Peace Requires Action on this Christmas Eve

Happy Christmas Eve, my Blogger Friends!  This awesome verse was in Jesus Calling this morning. Colossians 3:15, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful."  This reinforces yesterday's thoughts on peace.  My "yesterday" needed this, too!  The "Let" is an action word which means that we need to do something.  It meant to me yesterday that peace wasn't going to just automatically rule my heart when my gas tank light came on as I was on a strict time schedule to get to a doctor's appointment in Rochester.  I needed to invite God into that situation and "LET" His peace rule my heart and mind.  He did because He is faithful!  The next thing in that verse is that we are commanded, as a member of the body of Christ, to bring peace and be peaceful.  This is not an option but we need to be reminded of this so often.  The last part is not an afterthought but one of the most important parts of peace and again, action is required.  Be thankful...thankful for the very gift that God sent to us that we can even be able to allow the peace of Christ rule our hearts. That we can be a member of the body of Christ and that we can even bring our hearts full of thanksgiving to an almighty and loving God.  Wow!  So much in this verse for us to hold onto today and forever!  Blessings as you seek His amazing peace this Christmas!

So much to do.....

Happy day-before-Christmas Eve day!  
One way to keep Christ in Christmas is to invite Him into your crazy schedule for today and then watch Him bless you with peace and the beautiful gift of His presence!  After doing this, my motto for today is to "Let be what God wills it to be, and what won't be, wasn't needed anyways!"  Enjoy every moment of this rainy, gray Monday.  It's what is inside the windows of our lives that really matters.  Not what we see when we look out them!  :)  Hmmm...a good thought to ponder!  So many more thoughts rolling around my head these days but it's not the time yet to put them to words. For now, I will go forward and let them all just process. Blessings for this day!

Wake up!! Morning "Groggies" Antics

Ok, so….  I have to share some of the absent-mindedness that may have led me to write my last blog.  I have taken to getting up pretty early to spend "coffee hour" with my hubby before he has to get ready to head out to work.  When I say early, it's usually about 5 am.  Well yesterday, I went out for my cup of coffee,  took a red mug out of the cupboard and filled it with coffee.  My hubby came out with his favorite green mug and refilled it.  I reached for my Peppermint Mocha creamer and preceded to pour it into the green mug.  My hubby stands there with this strange look on his face and I looked at him thinking, "What is his problem?"  He finally said…"Umm, that is my cup!"  He does NOT use my fancy creamers but has his honey and half and half!  I couldn't stop chuckling at myself but he didn't think it was all that entertaining!    Well, the morning groggies were not any better this morning.  This time he mentioned that his coffee didn't taste that good and he must have done something wrong making it.  I felt bad for him because there is nothing worse than your first sip of coffee to taste bad!  I, being the loving wife that I try to be, went out and dumped it, put a new filter in, poured the water into the maker and stood there and waited the 3 minute for the Bunn to brew a fresh pot of wonderful , tasting coffee.  When I looked to see if it was done yet, the water was clear!!  "What is wrong with our coffee maker?"  I said.  When I investigated…..um...I forgot to put coffee into the filter!   Oh my!  I once again, couldn't stop chuckling at my early morning groggies but he, once again, didn't seem so amused.  Perhaps my hubby's "coffee hour" may be a bit better if I was still sleeping!  Nah!

One week to go......!!???

By this time next week, for some of us, the presents will have been opened.   Wrapping paper and boxes strewn around the room, having the hidden treasures revealed to the squeals of delight or the ungrateful exclamations we all have witnessed in Christmas past.   All the preparation, planning, shopping and scheming will be over.  As I was looking at my calendar this morning, my brain started going in a hundred different directions with all that I have yet to do in order to get ready in just 6 days!!  I envisioned many years of Christmas mornings as the gifts were passed and the paper ripped off that I had spend hours shopping, wrapping and taping.   Although some precious memories stick out in my mind, the one that I would rather not relive is the one of this harried wife, mom and Grammie, thinking that I had to get everything ready and perfect for this moment to happen.  Don't get me wrong, I absolutely enjoy doing special things for my family.  The thing that makes me weary and I would choose not to repeat is the craziness.  The stress of finding time to get decorations up, trying to figure out the scheduling of events to make sure everyone is here and there.  The spending of money that you really don't have to buy things other people really don't need, just because you "have" to and hearing others stress over trying to do the same.   This is what truly makes me weary of this season.  I love to give my family and friends things that they will enjoy and appreciate.  I just have a problem with this "harried" feeling that started to take over my brain this morning.   I just read an email about the greatest gift, the gift of Jesus, sent by God, to be the Savior of this world.  This is the true reason for Christmas.  He gave me the best gift of all.  This beautiful  truth caused me to take a deep breath, thank God for this reminder that slowed my racing brain down to a peaceful crawl.  You know, I am not commanded to travel the roads to the malls beyond seeking that perfect gift.  I'm not commanded to bake 1000 cookies to share and I'm not commanded to have the perfect amount of colorful decorations outside my house or the perfectly decorated tree.   I am commanded by my Heavenly Father to be holy as He is holy.  To love as I am loved by Him.  I am commanded to let His light shine through me for all to see.  I don't think His light can shine when I have the Christmas shopping rush glaze over my eyes or when I am frantically watching the calendar and the clock as the days and hours quickly bring me closer to the big moment…..when the presents have all been opened and the wrapping and boxes strewn around the room.   Lord, help me today to keep You in my Christmas planning.  My interactions with those I come in contact with today.  To be able to do those things that will bring joy to the hearts of those I love.  May they see the Light in my life, through my words and actions.  Today, I will not be "harried"!  Today I will go with the amazing thought of God's amazing gift to me.  

Christmas Blues...Good or Bad?

December begins...ready or not!  I'm never "ready".  It starts after the Thanksgiving Dinner is over and the clean-up is done and I get to sit down and think about what is next.  It actually starts before that, as the stores rush from Halloween to Christmas decorations.  The sign of the "Christmas blues" starts to creep deep within me.  I can ignore them for those weeks of looking forward to seeing family and preparing all of the favorite foods that go along with our traditional Thanksgiving dinner.  I don't want to skip over one of my favorite holidays that brings the nation to the place of thanksgiving for the goodness of God to all of us.  We do have so much to be thankful for.   But even for this time of thanksgiving, the sense of loss is great.  My sis is the one frying up the onions for the stuffing and we are the ones to get up early and get the birds in the oven.  It used to be my mom.  All my kids always made it to our family Thanksgiving dinner but they can't make it anymore.   It's ok...it has to be ok….because this is the way it is.  So, it does start before December comes but as these cold, winter day came this year, the blues seems to gotten bluer.  Hmmm...I've always wondered why blue has been my favorite color since I've been old enough to choose one.  It is such a beautiful, serene  color, like the sky.  Perhaps that is why I don't mind feeling blue.  It is not a bad thing because how can such a beautiful, peaceful color be bad?  After all, God created blue, in the sky and in the sea.  Two of my favorite things to watch as they change moment by moment.  So, I guess that when I made up the title to this post, it wasn't a negative thing.  For this place I find myself in for another year, is the place where I am closest to the comfort of my God.  The creator of blue, the sky and the sea, of life and death.   As I walk in the closeness of God, it doesn't mean that my heart isn't sad.  It doesn't mean I don't grieve the great loss I've endured of my two sons, my mom, my dear friend's husband, a cherished co-worker, my brother, my grandparents  and so many more.  What it does mean is that He is walking with me through it all.  Day by day, step by step, holding my tears in a bottle, giving me the strength to take that deep breath and keep on, keeping on.  Sitting in my chair, even now, looking around my house, there are no decorations up, yet.  No desire to get those totes out, yet.  No gift list written on paper, yet.  No Christmas cookie baking day, yet.   No definite plans for Christmas eve or Christmas day dinner, yet.  They will be made.  They will all happen.  But I guess today, I realized that those "blues" that were creeping deep inside of me have crept closer to the surface.  It's really ok because it is the way it is.  Life does change.  Moment by moment, just like my beloved sky and sea.  Seldom does the calm, serene appearance last long.  The storms they bring can be good for us, to nourish us and make us grow or they can destroy us.  The one thing I know I can hold onto is the God that created them, the creator of the beautiful blue  skies that I have loved to watch for over a half century, is the creator of me, too.  Even in my time of these Christmas blues, I am serene and quiet, with my precious loved ones on my heart.  The ones that I have lost and the ones that I am blessed to still have with me.   Although I can keep  trying to put off the merriment of the upcoming holidays, they will come.  I will be blessed and enjoy the festivities that come along with it.  I will rejoice and sing the Christmas carols that tell of our Savior's birth.  I will enjoy the precious smiles of my kids and grandkids and our time spent together.  I know that I will cherish all the new memories that will be made.  I think we will get our tree up this weekend and I think that the lights on it will be blue again this year.   It's always the anticipation that is the hardest.  For today, I will just keep walking with my hand in God's and keep on, keeping on and holding onto the good of feeling blue.  Blessings to you!

The Gazelle Antic

Somehow, this antic has turned into somewhat of a legend within our women's ministry at Penn Yan Bible Church.  You just never know what crazy thoughts may come racing across your mind that requires action!  The story begins a week or so before the "action".  I had decided it was time to find a regular job, instead of my self-employed, part-time interior painting jobs.  I started searching the help-wanted ads of the local papers and sent my resume into a position with a jewelry store in a nearby town.  I received a call for an interview and then the owner required that I take a characteristic test to determine if I was compatible for this type of business.  After answering random questions like, "What is your favorite color, day of the week", blah, blah, blah, there was the questions asking,  "If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?  What would your animal be doing?"  By this time, I'm thinking that this is such a waste of my time!  Who cares?  I skipped it and went on but eventually had to go back and answer these ridiculous questions.  I had no idea what to pick  but a nature video popped into my mind that my husband and his daughter were watching recently that had a gazelle in it and then I thought of a verse in the Bible that talks about a gazelle, too, so I chose that.  I, as a gazelle,  I would be gracefully running across a field.  I remembered smiling to myself about the graceful part because I am anything BUT graceful!  In fact, way back when I was a teenager, my friend's mom used to call me "Grace"  and not because I exhibited the beauty of that word!  That's another story!  So now, you have the background to this legend, keeping in mind that I shared my testing experience with no one but perhaps my husband. 

Our women's ministry holds an annual overnight retreat and it was held in a beautiful, finished basement of one of our church ladies.  About 11:00 pm, several of the ladies got their sleeping bags and air mattresses ready to settle down for a good night's sleep.  The rest of us were sitting around a circle, chatting and laughing and munching on goodies;  all the things girls at sleepovers do.   I happened to look over at all those going-to-sleep beauties and said, "What are they doing?  They can't go to sleep yet, this is a pajama party!"  With that, I jumped up and starting at the first one in line, bouncing across the end of the beds lined up along the wall.  One after another, the ladies popped up wondering what had just happened.  With the pounce on one air mattress, the cap popped off the air rushed out!  Oh my!  The screaming and laughter with tears that followed!   The next morning, one of the rudely awakened sleeping beauties was telling the story to a lady who had not spent the night and she said, "She was like a gazelle prancing over those beds!"  When I heard her say that, I yelled out, "You did not just say gazelle!"  Why in the world did that specific animal come to her mind, not even knowing that is what I struggled to come up on that silly test just that week before? " That is just what you looked like.", she said.  Hmmm….that certainly wasn't the picture I had in my mind of gracefully running across a field.  It was more like clumsily pouncing on unsuspecting victims of a soon to become legend.  Like I said in an earlier  post, crazy "happenings" just seem to happen to some people. Crazy thoughts just pop in and require action. 

                             (The only visual you will ever see!)  :) 

Thankful for a Monday? YES!

Monday's are a day of mixed emotions.  The most common emotion would be "Blue's or Blah's"!  Or it could bring the emotion of anticipation!  What will this new week bring?  For me, today, Monday, is a fresh start.  A re-commitment to my healthy-eating and exercise journey.  What a blessed and thankful Thanksgiving I enjoyed with my family.  Although our gathering was "small" this year with a mere 22 for dinner, the food and the fun was plentiful.   My motto of "A little dab will do you" proved to be useful….except for the "little dabs" were grazed on for several hours from rising early to put the turkey's in the oven until falling asleep in my recliner that evening with a turkey cutout cookie on my side table;  half eaten!!   So, I look forward to this new week, starting with today, Monday!   Today, I will seek first the kingdom of my Lord to receive His grace and mercy on my shortcomings of overeating.  I give to Him my desire to the discipline of waiting until I am hungry to eat instead of just putting stuff into my mouth without even noticing.  Asking for His help to work past those sugar and carb cravings that are being pushed to the surface from the intake of too many sweets.  With God's strength and power that He has given to me to overcome where I cannot do it on my own, I welcome His presence into my Monday.  Yes, I am thankful for a Monday!  The day of fresh starts or re-starts!  God is good!  Even on a Monday!  Blessings for today!