list.

and what is Christmas without decorations, cards, and gifts?! i think i need to take a breath. i need to remember that Christmas isn't about any one of those things. and while i know that Christmas is the time of year i can reflect on the birth of my Savior, that great Gift gets lost and nearly forgotten under all the envelope addressing and gift wrapping. i spend more evenings lamenting all that is still left to do and buy and no time praising the Baby born to save my soul.

i don't believe that anything is inheritantly wrong with decorating your home or giving a gift. however, if the meaning of Christmas is an afterthought, an excuse to buy and receive, there is a problem.

Jesus was born so that we may receive a gift not found in stores; a gift that would not be forgotten before the next December 25th rolls around; a gift that relieves stress, not causes it; maybe next year we will forgo all of the commercial/consumerist pomp and circumstance and use the season to be thankful for and to share the best gift ever given - eternal life through the blood of Jesus Christ.

may we remember the young mother cradling her newborn Son - her Son sent to be the Savior of the world.

"Kissing the Face of God" by Morgan Weistling

our christmas home

boy, i haven't been around here much lately. and i am super late for the nester's christmas tour of homes. but better late than never, right??? my decorations are pretty minimal this year with a newly cruising/just about walking, into everything and everything into her mouth 11 month old!

so without further ado - welcome to my christmas home!

our front door

a close up of the wreath. i made this about 3 years ago and it has really held up well!

the mat right inside the door.

the hallway as you enter

a "gift" my husband's grandmother made - i leave it out year round because it matches my kitchen.

this mirror is over our couch. i got the wreath at target for $2.50 and hot glued the ornaments on.

i usually use this glass bead garland on our tree. but this year we opted not to put the big tree up because of buggie's uncontrollable curiosity and mama's need for sanity! so i filled up the bottom of this hurricane vase with the garland.

a nativity ornament that is usually on our tree found a nice home on this decorative jar on a bookcase in the living room.

our bitty 18 inch tree. it will find a new home in buggie's room or in the kitchen next Christmas.

our stockings hung over the television. i found the stocking holders a couple years ago at the dollar store! i bought 4 of them with dreams of two little ones to fill the others one day. i was so happy to hang buggie's stocking on one of those hooks!

my favorite Christmas decoration - my nativity. i just love this! the crosses hang here year round. i thought the imagery of the Baby Jesus under the cross was pretty touching and a great reminder of why Jesus was born in the first place. this picture does not do this justice!

thank you for stopping by my place! after your visit to my home jump over to the nesting place and take a look around some really lovely decorated homes that often cause me to be envious, but in a nice Christlike way (is that possible? ha!)!

slacker

have i been a big ol' blogging slacker, or what? you miss one day and it is so easy to miss another...and another. i am really going to have to get back to my daily blogging habits.

i realized that i never posted a picture from buggie's first thanksgiving. there are a few pretty cute ones of my little sweetie enjoying turkey and butter beans but i will just leave you with this one. hoping to see you back around here tomorrow!

thumbs up thursday

i do not want to make God's Word trivial or fluffy by saying i give it a thumbs up, but today i can think of absolutely nothing better in this life or the next than God's saving grace. and a simple thumbs up will never be enough to express how truly rich these words are to me:

I Corinthians 6:9-11

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. BUT you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

fore!

i do not personally know tiger woods. i am not a golf fan. even so, i have somewhere along the way developed an idea of who i thought tiger woods was/is. i have seen interviews he has given. i have heard others talk about him. he seemed to me to be a nice guy, a hard worker. i know that many consider him a master athlete. he is regarded as a role model to many. then his car hits a tree and his life hits the fan.

women claiming to have had immoral relationships with tiger are speaking out left and right. various media outlets are covering woods' infidelity as if all wars are over and this is the biggest news around. i can't shake thoughts about this man's wife and children, about this man's eternal soul.

i am disappointed by tiger's infidelities. of course! i have yet to figure out why men stray from their wives. my heart aches for tiger's wife. the pain she must be feeling. the feelings of doubt she must have about herself and if this is her fault. i hurt for their children. this situation is hard enough on children of "regular" parents let alone on children of celebrity parents. and my heart is a bit tender toward tiger himself. hold on! don't get upset that i am not bashing him. i will explain.

tiger woods is human. what he has done is absolutely, without any doubt wrong. but we can not put all hope and faith in a human being. we will always be disappointed. the flesh will always fail us. there is but One that we should put on a pedestal - Jesus Christ. this is not the first time a public figure, a "role model" has transgressed and proven himself to be less than what we have thought. i am not trying to excuse tiger's actions and behavior, but i am trying to say that further humiliating him or dragging out more and more dirt about his relationships will do no good.

i would argue that we need to view tiger woods as a man that is in need of a personal relationship with Jesus. how do i know he doesn't have one? i don't. only God knows our hearts. based on what has been going on in his life, though, i would say if he does know Jesus he isn't walking very closely to Him right now. can we not see him as a broken man who makes mistakes but who was created for so much more?

we are pretty fortunate. when we fail it is between us, those we've failed, and the Lord. unfortunately, his failures are not simply between himself, his family, and God. due to his public status tiger's failures are between the world as well. i dare say this is none of our business. any negative talk, inappropriate text messages, private voicemails, etc being swirled around in the media isn't only hurting tiger woods. how is the public knowing every single detail going to help a broken marriage, hurting children, and other players in this situation?

my disappointment is not only targeted at tiger's infidelity - it is extended to these women who are revealing the information. are these women proud of having an affair with a married father of 2? is their lust for money and celebrity so overwhelming that they don't care who they hurt on their quest? these women, too, are broken and in need of the only One that will fulfill all of their desires. flings with celebrities, 15 minutes of fame, and money will never fill the hearts of these women. they are searching for something, whether they would admit that or not. the media is no better when it comes to these women. the media is simply using them - they don't care who these women are or what their stories or hurts or joys are - the media wants a story and they will use these women for just that.

it would be easy to bash tiger woods for cheating on his wife. it may even be tempting to do so. but wouldn't it take more character to pray for this man and his hurting family - to see this man as a child of God who needs Him - to forgive his indiscretions and hope that he is able to heal and rebuild his marriage and relationship with his children? wouldn't our pursuing of Christlikeness be stretched if we prayed for the women involved in these affairs? if we prayed that the Lord opens their eyes to His love and His gift to them in Jesus? if we prayed that these women recognize their worth and beauty in the Kingdom and not just as sex objects for men to use when they feel like it? i do pray that God will use these horrible circumstances in the woods' household to make Himself known to them. that the Lord will make Himself known to the women involved. that all glory will go to the Father and that hearts and lives will be restored.