Keeping Christmas

This is a repeat of something I published about a year ago.
I think I just may make it a traditional January post,
because I need to be reminded of it every year!
Maybe some of you will find it helpful, as well.

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In the retail world, Christmas is “over with” for now.  It didn’t take long for leftover merchandise to be banished to sale bins, as the seasonal aisles were hurriedly transformed into Valentine Land…and King Cakes replaced Christmas cookies in the bakery aisle.

Most of us (even the procrastinators) have stored away our decorations for another year.

Many people were ready to pack them away on December 26^th.  Others would like to have enjoyed their company much longer.

For some of my friends, it was difficult just to get through the holidays.  They were relieved when the merriment and festivities were finally over and they didn’t have to endure a continuous playing of jingly Christmas music everywhere they went…or force themselves to act cheerful when they didn’t really feel that way inside.

Regardless of which category each of us finds ourselves in, I think all of us would like to see the “Christmas spirit” of love, kindness, thoughtfulness, and sharing kept alive throughout the new year.

When God sent His Son to earth, it was an event meant to change our lives FOREVER…not just to be celebrated for a few days each year.

Even though we’ve taken down our Christmas trees and packed away our ornaments, I hope all of us can “KEEP CHRISTMAS” fresh in our hearts by loving God — and then sharing His love with those around us.

Just remember…

…WE CAN NEVER KEEP IT ALONE!!!

Savoring the Season

 

savor
v.tr.
To appreciate fully; enjoy or relish

♦

Are you savoring Christmas?
We have taken down our decorations,
and I’m filling in dates on our 2012 calendar…

…but I’m not ready to pack the real Christmas up in a box
and stick it in the attic or the garage until next December.
I’m still savoring Christmas!
It takes longer than the week between 12/25 and 01/01 to appreciate it fully!

When a baby is born, there is much rejoicing…
not just for a few days…
but continuing on and on and on!
This new life is a permanent part of the family.
Everyone is eager to get to know the little one
and establish a relationship with the baby to build on
as the newborn grows into childhood and beyond.

So it is with the birth of the Christ Child.

Celebrating Christmas in the truest sense
means rejoicing in the birth of the Savior
and then growing in our relationship with Him
every day for the rest of our lives.

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Thanks for stopping by to visit Little Things!
I hope your new year has gotten off to a good start…
but that you’re also still savoring Christmas in your ♥!
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Christmas!

I’m very grateful for a wonderful Christmas Day with family!
I hope you’ve had a good day, too.

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY
to Jesus!!!
♥
MERRY CHRISTMAS
to all of you!!!
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Christmas IM’s

Throughout human history,
God has used His angels as supernatural “instant messengers”
to communicate with the people He created.

God sent the angel Gabriel to visit Mary
and give her the news that she was going to be the mother of the Christ Child.

Later, an angel from God visited Joseph
to inform him of the virgin birth and to explain his earthly father’s role in this all-important event.

For generations, the Jews had been looking for their Messiah — their long-awaited King.
The angels revealed to Mary and Joseph that Jesus was this Messiah –
the HOPE of the world!

When the time came for Jesus to be born,
Mary and Joseph found no room in any local inn in Bethlehem –
so they had to spend the night in a lowly stable,
surrounded by the smells and noises of the animals
who shared their space with the expectant couple.

When Mary had delivered her baby,
the first people to learn of Christ’s birth
were shepherds keeping watch over their sheep under the night-time sky.
An angel suddenly appeared to them, announcing the birth and saying,

I bring you good news that will bring great JOY to all people. 
The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—
has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!
(Luke 2:10b-11)

Then the first angel was suddenly joined by a whole army of heavenly angels,
proclaiming this message –

Glory to God in highest heaven,
and PEACE on earth to those with whom God is pleased.
(Luke 2:14)

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Thank y’all for stopping by to visit Little Things.
May your life be filled with little blessings, little chuckles,
and little deeds of kindness (both given and received)!
♦
During this Christmas season,
may we all know the
HOPE, JOY, and PEACE
that come with the celebration of Jesus’ birth!
♥
Special (((hugggs))) to my friend Margie
who brightens up our neighborhood every Christmas
with these cute lil’ angels!
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It’s OK!

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Thank y’all for stopping by to visit Little Things.
May your life be filled with little blessings, little chuckles,
and little deeds of kindness (both given and received)!
…and remember,
It’s OK to say “MERRY CHRISTMAS!!”

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Wonder (2)

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I WONDER AS I WANDER

A Christmas Carol
by John Jacob Niles

I wonder as I wander out under the sky
How Jesus the Saviour did come for to die
For poor orn’ry people like you and like I;
I wonder as I wander out under the sky

When Mary birthed Jesus ’twas in a cow’s stall
With wise men and farmers and shepherds and all
But high from God’s heaven, a star’s light did fall
And the promise of ages it then did recall.

If Jesus had wanted for any wee thing
A star in the sky or a bird on the wing
Or all of God’s Angels in heaven to sing
He surely could have it, ’cause he was the King

I wonder as I wander out under the sky
How Jesus the Saviour did come for to die
For poor on’ry people like you and like I;
I wonder as I wander…
out under the sky

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Thank y’all for stopping by to visit Little Things.
May your life be filled with little blessings, little chuckles,
and little deeds of kindness (both given and received)!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Gift Goes On

 

In my recent “Keeping Christmas” post, I started off with pictures of Christmas decorations packed up in containers, not to be seen again until next holiday season.

However, the real Christmas can’t be put on a shelf or stored in the attic until next December.  The ‘real deal’ is Jesus Christ, sent as God’s Gift to the world.

We can never enjoy any gift and receive the blessing that its giver intended, unless we open it and accept it as our own.  So it goes for The Gift of Jesus – But how do we unwrap it and make it our own?

The original Gift from God to us was His sending of His only Son to earth – God in human form – to teach us Who God is, and then to suffer and die to pay the penalty for our sins.

After Jesus rose from the dead and returned to heaven, to sit at God’s right hand and intercede for all believers, the second part of The Gift was sent to earth – God in the form of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the part of God that lives inside every believer.  Jesus in human form is no longer with us on earth, but His Spirit is with us and in us at all times – to:

• convict us of our sins
• guide and counsel us
• encourage and comfort us
• pray to the Father for us when we don’t know how to pray
• be “God with us” at all times

It is up to each of us as believers to determine how important this Gift will be in our lives — and how much we will allow God to bless us through it.  When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, He fills us with God’s love and guides us in sharing it with others.  In this way, “The Gift of Love” goes on…..and on…..and on…..