2022

 

In just a few days, another year will have gone by - what changes has this brought to you??  Our sermon this last Sunday was delivered by our associate pastor Keith Bostian in order to give Senior Pastor Vance Eubanks a break and a chance to enjoy his family. I am starting this blog off with the sermon as it fits in so well with starting a new year. Evaluation is good for us all. What have you accomplished in 2021 and in your life in general? We to to assess what has happened in our lives in the past. Celebrate all the good and bad things. After you evaluate you need plans for the future. Make a vision and plan on where you want to go. Read Philippians 3:13-14 and Habakkuk 2:2-3. Make a plan, write it down, and tell others about it for accountability. Set attainable and realistic goals - but not beyond your ability.  Three things to remember:

1) Pace - set a pace not too slow or too fast. Don't push yourself too hard. We are running two races - the earthy one (we need to slow down) and the spiritual race ( we need to pick up speed). Get involved in Bible studies, small groups, etc.

2) Place - this is where you do your quiet time. Jesus spent a lot of quiet time - alone. Set apart time to spend with the Lord. Do this even by serving.

3) Plan - after assessing your self, you need to plan where you are going to need to be. what do you need in your spiritual life. Do you need to be better at defending you faith to tell others why you believe what you believe. We all need accountability in our lives to spur us on just as iron sharpens iron. We need to be encouragers and cheerleaders for others, because "Perhaps today" is the day Jesus comes back. Be prepared.  

My brother sent me a flower pot for my birthday in early December  which contained various flower bulbs - amaryllis for sure and hyacinth. There were just a few tiny buds in the  pot - now there are 11 plants and are blooming - so much fun to watch!

                                         They are growing like weeds and starting to bloom. 

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1. English Standard Version. I feel very strongly that I need to move on - to branch out and try my wings, so to speak. Therefore this is probably the very last blog for awhile. I will show up somewhere else in a different form perhaps, or different type of encouragement. I am not sure, but feel it is God's plan for me. I remember when I first published my first blog (April 4, 2011) I was thrilled that I had done so. Now I cannot believe that it is over 10 years later!!!! All of the blogs are here on this site so you can go back and read what you may have missed. I hope I have touched each and every one of you in some way, offered encouragement, or even answered some questions. God bless all of you - 

Who Was Joseph?

Who was Joseph? He was never quoted in the Bible, his words were never recorded, yet he had one of the most important jobs in the history of man. We know he was a carpenter, husband of Mary, and foster father to Jesus. He was a righteous man and lived a religious life , otherwise God would not have chosen him to be the earthly father of Jesus. He was a Galilean who probably spoke with a rough accent of that area. As was the culture at that time, a Jewish man did not marry until he had an established trade and since he was a well thought of carpenter, we can assume he was at least 30 years or older. Mary was a young girl, perhaps just a teenager, so how did she catch Joseph's eye. Did he see her at the well, or was she a relative or friend of a relative? It was thought that they had known each other since childhood, and the matter was arranged in the traditional way by their parents. Both of them were happy with the arrangement, and expected to have an ordinary, pleasant life. Joseph was an obedient man, both in his religious and secular life. He obeyed the angel and took Mary as his wife even though he had earlier thought to quietly divorce her. He followed his government laws and took Mary to Bethlehem to register as was ordered by the ruler. He had Jesus circumcised in 8 days as was a religious law. We  are told that he went every year to Jerusalem at the solemn day of the Pasch. There were two other major yearly festivals, so Joseph may have gone to Jerusalem three times a year. It was at one of these festivals that Jesus was left behind at age 12.  Not much is mentioned about Joseph and we can assume that he dies early in Jesus' life as he is not mentioned again. He was not mentioned at the crucifixion when Jesus told John to take care of His mother. He was an ordinary man who God used in extraordinary ways. 

It was a busy week as we prepare for the Christmas. Reading Luke as we follow the story of Christ's birth. Also baking, last minute shopping, a day of decorating cookies with the greats, a visit form Santa who brings the Christmas pj's, visiting relatives of those who will be gone elsewhere for the holiday. 

                  a local church had a Christmas at the Mill day here in Prairie Grove complete with a live                                                                             Nativity scene

                                         Pizza before cookie decorating - mac and cheese pizza ????

                                                         ready to deocrate

                               the finished product - lots of sprinkles but what is cookie decorating for

                                                  all done and snuggled in to watch Polar express

                                    the day before they received their Christmas pj's from Santa

                                          don't they look like angels? not all of the great grands though.

The third candle is the candle of Joy.  It is the candle of love and salvation and sometimes called the Shepherd's candle because of the good news of great joy. Joy is part of the Christmas event - Mary's song of joy,  joy, the shepherd's joy, Elizabeth's joy upon hearing of Mary's upcoming birth, the unborn John the Baptist leapt with joy in Elizabeth's womb when he heard Mary. Joy is like putting a puppy in a box for Christmas. What does it mean to have joy - not just happiness and favor but pure joy. Joy is much deeper than that. "Joy to the World" was written by Isaac Watts. He loved to make every thing rhyme - even in his everyday life. The lyrics to this song were inspired by Psalm 98. Jesus coming to earth brought joy to the world. The angels coming to the shepherds changes their lives altogether - just as Jesus changes our lives. Fear not the angels told the shepherds, do not be afraid. Fear not is is the most used phrase to us in the Bible. As God's people we are to not live in fear. Fear and anxiety are at an all time high in our world today. Because of this we can lose our sense of joy. The world always has been fragile but it seems that today is the utmost of fragility. There is Good News - imagine the joy in the shepherd's hearts and minds. The Savior was born after centuries of waiting!!! The Child would be Christ, Savior, and Lord. Our greatest need was forgiveness and God sent Jesus because He fulfills all of His promises on which we can rely. There is Great Joy - this is our response to the coming of the Savior. Great joy has a great source. We are filled with joy even though we never personally met Jesus in person. Joy is greater than our circumstances because of Jesus. We can have joy even if we don't have happiness. No one can take away our joy in having Jesus as our savior, Messiah, and King. We can find joy even in the darkest times of our lives. Mary chose joy in the role of being the mother of Jesus. She embraced the joy. We can choose joy because of Christ's being in us. The joy is for all people. God wants all of us to feel the joy in His Son Jesus. Even though Isaac Watts found disappointment in his life, especially when the lady he wanted to marry jilted him, he went back to writing songs about Christ. He understood pain and never married. He continued to write about joy and peace. May we al have lasting joy in Jesus.

A blessed and Merry Christmas to each and every one of you. Find joy in the birth of our Savior.   

Tornado!!

 It seems strange to be thinking of tornados in December with temperatures close to 70,  but that is what has happened this past week. I am sure all of you have heard of the devastation this past week in this country. the weather forecasters seem to believe that the tornado  actually formed here in our little corner of NW Arkansas. We were under a warning with rotations all around us, but only got rain and a bit of wind. We sat on our daughter's patio and watched the lights of Prairie Grove go off - all was dark for a few minutes then they came back on again. Please pray for all of those who were in the path of this horrible destruction.

 Saturday our great granddaughters  and step great granddaughter were in basketball games. It had been many years since I was at a basketball ball (probably since I was in high school!) The girls are young- 8+, and really played a great game. It was fun to watch and see how these girls cam be really competitive while doing sports. Guess they are in normal life also. 

Kinsey preparing to pass the ball

Kinley tryng to steal the ball - sorry, but did not get a pic of Shelby who played in another round

I also did something that I had not done in ages - stringing cranberries for the outside tree. I wanted to also use popcorn, but was leery to do so because the squirrels would probably had raided the tree also!! I looked today but does not look like any birds have tried the treat yet, but the cardinals seem to b be hanging around more. 

stringing process - note to self - do not freeze the cranberries first - cold fingers

cranberry ropes on the tree

                                                                        the outside tree at night

                                                             even the cedar bushes sparkle

                     candles made from blocks of wood - they light up and look like they are burning

We went to the Prairie Grove Christmas parade on a cold night, but the little kids collected lots of candy! Santa was on a float (he is coming here for the kids Friday night, so my daughter needed t remind him to tell the girls he saw them at the parade!!). It was a really great parade for a small town - even the Grinch was there.

                                                           Grinch on his motor trike

Have you ever wondered why God chose Bethlehem for His son to be born? It was a small, no nothing town full of hard working folks.  It was foretold by the prophets that the Christ would be born in Bethlehem many centuries before He was born. Mary and Joseph did not live in Bethlehem, but because of the plan of His Father, Jesus was  indeed born there. I often thin of the many things that on the surface appear inconvenient to me are part of God's plan to get me to my Bethlehem. What to me seemed to be disappointments were actually steps to where He wants me to be. Bethlehem reminds us of what God promises - Bethlehem is a place of your providence.   What He has promised, He will perform. Make me a Bethlehem.

When Jesus came into the world we became aware of how valuable we are to Him. "Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests". Luke 2:14 God's hope for us to to find peace. Christ is the Prince of Peace. May the peace of God that transcends all understanding rest on you. There are ways in the Bible to understand Peace. There is peace with God. "therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand." Romans 5:1-2 The peace on earth that Jesus brought was for those who were in Christ. Because of that relationship we have peace and grace when we accept Jesus Christ. God brought forgiveness through His Son, thus we have reconciliation. We are objects of God's favor - children of God. Everything Jesus did was to establish peace with us. Accept God's terms - put your faith in Jesus Christ. There is also peace of God. God wants you to emotionally and physically experience God's peace. The peace of God is my restful assurance proving who God is and that He is faithful to do what He says He would do. God's got it!! Peace is a blessed experience in life especially in this chaotic world. Every time Jesus met with His disciples after the resurrection, He mentioned peace. We as Christians will suffer heartache in this world because of our beliefs, but be assured God will give us peace. No matter the situation Jesus put the Holy Spirit in us to give us constant assurance that God is with us.  Read Philippians 4:6-7. You can go to God in prayer and He will give you peace.  "You will keep in perfect peace those minds who are steadfast, because they trust in you". Isaiah 26:3. We have a blessed assurance of peace - but God will give you a perfect peace.     

It's beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas

 It is indeed beginning to look  a lot like Christmas. Every store is decorated and full of Christmas items, enticing you to buy me, buy me. I admit I have gone to a few craft sales and enjoyed looking at all the beautiful Christmas decorations which do indeed put a person in the Christmas spirit. I am now thinking about Christmas baking - especially the cutout cookies that I love to bake. I also love the walnut filled dates, rolled in sugar. Is that an ethnic treat? All I know is that my mother used to make them and I loved them. We are still with our daughter - it seems that looking for a place to live should not be so hard, but we are still at it - I am sure the Lord has a place for us somewhere!! Our daughter loves to decorate - so the outside area is lit up with lights and decorations. So very pretty and festive. I helped our son-in-law put up pine and cedar bows he cut from their trees. Big mistake - I itched for 2 days.  No, I am not forgetting the true meaning of Christmas - I will get to that later!!!

      a traditional tree - decorated with many different ornaments - some of mine from years ago, even                                                          ornaments her now grown children made in school

                  pretty door wreath - last night a wren was perched on top of it - what a beautiful sight

                                                 just a tiny bit of the outside decorations 

                                                           even a festive home made door mat

I do love writing out and sending out Christmas cards - It gives me a chance to think and wander down memory lane. I am still sending cards to a girl who lived next door to us years ago in Chicago - at least 70 years ago. Thinking about all that has happened in that time - as well as in the present as I write to new friends. I love receiving cards - I read them over and over often during the Christmas season and think about the person who sent it. After I take start to put the cards away, I chose one at random each day and take time to pray for that person. 

Saturday, the presents ffrom the Angel Tree were given out. These presents were for the children who parents are incarcerated - the presents are given to them as if those parents had sent them. It is a great ministry and I was glad to be a part of it.

Sunday in church was quite interesting. The church we attend (and I am sure many of them here in the South) never had an Advent wreath. At our last Bible Study the minister (our study leader) mentioned that we would have an Advent wreath for the first time. I was really surprised that many of our members had no idea of what he was talking about. It was interesting to hear him explain it and how a candle was lit every week until Christmas. He asked our class (the Joy class) the light the first candle - one person light it and the rest of us just going up to the front. It was interesting to see the reaction of the congregation to witness something they had never seen before. Vance then delivered a sermon based on the first candle - hope. "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life". Proverbs 13:13 What are you hoping for for Christmas? A material gift or a spiritual gift. There is a general observation in the scripture from proverbs which is a book full of observations about life. The observation in this case is the hope - to find satisfaction and hope. Hope is the anticipation of things to come. Sometimes waiting involves more serious complications. If you are waiting for something it can make you heartsick (hmm, like waiting to find a place to live?). When you are waiting for something and you finally receive it, it is the fulfilment of anticipation (the tree of life). Sort of like a child waiting for a much wanted Christmas present and actually receiving it. We long to be connected to God but we are separate by sin. God has set the promise of eternity in the lives and hearts of men. God has a plan to heal our hearts. There is a Christian application - the people of God in the Old Testament had hope for a Messiah. they longed to be free from slavery and to be not separated from God. God did not work on their  time table .  So many centuries has passed before He came. There were 400 years of silence, waiting for the Messiah. After thousands of years, God sent an angel to the shepherds to announce that the Savior had come. God sent His son for a rescue mission for us. There is also a personal transformation. We are also looking for a peace. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of all our longings. He is the one we have been looking for all of our lives. In this world people are chasing after fulfillment. Having more and more of stuff is never enough. What are you setting your hope in? There are sinful desires -  things our hearts want that are not true fulfillment. We cannot trust our own hearts. We are always chasing after something. There are ultimate desires. There is nothing in this world that can satisfy your heart. We can have legitimate desires. According to Proverbs if you live wisely there are things you can enjoy on this earth. But don't let legitimate desires become ultimate desires.  put your And then there are transferred desires. You need to put your hope in the One who is our ultimate desire. 

Please keep the family of one of our newest chaplains in your prayers - he contacted COVID and his time on this earth is short. The family is with him as he lives out his days on this earth and enters into the heavenly realm.