Christmas in story and daily living

 

Gramps was not into seasonal blogs. But as you see had an imaginative mind! A couple years I wrote on Advent and stories of the Carols.  But – as those of you who know us – Christmas is important and you can still find Nativity sets on display at our house all year.

This Devotional from My Mornings With Jesus  December 2, 2022.

“Behold the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel” which is translated, God with us,” Matthew 1:23 (NKJV)  (Read Isaiah 7:14)

     I love the whole Christmas story in the Bible, but if I had to pick a favorite Christmas verse, Matthew 1:23  would be it.  There’s just nothing else that expresses what really happened – what Christmas means-  like “GOD with US.”

     We have a tradition in our family that illustrated the beauty of this concept.  Every Christmas Eve, the whole Triple F Ranch family gathers at my house. We make cookies, turtles, Mexican food, and mischief of one kind or another.  The culminating event is a live Nativity play, which is cast and directed by all the children. The best laid plans are always perfect, until the play starts – then chaos ensues. Crowns fall off, angels fight for position, baby Jesus cries and Joseph ends up smacking somebody with his staff. It is always a comedy of errors – a complete Zoo. Not unlike life!

    Wasn’t you spouse perfect before you got married? Your vacation perfect before you took it? What about retirement? My kids were perfect before I had them. So was my job. In my head, church is perfect, and so are friendships, and so am I.  And then there is what happens outside my head, in real life.  But Jesus enters into the mess, the joy, the heart ache, the accidents, the headaches, the good choices and the bad. HE IS WITH US THROUGH IT ALL!              -------Gwen Ford Faulkenberry 

 In my mind Christmas’s are perfect – as I remember many of them: growing up as a pastor’s kid and all the church activities followed by an hour trip to grandparents. As a teen I remember playing football on Christmas in KS: as a Parent with young family in CA - no snow there either.  However, back in MI – snow; breakfasts were special and reading the Bible Story– our first snowmobile (second hand). Moving to Eagle Village LIGHTS, platforms of home-made lighted villages and visitors. Gramps made us hunt for gifts – sometimes a scavenger hunts, over 500 acres!  One year my gift was hanging in a tree.  Fun and laughs - often with grandparents and Eagle Village boys. Fun stories -  

Today we continue to gather as a family – share a meal, fun and games and always the Christmas Story – Jesus, God wrapped in human flesh – “ The Creator became the created” to experience life as we know it, crucified as sacrifice for our sins, rose from the grave and lives with Father in heaven – our Hope of life eternal – if we choose to accept him as Savior and Lord.

One last quote  from one of my favorite Christmas books The Wonder of Christmas by Daniel Partner:  “Christmas – that white-hot moment when Eternity melted into Time.’

Have a Christ-filled Christmas

Gma J