A RENEWED APPRECIATION

“So it was, that while [Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem], the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger…”  (Luke 2:6-7a)

Each year when the holidays rush in, I feel like peace and joy lag a little behind schedule. Like a mirage, I see these wonders of Christmas shimmering in the distance, but I cannot quite reach them.

In this season, more than any other, busyness and distractions abound. With all the decorating, baking, shopping, wrapping, and mailing…well, it is hard for me to be still and quiet. When I do find a moment, my thoughts easily wander from the Christmas story to the troubles of our world.

Thankfully, the Holy Spirit is persistent with me. He keeps encouraging me to be mindful of Christmas and not let it slip away before pondering its celebration. So yesterday afternoon, as the snowflakes flew and the temperatures plummeted outside, I sat still next to the window and read once again about the Christmas miracle.

New wonders and knowledge come to mind every time I read Bible verses about the birth of Christ and the love He brings our world. My appreciation for the care we receive from our Heavenly Father is renewed. God’s peace and joy rise up through His Word and His presence. It’s never too late to usher in God’s peace and joy found in the true meaning of Christmas. 

-- Jamie Trunnel, from the blog “A Scriptured Life: Making sense of life through Scripture”

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THE WONDERS OF HIS LOVE

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”  (John 3:16 NKJV)

“Right from the beginning God's love has reached, and from the beginning [humans have] refused to understand. But love went on reaching, offering itself. Love offered the eternal... we wanted the immediate. Love offered deep joy... we wanted thrills. Love offered freedom... we wanted license. Love offered communion with God Himself... we wanted to worship at the shrine of our own minds. Love offered peace... we wanted approval for our wars. Even yet, love went on reaching. And still today, after 2000 years, patiently, lovingly, Christ is reaching out to us today. Right through the chaos of our world, through the confusion of our minds. He is reaching... longing to share with us... the very being of God.

His love still is longing. His love still is reaching, right past the shackles of our mind. And the Word of the Father became Mary's little Son. And His love reached all the way to where I was.” (Gloria Gaither)

“He rules the earth with truth and grace,
and makes the nations prove
the glories of His righteousness
and wonders of His love.”  (from “Joy to the World” by Isaac Watts)

May you know the Wonders of His love this Christmas!


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SEIZING THE MOMENT

It is hard to explain what God’s Spirit does for me and to me as I experience what otherwise might be mundane experiences and encounters. Somehow He creates within me a sensitivity to the wonders lurking within the ordinary people and things around me that some phenomenologists would call “mindfulness.” He makes me hyperaware of the radiant blessings (I can’t think of another word) that are everywhere around us, literally waiting to be acknowledged and enjoyed. Because of His indwelling presence I am truly able to “seize the day.”

-- Tony Campolo in “Why I Left, Why I Stayed”


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CREATIVE WONDERS

"Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,… Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples."  (1 Chronicles  16:12, 24 NKJV)

When we are writing, or painting, or composing, we are, during the time of creativity, freed from normal restrictions, and are opened to a wider world, where colors are brighter, sounds clearer, and people more wondrously complex than we normally realize.

-- Madeleine L'Engle in Walking on Water


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