And It Hits

This is me around this time:

I have Christmas and family to think about and any holiday extras that get thrown in there along with trying to keep up with the laundry plus I'm moving up to Grassvalley in January. Lots to do.

I find that if I focus on all of it at once it becomes overwhelming.

I need to stop and figure out what's really important. It's why I blog. It helps me to pause for a bit to process things.
I love Christmas, don't get me wrong, but it is a little more busy and has a little more 'umph' that needs to happen and sometimes it's hard to want to give that extra 'umph'. (Especially when you have a lot going on already.)
If I focus on the fact that the reason we even have this holiday isn't ultimately for me or for the pleasing of others. It's for focusing in on the miraculous birth that happened because God chose to become a human being and dwell among us. It becomes a little easier to see through some of the chaos and craziness of the season.
He did something that he didn't put the first man and woman through and came to earth as an infant and learned what it was to grow up as one of us. The one who created us from the tips of our toes to the number of hairs we are able to grow on our heads created himself and became one of us.
At this point my head kind of explodes

How can that be? Why would he even want to? How could so much bigness and Godness get itself to fit into our small humanness? 

Anyway that's my thoughts for today. Merry Christmas!

The Most Wonderful Time...

Day 30

I'm thankful for the holiday season.

I love Christmas and Thanksgiving and New Years. I love the fact that the whole country (and many other countries) have decided to celebrate this time of year. There is a magical sparkly-ness to this time of year that doesn't happen any other time. People seem to be celebrating all around whether they are actually celebrating the holiday coming up or just enjoying the benefits of what effect the holiday has on the people and surroundings around them.
People seem more open and friendly. More willing to say "hello" and "Merry Christmas." More willing to spend a minute or two of time talking to a stranger that just a week or two ago they would have passed by without so much as a glance.
I challenge you this holiday season to say hello and smile at a complete stranger, wish them a Merry Christmas.
For those of you up for a level two challenge I would challenge you to hand a tract out to someone and try to spread the message of the gospel to those around you.
You can find tracts at the following locations: http://www.tractplanet.com, http://store.livingwaters.com
Or you can find your own favorite tract resource. These just happen to carry the tracts I like to hand out.
It's perhaps the best time of year to do just that.

Guiding Grace

Day 29

I'm thankful for God's guidance that He gives us.

I'm not such a great planner on my own. Sure I can plan but my greatest adventures have happened as a result of God leading me and guiding me to where I needed to be. It's not always the expected place and more often than not it's the unexpected places that God ends up leading me.

I may plan to go one direction and God opens doors in a totally different direction. 

Totally want to do this now.

Simple (and a little Silly) Saturday

Day 28

I'm thankful for pillows.

Yep. I'm really thankful for pillows.
When I was looking at pillows I found some really nerdy ones.

Can find it on etsy Here

You can find something similar Here

These would make great Christmas gifts. Find them Here

Here is a gift idea for those on your list who are really into sushi. 

This one was just nerdy. Find it Here

Hope.

Day 27

I'm thankful for Hope.

Hope is something that drives us forward. We hope to accomplish things, we hope that things will turn out well, we put our hope in the strength that God gives us, we hope to survive, etc. There are a lot of things we put our hope in and hope for.
If we didn't have hope, how would things get accomplished? If people didn't have hope, how would anything get invented? How would society move forward?
Hope keeps us alive and keeps us moving forward.
It drives our faith forward as well according to Hebrews 11:1

Faith makes our hopes sure (or well founded and solid) and our hopes drive our faith forward. (That is how I read this particular verse.) What do you hope for today? 

Sounds from the Soul

Day 26

I'm thankful for music.

Music a medium of art that we use to express ourselves. People compose it, write lyrics to it, sing along with it, dance to it, and use it as a means of worship.
Here are a couple of ones that I have that I consider more "thanksgivingy". Enjoy!

Here is a link to Andrew Peterson's "Don't You Want to Thank Someone"

The Relationships we are Given

Day 25

I'm thankful for the relationships God gives us.

Relationships are important parts of our lives. They can be family relationships, friend relationships, church relationships, and casual relationships. They all play a part of our lives and help to make us who we are as individuals.
God brings each of these relationships into our lives. I believe that each of these relationships are in our lives for a reason. (Sometimes for more than one reason.)
Some are more challenging than others but it's those ones that I find help to grow me the most. I'm thankful for not just the "easy" relationships but also for the hard ones. They are the ones that have tested and taught me the most.