Merry CHRISTmas!!

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, "Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, "Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us." And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
Luke 2:8-16

We pray that you know the Christ of Christmas as your personal Saviour. May the world's temptation to make Christmas all about Santa and gifts not overshadow this holy time of year for you and your family.

Love,

Fred and Rosemary

Jesus is the Reason for the Season!

I think I've written Merry Christmas and said it more times this season than I have ever in my whole life. I always took that little phrase somewhat for granted, until it was obvious this year that most retailers were down playing the Christmas decorations and instructing employees to say Happy Holidays, or, in some cases, dictating that they not say anything at all!

"Then peal the bells more loud and clear, God is not dead, nor doth he sleep! The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with Peace on Earth, Good Will toward men.""

So, to you and your family I wish you all a Christ filled Christmas!!!

The Reason for the Season - JESUS

Matthew 1:21 (King James Version)

"And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins."

The last few years have seen an obvious change in the way businesses handle greetings for the Christmas holiday. When I was growing up, in fact, when our children were growing up, everyone wished each other a "Merry Christmas!"

But the last few years many stores and businesses have tried to be politically correct, so they started wishing folks "Happy Holidays" instead. This year, it seems like most of the clerks we have dealt with are just not saying anything. If we wish the clerk a Merry Christmas, we get a Merry Christmas in return. But if we don't say anything, they don't either. They just take our money, and go about their business. Has anyone else noticed this?

I realize that strangers who greet each other at this time of the year don't know if they are speaking to a Christian, or not. But hubby and I say Merry Christmas, regardless, because that is what WE are celebrating! Would I be offended if someone greeted me with Happy Chanukah? No, I would not. I would wish them a Happy Chanukah in return, without a moment's hesitation. Of course, Kwanzaa is not a religious holiday, but if I knew that someone was celebrating that time of remembrance, I would wish them Habari Gani, too.

I think the overall principle here is that it is to be a time of "Good Will Toward ALL Men." And that is what I try to live.

May you and yours have a wonderful Christmas time together.

SANTA .... He's EVERYWHERE!!

We have always had a lot of fun finding unusual items at Estate Sales on our Friday Date Day, but this little Santa decoration caught my eye, and the more we looked at it, the more unusual it appeared. If you click on the picture, you will see that all of the dolls in Santa's stockings have sad faces! Doesn't that seem strange to you?

So, it's not surprising that it was a Santa collector who bought him from us on eBay. I struck up a conversation with Brian, and asked him if I could share some of the pictures of his collection that he sent to me. He plans to write a book about Santa collecting, and it looks like he has plenty to write about!

Have You Put Your Christmas Decorations Away?

My mother instilled in me as long as I can remember that it was "bad luck" to leave our Christmas decorations up into the New Year. She always took hers down within a day or so after Christmas. So this was something I have never done - not that I really believe it would bring me bad luck, but it's just a good incentive to get things put back to normal. And it does help to have a deadline. Otherwise, knowing me, I would procrastinate.

Obviously, some people haven't heard about the bad luck thing, because it seems a lot of people around here leave their outside lights up year round. As hard as they must be to get up there, I can sympathize, even though I can't imagine doing it myself.

I'm curious to find out how others feel about what to do with the holiday trimmings, once the holiday is past. So ... are yours still up?????

They Rejoiced with Exceeding Great Joy

Matthew 2

1Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

2Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

3When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

4And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

5And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,

6And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

7Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.

8And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.

9When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.

10When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

11And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh.

12And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

(scripture copy/pasted from BibleGateway.com)