Christmas Napkins on Easter Weekend

Hello friends -- I hope everyone is well.  

            It’s been several years ago now, but one spring  Saturday before  Easter I couldn’t help but smile as I sat down to eat my lunch.  We were out of napkins and paper towels,  so my husband had pulled out some left over Christmas napkins for us to use.  At first, I thought it a little odd to be using Christmas napkins at Easter time.  But then I thought, why not?  

     So here I was contemplating the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus at the same time.  First,  lest I be misunderstood by anyone - I realize we do not know exactly when Christ was born.   I also realize scholars say it most likely was not in December.  
     Really though, can we think of one part of His life without acknowledging the other?   I've heard some say His birth is not important - that the gospel centers around His death, burial and resurrection.  That is true. His mission on earth was to die for our sins. 

However, God must have thought the birth of His only begotten Son was important indeed.   It was prophesied  about hundreds of years before He was born.  Isaiah  7:14 is the prophecy He would be born of a virgin and His name would be called Immanuel.  It is Isaiah 9:6 which tells us “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;  and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” 

 An angel heralded His birth to shepherds in the field guarding their sheep by night.  After the angel spoke to them a multitude of the heavenly host praised God saying ”Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased.”   
       The birth of this baby was met with great joy by Simeon and Anna the prophetess,  both of whom lived or served at the temple.  They rejoiced over seeing the Messiah!  God kept his promise that they would see Him before they passed from this life. 

We read about His promised birth in the Bible.   His mission was to teach others about His Father.  The gospels give us the record of His life.  He was the greatest example of  love, compassion, and forgiveness. 

 

Then we read about His death for our sins on a cruel cross.  We learn about His burial and His glorious resurrection.   Our hope is in Him.  Our faith rests in Him.   And our love for Him grows as we learn more about Him every day.   

We should remember every stage of the gospel  story – which actually begins with the first Messianic prophecy in Genesis 3 and continues throughout the Bible.

The birth of Christ is the beginning of a wondrous story of hope.  His death, burial and resurrection give us assurance of the love of God. 

 

Christ above all things - Robin

Feet and Toes - Toes and Feet

Mrs. Mary was the sitter for me and my brothers when we were younger.  Oh what a treasure she was!  She was so much fun to be around!  All of the kids in the neighborhood loved her!  At some point during the day most of us ended up at our house to play. 

One afternoon a lot of our friends were with us in our carport.  Mrs. Mary was there too.  It was summertime, so we were all barefooted.  She started looking around at all of us with no shoes. 

Then she said something about someone’s feet.  It was something like that person was going to be tall and strong when they grew up.  Oh we were all so surprised!  How did she know that? 

One of us asked her if she could “tell our fortunes” by looking at our feet and toes.  “Sure I can!” she said.  All of us at one time began to plead, “Tell my fortune, Mrs. Mary. Tell mine next!”  She had us – hook, line, and sinker!

Mrs. Mary did not stop until she got around to all of us.  She was smart too.  She managed to make everyone’s “fortune” just a little bit different.  How she kept up with all of it, I’ll never know.  But I think  Mrs. Mary had as much fun with it as we did. 

I have many sweet memories of her and when I think of her now, I think of the things she taught me.  I never even realized it at the time, but that is exactly what she was doing. 

One thing she taught me was not to take myself too seriously.  It is not all about me.  Mrs. Mary certainly never thought it was all about her. 

Another lesson was patience.  I don’t think I ever saw Mrs. Mary lose her cool with us even one time.  Whether it was just me and my brothers or six or eight more kids too – she always kept her patience.

Mrs. Mary showed me time spent with children is especially precious.  That sweet lady loved us.  I know because of the way she treated us.  And for children, being loved is everything!

Jesus knew how precious children are.  One of the rare times Jesus got upset with the apostles was when they tried to keep the children from coming to Him (Mark 10:13-16). 

Mrs. Mary knew it was important to have a little fun in life.  “A merry heart does good like medicine” (Proverbs 17:22a).  It is so important to relax and enjoy a laugh or two. 

Mrs. Mary made others feel special.  Each story was  different – unique to the person.  All of us felt important that day –because one woman took the time to look at our toes and our feet. 

When we give freely and joyfully from our heart – it comes back to us over and over again.    

Christ above all things - Robin

Driving With Grandpa

 

For years we lived right next door to my paternal grandparents.  They were good, honest and loving.  My grandparents were a huge influence on my life. 

 Grandpa needed to take care of some business.  Mom and Dad were both working, so arrangements were made ahead of time for me to take him where he needed to go. 

 Our destination was only a few miles away, so the drive didn’t take long.  We talked, but not much.  I was a little nervous driving my grandfather.  When he was through with his errands, we headed back home. 

 It is the conversation during the drive home that I remember.  I was trying to be careful driving because I didn’t want Grandpa to worry about my driving, so I stayed away from the middle of the road.  I asked him if he thought I was doing OK driving. 

 His answer?  “You are hugging this side of the road a too much.  Be careful.  You don’t want to run completely off the road.”   Well, he just popped the air right out of my balloon!

 Here I was trying to stay out of the middle of the road, I didn’t realize I was getting too close to the edge of the road.  I would have been a lot better off if I had just relaxed and done my best without obsessing about it.  It is a lesson I’ve learned and re-learned many times in my life. 

 God does not want us to be that way!  I believe God wants us to be confident.  Not prideful, but confident.  We are His daughters, after all.  We represent Him.  So we want to do our best - whole heartedly - with the confidence that God will help us do it well. 

Then praise Him and thank Him – because He will help us!

 Colossians 3:17 says  ^“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” 

 Another similar verse is 1 Corinthians 10:31 “ So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

 Notice a few key words: whatever, everything, and all.  I guess in some ways these words are scary because they leave nothing out. 

 But look at what else they say.  The verse in Colossians tells us to give thanks to God.  Doesn’t that help us know God will enable us to do well?  And in the verse in 1 Corinthians Paul says we are to do all to the glory of God.  If we are living for Him and if we have faith in Him, then He will bless what we are doing and we WILL bring glory to Him. 

 So we don’t have to give up and we don’t have to get all tensed up.  Just trust God, relax and do your very best.  Remember what we do is for our Him – and He is faithful!!

 Christ above all things - Robin

One Plate at a Time

My oldest son and several friends of mine have covid. Most of you probably do too. I know others who are sick with other illnesses. It is difficult to know someone we care about is not well. We hurt with them and we long for them to get better.

Dee Whirley  is a member of our prayer group. Today, through our group text, one of the other members asked her how she was doing. Dee said “I’m determined to clean the kitchen. One plate at a time!”

One plate a time. To me that was a sign of inner strength and determination. If Dee feels anything like I did when I was sick, I can understand only having the energy to wash one plate at a time!

Let’s face it, we don’t always have an easy life. Sometimes we find ourselves in a really tough place. It could be our job – or lack of one. It could be heartache because of a divorce or death. Both are catastrophic events. It could be concern over the spiritual welfare of a spouse or a child. Maybe we are caregivers for someone we love.

So many things in this life can devastate and bring us to our knees. We get to the point that we grieve so deeply we don’t feel like we will make it through the day – or even the next hour.

How long does it take to wash a plate? Can we make it that long? Dee is physically drained; but today was the day she was bound and determined to clean her kitchen. She is indeed one of the most determined ladies I know!

Sisters, when we get to a place in our lives where we feel we have hit rock bottom – LEAN on the Savior. He will help you!

2 Thessalonians 3:3 is a beautiful verse which can bring us comfort: “But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.”

Oh what a marvelous verse that is! The Lord is faithful. He keeps His promises. He has the power to do just that!

God will establish (strengthen) us. When we are so far down, the Lord will help us keep our faith firmly fixed on Him.

The Lord will guard us against the evil one. God will protect us. If we hang on, He will see us through. I can think of nothing more reassuring than knowing God protects my soul!

Don’t give up. With God on our side, we can make it – one day, one hour, or one plate at a time!

Christ above all things - Robin

Who Holds Us Together?

I pray everyone has a great day today knowing the joy we have in our Lord and Savior.    Please be careful as you are out and about and stay safe.  Remember to show others the beauty of Jesus in you!

 Who Holds Us Together

 We’ve all heard that phrase before right?  She (or he) is the one who holds the family together.  That person is the one everyone depends on to help out – or to listen when we need to vent.  They keep the lines of communication open between the other members of the family and they also keep the peace in the family.

Sometimes there is more than one individual the family group depends on.  Maybe one is the communicator – and the peacekeeper.  Maybe another is the one who listens – or who jumps in and volunteers to keep things going in our homes when we cannot do that for ourselves. 

These are people who have a huge impact on our lives.  I admire and respect people like this.  They truly have a lot of love for their families and are almost always strong people. 

I read a devotional from another site today and the lady who wrote it, Deanna Mills Brooks cited a scripture that jumped out at me!  I instantly fell in love with it.  Yes, I’ve read this passage before, but it hit me in a new way today. 

Read Colossians 1:16-17 with me: “For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him.   And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

And there it is!  In Him all things hold together!  In Jesus all things hold together.  God’s Son was involved in the creation – everywhere.  We – are included in this!  We are part of all things!    

Christ is the head of the church- the family of God.  He purchased it with His blood.  Naturally, He is all the descriptions listed above.  Christ holds His family together.  We can depend on Him.  He will never ever let us down. 

Jesus will listen.  He wants to listen.  He said, “Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden.”  He is our helper.  He keeps the lines of communication between us and God because He is our mediator.  Through His death, there is peace between Christians and the Heavenly Father. 

Jesus is the one who keeps things going when we can’t do that for ourselves.  It is through His strength we are able to survive the worst times in our lives and it is through His power we enjoy all the best times of our lives. 

Jesus Christ should be the One who has the biggest impact on our lives.  He changes our lives.  As the Son of God who died for us, He is the One we should admire and respect above anyone and everyone.  And who loves us more than Christ does? 

In Jesus “all things hold together.”  That is wonderful and I am so thankful!!

Christ above all things – Robin