Come Let Us Adore Him

Something funny happened in my basement closet as I was getting out Christmas decorations.  I pulled out the handmade manger scene with Mary, Joseph, shepherds, angel and sheep, the usual cast of characters, but when I pulled out the manger, Baby Jesus fell out and was lost in the  bottom of the closet amidst all the other decorations !  As I peered down through all the Christmas clutter trying to find Him, the message became clear:

Don't lose Jesus in all the other Christmas stuff!!!

This season of  His birth should be all about waiting for Him expectantly and rejoicing in His arrival.
Whatever we do to celebrate Christmas  it should be about adoring Him!

Here are my top ten ways to have a simpler Christmas with the focus where it needs to be.
1.  Get our your manger scene and turn a Bible to Luke chapter 2, the story if Jesus' birth.  Give these a place of prominence in your home. You can download free manger scenes that you print out for children to move the characters as you tell the story of Christmas.

2.  Establish the habit of meeting together as a family to do an Advent calendar of activities, or read scripture or Christmas stories each evening of as often as possible.
Our family did this before bedtime, all cuddled up on the couch by the tree.  Even as teens and now  adults they remember fondly the stories I clipped from magazines about selfless acts of service and Christmas miracles and still want to read old favorites.  The Jesus Story Book Bible has a adding for each day, begin at the front and day 24 brings you to the Birth of Jesus, and God's great rescue plan for his people has arrived.
Togetherness is what matters here, as well as refocusing on the reason for the season.

3.  Make your home an inviting place to be...inviting, not perfect, not magazine worthy, not spectacular!
You can decorate with very little..a tree perhaps, or even little trees from the thrift store, or evergreen branches stuck in bottles.  Make handmade ornaments, put out favorites with lights.  Part of the fun is seeing everyone's favorite ornaments again.  We always chose an ornament that reminded us of a milestone in each child's life that year as a present ...a football player, a camper, ballerina, etc.
Shop for decor at your grocery store...put candy canes in mason jars along with other Christmas candy, have a big bowl of red and green apples, a glass container of lemons and  limes.  Have the kids stuff some oranges with whole cloves and place in a bowl with cinnamon sticks and pine comes.  Shop for decor out your door...cut evergreen branches and gather pine cones for displays throughout the house.  Shop your house..use thing in a different way.  Put Christmas bows around stuffed animals in a wagon! Wrap your picture frames. Tie bows around your sofa pillows.  Make a
"Snow village" with branches spray painted white, batting for snow and  Epsom salt snow in mason jars with tea lights, or the snow spread on a tray with candles.

4.  Make your family's favorite cookies and desserts.  We have some cookies we only make at .Christmas...Reindeer Haystacks, which are chow mein noodles and melted chocolate chips and peanut butter.  We do not make fancy cookies and neither should you unless you enjoy that!  We do make a Jesus birthday cake, which I never dreamed would still be requested as it is only a jello poke cake with white cake mix and red and green jello,  Who knew?

5.  Cook ahead and freeze extra for busy days...chili, roast beef sandwiches, lasagna, etc. Have a stash of crackers, chips and dip for unexpected company.

6.  Make your home smell like Christmas whether you bake or not.  Collect peels from oranges and put in a small saucepan on your stove with cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and some water.  You can reuse this mixture several times.

7.  Keep the grinch of consumerism and commercialism away...or it will steal your Christmas joy! Don't look at magazines, decor and fashions at the mall, or ads that urge you to spend more, and even make you discontent with what you have.  This includes children.

8.  Focus on giving..not "I want, I want".  Have your children make a giving list and an acts of service list as their gift to Jesus!

9.  Have a silent night.  Sit together with just light from candles and of the Christmas tree. Play Christmas music and just ponder  the wonder of Christmas in your heart.  This is the way to truly adore Him!

10.  Do less and enjoy the season more..your family will cherish memories you make together and you can enjoy the season.  For too many years I tried to be the overachieving Mom and hostess, ending  up frazzled and snippy with my family instead of  relaxing and being present in the moment.  I was thinking of the next items on my to do list and playing martyr because I has so much to do...a lot of which really didn't add me that much to our adoration of Jesus.
Let that be the funnel you sift activities through...do they help you worships Jesus and bring your family together or not?

Giving Thanks with a Grateful and Contented Heart

Happy November!  Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I'm getting my quota of pumpkin products made. I enjoy making and eating pumpkin pies, bars, bread, lattes, etc.  While making pumpkin pies, I started thinking about the evaporated milk can, the one with the cows on the front. The company's motto says something about their cows' milk being best because it comes from contented cows.

As I stood at my kitchen window and looked out at a beautiful red maple against a crisp,clear Kansas blue sky I began to ponder contentment and realized that the most thankful hearts come from contented people!
 

Contentment means that we realize we have enough, whether it's food, shelter, clothing, money or other things.  It really means that we are thankful or grateful for what God has done in our lives--with our "lot", so to speak.
 

We are content with where He has put us, with what He has given us to do, with the people He has given us to love and serve, with our talents and abilities and even our shortcomings. When we're truly content, we simply rest and trust because we're not busy trying to tell God what to do to improve our lives!  (Disclaimer-I am a fairly content person, and usually a very thankful one but not always...sigh)

I read once that one of the best acts of thanksgiving is to be content. The Bible specifically tells us  "be content with such things as you have, because He himself (Jesus) has said I will never leave you nor forsake you." Really....What more do we need?  We don't need tons of money, the latest fashions or home furnishings, techno gadget or anything else if we could just grasp the reality of this promise.
 

Sharing our abundance - If we are not content with what we already have, we'll never be content with more...when is enough?  If your home is like mine, we have more space than we use each day. (Except to store extra stuff!)  We have more sets of dishes than we use daily, more clothes than we can wear in a week, more food than we need!!!  I am always convicted to clean out and pass along those things we really don't need.  I've been collecting and culling winter clothes and coats, gloves, scarves to pass along to others.  Get your family involved...it's a great way to demonstrate to everyone how richly you have been blessed. We always cleaned out toys and books with the kids over as we explained that Christmas was coming and they could part with some of their things so other children could use and enjoy them.  Sam Levenson, a comic and educator whose immigrant family lived in the city tenements, tells that his mama had a box for the poor.  Even though they were the poor, they felt richer when they put some pennies in the poor box.  Clean out your pantry and pass along extras to your community food bank. (Check expiration dates first.) Help serve or donate food for holiday meals.  We all have something to give!

Sharing your home and hospitality -You don't need to create a perfect Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving feast for family and friends to make the day memorable.   Simplify meals if you're entertaining, plan and cook ahead...the freezer and crock pot are your friends!

Keep an emergency stash of snacks, cookies, or even soup/chili you can pull out in a hurry for unexpected company.  Even prepare for the very real but unwelcome possibility that your plans may be thwarted by the flu or weather and be ready with an alternate "feast" of chicken noodle soup or clear liquids.  (My youngest son was 5 years old before he attended an extended family Thanksgiving as we had a run of illness those years!)

Remember that "less is more" in menu planning and decorating.  Pour some popcorn into some mason jars with candles on top, or gather some nuts, leaves and pumpkins or gourds for a natural grouping.

Have a cider/hot cocoa bar, apple slices with caramel dip and popcorn for easy snacks.

Plan a family walk, football game, movie time or even look at old pictures and share times past.  

Use paper plates for some meals or choose whatever shortcuts will help you relax and et to be part of the fun.  The less you are stressed about entertaining, the more everyone around you will enjoy the day.

Share you heart...your gratitude and contentment - Look for ways to express your thanks and to let others share as well...a thankfulness journal, lists at each place at the table, leaves on a tree, etc.  The more we find to be thankful for, the more we see how mightily God has worked in our lives and the more we will be content to let Him be God and trust in His care for us.  

And last, but not least, lead those you are thankful with in a rousing chorus of "Come Ye Thankful People Come" or "Count Your Blessings".  As that song goes, it really is amazing to see what God has done!

Put Your Hands Together

Hands On Experiences
I've been thinking about "Hands" a lot this month.  Our hands are pretty incredible instruments or tools.  I do not have lovely, graceful hands.  I got the short stubby finger gene and playing piano was a real "reach" for my fingers, if you'll pardon the pun.  However, I come from a long line of do-it-yourselfers who rely on our hands, to make life better.  I did have an ancestor who probably had lovely white hands and lived in her English manor, but insisted on marrying a  mere clerk and setting off for America in the 1840's. Instead of ringing the bell and asking the maid to remove the tea things, she found herself in the wilds of central Missouri doing everything for her family "by hand".
I started thinking of what capable hands the women (and men) of my family have had:  their hands have built homes, cleaned homes, killed chickens, plucked feathers, made the chicken into dinner and sewed pillows using the feathers, made quilts and clothes, knitted many articles, turned pages of the Bible and taught children how to read books, soothed fussy babies, smoothed hair or troubled faces, arranged flowers, set lovely tables, refinished furniture, painted and papered walls, driven cars, trucks and tractors, operated telephone switchboards, made jams and jellies, canned food for families, corrected an errant child, hugged and loved on the same errant child, washed dishes, planted gardens, bottle fed calves, pounded gavels at meetings, taken food to the needy and any other task needed to keep their families and communities safe and growing.  I realize all our pioneer ancestors had to do these things, but my family still does!
I do a lot of those same things and try to maintain the "handy" legacy.  My daughter got married this summer and it was a handmade wedding.  I sewed 2 wedding dresses, just to make sure I got one right--she was not at home so she then chose the one she wanted!  We made silk flower arrangements and decorations by hand, stirred up 24 dozen brownies for the reception, cut wildflowers from our garden for the tables.  Her friends and our family also helped wash fruit, curl hair and do makeup, play violins, throw wheat at the happy couple and cleanup afterward.
It was a beautiful wedding and fun time thanks to "many hands making light work!"
  We use our hands in many ways to bless others...and God designed our hands and us for this reason!
Our hands also tell a story..my hands are covered with age spots from too much tractor driving even though I wore gloves, and some dirt under my nails from time to time testifies to my time in my garden.  Right now they have black spray paint remnants from a project and the real kicker is that I am wearing an ace wrap on my left hand!
I have gained a new appreciation for hands, being as I am "short handed" right now.  It is really slowing me down as I use my left hand a lot more than I realized and it hurts now to use it for some things.  I have a new empathy for the many people who have arthritis or have lost the use of their hand(s) for some reason.

Lift up your hands...even if I'm unable to do something right now, or can't always be available to "lend a hand", I can always lift my hands in praise to our Father God who does all things well.  The most important thing I can do for my family or anyone I want to help is to pray.  I can bless others with my hands but God can bless others through my prayers and supply those things I can not, which brings us to:

Hands Off!
         I've been attending the Bible study, Seated, mentioned in our Lovely Branches website and learned something that I'm still trying to grasp.  Sometimes God wants me to just sit down and rest in Him, trust in Him and even sit on my hands..in other words, let go and let Him work in a situation.  He does not need my help nor is it even help if I try to "fix" things when He is the one with the plan and ability to do whatever is needed.  Actually, I ought to get out of the way! Well, this was disconcerting news to a "Martha", a do-it-yourself type such as myself.  How freeing though and a little scary. It turns out that everything does not pivot on my ability to fix things...thank goodness and thank God!!  I can trust Him to work and do those things I can not.
Give yourself a hand-
There are things we can be doing to help ourselves and our families, though. The holidays are coming up.  Now is the time to think about expectations and alternatives.  If you want to simplify things or change how you give thanks and how your family celebrates the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, now is the time to start talking and planning.
Do some fall cleaning and get rid of outgrown clothes or extra knickknacks. Put some casseroles or chili in the freezer for later.  Sip some cider, collect some leaves, carve a pumpkin or make some pumpkin bars.  Rejoice in the things your hands can do!  And praise, pray and give thanks to our Heavenly Father who has us all in His hands.

Service with a Smile .....or "Get me out of my recliner and not be a whiner!"

"Live life comfortably",  is the clever motto of the Lazy Boy furniture company.  I'm telling you, though, that recliner, comfortable as it is, is not your friend.  As much as I enjoy curling up in our recliner with a good book, I know that God did not put me here on earth to be "comfortable".  He wants me to glorify Him.  That is our ultimate purpose, and one way we do that is by serving Him.  Boy, can that be uncomfortable!!!

Paul tells us in Romans 12:1-2
 
"Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God's great mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship.  Do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Somehow, offering my body as a living sacrifice does not sound like a life of ease and comfort.  Paul knew something of sacrifice and discomfort, even pain and imprisonment in his quest to serve God and others.  If we are obedient to serve God and others as well, we can kiss our recliners and comfortable lifestyles goodbye for a time.  Someone once told me that the shortest line anywhere is in the line to serve. We all want to be served, but very few of us want to serve others. This means we need to change our minds, like in the verse above, to not think of ourselves first, but of doing for others instead. As contrary to our culture as that is, you can never out give God.  Serve God, it pays..in all kinds of ways.  You may not receive a lot of appreciation from others, though.
One of my favorite cards shows Jesus with the crowds on the hill behind him, having just received the loaves and fishes that He blessed and multiplied to feed everyone.  In this cartoon card version, you see people starting to complain...."could I have some blackened fish instead?", and "I need gluten free bread"...  Jesus is smiling whereas I would be bent out of shape because people were not properly appreciative of what I had done for them.  Service with a smile is not always one of my strong suits.

I have good intentions and even follow through sometimes and have received the blessing of being able to supply a need in someone's life, letting God love them through me. It is with a profound sense of gratitude that you realize God let you have a part in His provision for someone else...the answer to someone's prayer!

Too many times, though, it has been with mumbling, dragging of feet and an "oh, poor me" attitude that may be obedience, but certainly is not with a glad, trusting heart..nor a smile.
And then...God puts someone in my life at just the right moment to supply one of my needs or to give me fresh courage, or encouragement, which was just what I desperately needed to keep pushing on.
How can I begrudge being "the hands and feet" of Jesus when I know full well the difference a person can make when they show me His love?

There are many ways to serve others and Jesus.  He tells us that whatever we do "for the least of these", people who need His love the most, it is like doing those things for Him.
I read an article many years ago in VIRTUE magazine called, Ways you can reach the world for Christ without ever leaving your Home. As a mom with little children in a small town, it got my attention as I felt my options to serve God were somewhat limited.  This was an eye opener. though and put an end to a lot of my excuses. We can all:

Go..visit others who need a friend, some cheering up
Call or email someone who comes to our mind with a word of thanks or encouragement
Cook or Bake food for those needing a meal--some organized types keep a meal or casserole in the freezer just for this purpose..some church groups make this a ministry and stock the church freezer with meals
Walk around town and get your exercise as well as pray for people in homes you pass, your town, the schools, etc.
Give--your time to volunteering in some ministry or give your money, or give out of our excess--
  extra clothes, books, knickknacks, can be donated to Goodwill or the Salvation Army to bless others. I read recently of a lady who is purging her home of excess by getting rid of 10 things a day.  Think of the extra room and time we'd gain!
Clean someone's house or your teen's room after a tough week.  A friend and I cleaned closets at our church this summer in order to gain space and do an inventory.  We found lots of items we can use and save money by using what we have and giving extra materials away to a ministry in Belize!
Grow flowers or vegetables to give to others.  Some people donate extra produce to their food bank, or give flowers to nursing homes for patients.
"Mother" some other children besides your own.  As a teacher, I can tell you that we have lots of chldren who could use some extra time and attention and a big thank you to those Mamas who find room in their hearts and "nests" to take in those children who don't have homes.  You can change a child's life for eternity! Besides adoption or foster parenting, or just informal mothering of kids, you can support children with organizations like Compassion.  We have children we have sponsored in this way, but I need to spend more time writing to them and assuring them of God's love.
Drive those who can't take themselves to appointments or the store.
Sew-help others with mending, or make quilts for others.  I have some friends who use their extra fabric to make simple shift style dresses for little girls in Africa
Pray, which is the most important of all.  Become a prayer warrior.  I have been prompted many, many times to pray for even strangers I meet, even when I don't know their circumstances.  You never know how our prayers may be answered or what a difference they can make, but I know God listens and answers.
You get the idea..whatever God has given us, whatever resources or talents and gifts, someone has need of them.  We need to be more responsive to God's nudges to serve instead of making excuses as we relax in our recliners!

Having listed some ways to serve, however, I have a caution.  In her book, Never Say Never, one of author Lisa Wingate's characters is struggling with doing what she knows she needs to do as
God's direction, but hesitates because she already has her "plate full".  She makes the observation that, "the biggest enemy of havin' our hands ready for God's work is having them full up with other things already."  Too, too true.  We may need to scrape a few things off our plate.(A good rule for life and church potluck dinners!)

So, leave some room on your plate..don't have it so full there's not room for God to add something He really needs you to do. We all have things we're more passionate about and are more able to do...God made us this way for a reason.  Sometimes, however, He may call us out of our comfort zone to lean on Him to do what needs to be done. It really is fine to have some recliner time, too...re-charge before your next opportunity to serve.

Out of love, let us serve one another and throw in a smile and prayer for good measure.

Are we there yet?

I come from a fairly frugal family.  My parents had a big garden, so we froze and canned a lot of our food. My mom made most of our clothes until I became able to make my own in high school.  We rarely ate out.  We saved a lot of money doing those and other things.
The one thing my parents agreed to spend money on was...Family Vacations!
  I grew up spending lots of time in the back seat...in addition to family vacations, we also took Sunday drives and visiting either one of our grandparents' home was a 5 hour trip one way.  I looked forward to time together in the car with few distractions and hearing my parents tell stories or even sing!  ( I know, how hokey is that...but we did!). I would even lay up on the rear window ledge and look at the stars.
  Still frugal, our car trips involved lots of picnics and free entertainment .  We visited lots of museums and historical sites, and even college campuses.  My parents made it all seem like fun and an adventure, so we didn't miss amusement parks, etc. on our trips.
  When our kids came along, we wanted to make the same kind of memories with them.
We have packed the car and later our suburban, Big Red, with kids, friends, a grandmother, a guitar or two, weights and enough luggage and snacks to sustain us all on our various travels.
Our longest trip time wise was a 2 week jaunt back east toWashington, D.C.  We toured the Capitol, went to the White House, the Smithsonian Museums, Arlington National Cemetery,  Colonial Williamsburg , Yorktown, Hampton Beach, Annapolis, the Naval Academy and various other points between here and there!  It was epic..and educational..and inspiring at all the National Monuments.
We played hoops on the lawn at Mt. Vernon, next to the Potomac River.  Parking in a big parking Garage and downtown Baltimore was another adventure, as well as taking the water taxi across the Harbor.  We ate crab cakes and buried one another on the beaches.  We even got involved in a mock trial at Williamsburg where my husband sat on the jury..as he was one of the few in the crowd that met the requirements for this duty...white, male, of a certain age, and a land owner.
  Spending Memorial Day at Gettysburg was a sobering experience as I thought of all the young men, only a little older than my own sons, who died in the battles there. We also stopped at various points between here and there and saw God's provision in many ways, including protection while crossing the Mississippi River in six lanes of traffic in torrential rain. Stopping in St. Louis for a baseball game was still a big deal for some in the car. The best part of that trip and any was what we learned about each other..each persons's favorite experiences, what spoke to our hearts.
  I am happy to report that at the end of the trip, everyone was quite happy to return home.  We couldn't click our ruby slippers, but we piled into Big Red and got home to Kansas anyway.
  Our trips through the years has also taken us to the Grand Canyon and the Grand Tetons, to Mt. Rushmore and the mountains of Colorado and North Carolina.  We've explored the beaches in Florida and along the shores of the Great Lakes..and yes, stopped at quite a few museums and historical sights along the way. We've seen God at work in His creation and in the lives of people modern day as well as in the past.  A change of scenery often gave us a change of perspective and of heart.
Be safe on your travels..get out there and explore God,'s great big world.  Or have a stay-cation and explore what is all around you in a new way.
  Our best adventures were when we stepped into local life and made new friends.  Stopping for a local church's cherry festival was a great way to learn about God,s people in other places.  We stayed in wonderful familyhomes at Bed and Breakfasts.  Visiting State parks was a highlight and if you visit a state with State Park lodges, stay or eat at one!  Bring books about local people and history and read to your family.
Look for God at work all around you..and you'll be amazed!

Red, White and Blue

Happy Fourth of July!  One of my favorite holidays.
If you have young children, have a parade with everyone and everything decked out in red, white and blue.  Play patriotic music on your sound system, or even hum.  We used to hum "Stars and Stripes Forever" while we waved our sparklers in the air.  Make your favorite All American summer foods, especially Popsicles  (or homemade ice cream).
Fly your flags .  Sit on the porch and visit with family and friends.  Read the Preamble to the Constitution out loud to your family.  Talk about the Christian principles that guided our founding fathers in declaring our independence.
Google the signers of the Declaration and you will find that freedom is indeed not free.  Every one of those men faced retribution from the British because of their signature.  Their families were hurt, their homes destroyed and their own lives threatened.
Our country is what it is because so many people were willing to sacrifice their own happiness for their beliefs in the bigger goal of freedom for all and to protect the Christian principles this country was founded upon.
In my family, I have a several greats in my ancestry - a great grandfather and his seven sons who fought in the Revolution.  I have ancestors who fought on both sides of the Civil War,
My Dad and three uncles fought in WWII.  They were mere babes, 17 and 18 years old , flying in bombers over Germany, advancing through Austria on foot, and serving on an Aircraft carrier in the Navy. None of them ever talked a lot about what they did and their service did come at a price to themselves and their families.
If you know military families, encourage them and thank them this Fourth.  Pray for those serving our country.
Pray for our country...I believe that and voting, or even serving in some type of office are some of the most patriotic things we can do.
Our allegiance belongs first to God, however.  I have friends whose religious beliefs include not saluting the flag because of this principle.  I believe that God has protected and prospered our nation so that we can help others and further His Kingdom in doing so.
If you ever get the chance to go to Washington, D.C., visit our monuments.  Engraved on the Jefferson, Lincoln, Roosevelt and even our Capitol are the Christian principles that guided our founders.  Long may those principles reign.  God Bless America and help us to bless others!