TOSSING & TURNING

     Sheets were wrapped and wrinkled about my legs.

     Pillows had been tucked, fluffed and puffed.

     Positions were shifted a hundred different ways.

     It was no use -- sleep wouldn't come.  My mind was filled with the "must-do's" and the "how will I do's"; the clock mocked me as the minutes ticked on and sleep remained unattainable, and the tossing and turning continued.

     The truth that rested in my head, couldn't seem to find it's way to my heart -- God is sufficient.   

     We're promised rest, true rest, in God's Word.  Not just in the sense of sleep, but pure and perfect rest as when our hearts lay calm despite the tornado that swirls in our world.

     How do we grip hold of that rest?  What do we do when rest eludes us?

     There's only one place to find escape from tossing and turning.  It's in the One who created rest.  Of Him, David, the psalmist of old, said, "My soul finds rest in God alone...my hope comes from Him.  He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken....Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge." (Psalm 62)

     Do you hear those truths?  Do they resonate in your deepest being?  Do they bring peace to your heart?

     God shows us through David's life three key things in this passage:

1. The only place where rest is found is in God alone
2. The only way we will avoid being shaken is in Him
3. The only way to receive that rest is by CHOICE

    

     We must lay at God's feet what is heavy and burdensome to us this Christmas; but then we have to leave it there!

     We are to pour out our hearts to God, but then we must choose to leave the things we've poured out to Him, in His capable hands -- don't pick them up again . . . "God, I don't know how we are going to deal with ______, but I trust You have the answers and I'm choosing rest.  God I don't know where time will come from to accomplish ______, but I trust You to provide for what really needs to be done and I'm choosing rest."


     Missionary, Amy Carmichael, was quoted saying, "God is willing as light is willing to flood a room that is opened to its brightness; willing as water is willing to flow into an emptied channel."  May He flood over us today!

     My prayer for each of us this Christmas is that we find true rest; not because our circumstances fully resolve themselves, but because we find rest from the Source of all rest -- God alone.

"Come to me, all you who

are weary and burdened,

and I WILL give you rest."

Matthew 11:28

A Song for Today -- "Blessings"

(click this link to hear an awesome song)

CHRISTMAS PERFECT?



     I have this problem.  It's a big problem but God's been working on me long enough that I can now say -- five kids later -- there's hope!  You see, my heart tends to feel warmer and my smile tends to grow bigger when everything is, well, in its place.  You know, perfect !   But the problem is, nothing robs happiness at Christmas (or any other time of the year) faster than a mom, or dad, whose goal is perfection.

     A traditional, sticky gingerbread house is an excellent image of one of two things -- either perfection or child-like pleasure.  We can't have both!  If we are going to make eyes light up and hearts remember joy-filled, childhood moments, something has to give.

     The challenge is, it's not possible to have "perfect" anything with children -- and even if we could attain it, we'd have to achieve it by stealing joy from the ones we are trying to bless.

     When it comes to Christmas, I've learned that I need to put God, family and others first and remind myself that perfection is not important.  In fact, it's not even found in a hint of how Christmas began.

     Travel back with me, to the night the King of Heaven and Earth came to dwell among us...

     - Imagine Mary, giving birth in a stable . . . where is there any perfection in that, dear moms, who've experienced childbirth?

     - Imagine, Joseph, not even being able to provide a humble hotel room . . . where is there any perfection in that, dear dads, who live to provide for their wives?

     - Imagine, brand-new, infant Jesus, wrapped in old rags to try provide some warmth . . . where is there any perfection in that?

     God's plan was never perfection -- His plan was provision! 

     Nothing has changed in the last two thousand years . . . God still desires provision over perfection.

     I came across a beautiful adaptation of I Corinthians 13 this week, written by Sharon Jaynes, that I wanted to share with you ~

If I decorate my house perfectly with lovely plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights, and shiny glass balls, but do not show love to my family - I'm just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals, and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love to my family - I'm just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen , carol in the nursing home, and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love to my family - it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties, and sing in the choir's cantata, but do not focus on Christ - I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.

Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.

Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn't envy another home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn't yell at the kids to get out of the way.

Love doesn't give only to those who are able to give in return, but rejoices in giving to those who can't.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.

Love never fails.

Video games will break; pearl necklaces will be lost; golf clubs will rust.

But giving the gift of love will endure.

     Let's give our families the most wonderful Christmas ever -- full of love, selflessness and joy found in our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ -- the greatest gift ever given.  And let's leave perfection out in the cold, where it belongs.

"Mercy, peace and love be

yours in abundance."

Jude 1:2

IT STARTS WITH US

     Are you feeling it, too?  The hustle, the bustle, the rush that God never intended us to drown under this time of year.

     Interesting that Jesus came to bring PEACE to earth and yet it remains one of the hardest things to hold on to as we prepare to celebrate His birth.  It's as if we can watch it slip through our fingers as we hurry from store to store.

     Isn't it just like the enemy to try to steal from us, especially at this season, the gift of peace that Jesus came to bring?  Do you know that we have to fight to receive it?  It doesn't arrive packaged under our tree each year, without some very intentionally choices on our part.

Is there an easy solution? 

A wand that we can wave to make life fall into simple order for the season?  

A way to bring the peace back into our days before Christmas?

     Well, yes and no, but it is possible!  It's found in putting Jesus first regardless of how long our lists of "things-to-do" grow long. 

     The Bible tells us The Word became flesh and dwelt among us!  That is Jesus Christ, Son of God -- with skin on -- came to earth as a baby.  Ironically, the reason for the rushing rests heavily in that phrase.  Do you hear the hope?

     I know, that still doesn't get your lists ticked off to completion, so how does it really help?

     When our hearts focus on Jesus and we begin our days in His presence, we are fed.  We are nourished, strengthened and equipped for every good work -- even shopping, cleaning and Christmas baking!  BUT we have to get the order right!

     Remember the song, Let There Be Peace on Earth?  Do you remember who the peace was supposed to start with?  Here are a few of the words ~

     Let there be peace on earth,

     And let it begin with _____ (WHO?) me (OUCH!),

     Let there be peace on earth

     The peace that was meant to be...

     Let this be my solemn vow.

     To take each moment

     And live each moment

     With peace eternally.

     Let there be peace on earth,

     And let it begin with me.

   

     It's not too late, my sweet friends, to make that same solemn vow.  In our homes, peace genuinely can and should begin with us, as moms!!!  

     I have a little plaque in my room that is just for me.  It says, "If Momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!"  It serves as my daily reminder that my attitude greatly affects our entire household and I take that very seriously.

     More than any other season, I want our children to remember the joy and happiness that centered around the celebration of our Saviour's birth, NOT the stress and the grumpiness. 

     I hate to say it, moms, but it does begin with us!  And that means it begins with God and His Word. 

     If we surrender our mornings, despite all the decorations and tinsel that are yelling for us to put them first, we will find Jesus meeting us there and giving us everything we need to make this season truly peace-ful and joy-ful!  His Word is always proven true -- with Him we can do anything, even Christmas.

"I (Jesus) am the vine;

you are the branches.

If you remain in me and I in you,

you will bear much fruit."

John 15:5

Christmas is Coming...So is Jesus

As we enter into the Christmas season, I find myself almost as guilty as our children in the anticipation of a few gifts to open and the fun our family will share around the tree.  I do not feel that this is a bad thing to share in the natural excitement, but it has caused my heart to ponder my sometimes lack of anticipation of a much greater event - Jesus' return!  For as much as Jesus came to earth as a baby, grew up and lived among humankind; He has promised His return is coming and great things are in store for those who have accepted Him and love Him.

God has challenged my heart as I am moving towards Christmas and all that our family will enjoy; to let it be a reminder and reflection of where my heart needs to be year-round, in regards to Jesus and His promised coming.  There is much told to us in the New Testament of how wonderful heaven will be, of the magnitude of the event when Jesus returns and of the surety of it.  When I think about our Christmas tree - I can hope that I might get what I want for Christmas, but it is very likely that when I open my few gifts I may need to smile and be appreciative, while swallowing a bit of disappointment because what I have opened does not look like what I might have wanted.  BUT not with Jesus! 

The Bible tells us in I Corinthians 2:9 that, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him."  I don't know about you, but when it comes to Christmas - if I was told to imagine the biggest gift possible and money was no object (which is not the case) - I am sure I could imagine pretty big!  How much more will we be amazed when we see all that Jesus has prepared for us if He has been working on it for 2,000 years?

Don't let me steal your joy in the anticipation of the season, but allow me to add a reminder to the reason for the season of celebrating Jesus' birth - look with expectancy to all that is in store for us in eternity (that means forever and ever and ever, by the way).  Revelation 22:20, being the second last verse in the whole Bible, should carry some weight in our lives, when it says, "'Yes, I am coming soon.'  Amen.  Come, Lord Jesus."

Enjoy the season in the present, with your heart looking forward to the future.