From Isaiah 2:3: “Many peoples shall come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us His waysand that we may walk in His paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth instructionand the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”
From Romans 15:12-13: “And again Isaiah says, ‘The root of Jesse shall come,the one who rises to rule the gentiles; in Him the gentiles shall hope.’ May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
The popular hymn, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” has been a favorite of past Advent seasons. The original hymn can found in the music of monastic life over 1,200 years ago. The English version was translated in 1851 by John Mason Neale, who was an English Anglican priest and hymn writer.
From Ephesians 4:15-16: “But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.”
Published in 1896, “My Goal is God Himself” was written by Frances Brook. She was the daughter of a pastor, but poor health prevented her from becoming a Christian missionary.
This devotion is another page from my wife’s recently published book, BITS ‘N’ PIECES OF MY HEART. Colleen’s treasured memory shares God’s light as it nourishes a family with His love.
Living close to parents, grandparents, siblings and other family members allows you to spend more time together. Sometimes you can live down the street, a couple miles away, or just an hour’s drive. When this is the case, your family can have dinner with Grandma and Grandpa, attend church together, and get together for all kinds of fun activities. Unfortunately, there can be reasons that prevent this from happening. Mommy’s or Daddy’s job may require you to move to live in another town, or even a state far from where your family is. If this is your family’s situation, special planning is often required to visit your relatives.
During most of the time after our girls were born, we found ourselves living in different states, far from where my immediate family lived. They lived on the beautiful eastern shore of Maryland. At the time, we were living in a very small town near the border between Florida and Georgia. It did take much thinking and talking before we decided that I would drive to Maryland with Taryn and Heather. Since it was October, we planned the trip so we would arrive in my home town on the day they celebrated Halloween with “Trick or Treating” for the children! We planned to arrive just after the time that children would be heading around in my mother’s neighborhood.
We arrived at the perfect time. The beautiful sunset hung over the bridge that led into the town. Street lights were already helping guide the children and families walking in the neighborhood. My mother’s house was a block from the bridge at the entrance of town. I parked the car around the corner so she wouldn’t be able to see us from her doorstep.
The girls’ Granny had been a floral designer for many, many years in her brother’s flower shop. This was helpful when we chose costumes for them to wear. It also helped to know that pink and purple were Granny’s favorite colors. Heather was an adorable flower! She had green pants on, and wore an extra-large green hoodie sweatshirt so the sleeves hung over her arms to make “leaves”. I had painted a pretty pink and purple flower on cardboard with the perfect sized center to fit around her face. Taryn was inside a big box with a hole on the top and two sides for her head and arms to come out. We had covered the box in glittery gift wrap with pink and purple hearts. Since I had worked in my uncle’s shop I was fortunate to learn some design skills. I was able to make a big purple bow to tie around the top of Taryn’s head.
Our plan was to walk from our car to her yard at the other corner of the block. We walked quietly to the shrubs around the side of the house, and waited until there was no one on her sidewalk. As I hid behind a bush, but was close enough to hear, Taryn and Heather slowly walked by the front picture window to the sidewalk, and rang the doorbell. When the door opened, they smiled and sang “Trick or Treat”! Granny’s eyes widened with love and excitement! To say they received some sweet treats would be an understatement. They received sweet, surprised “Oohs, Aahs, Hugs, Kisses, and much, much more”. To say that her granddaughters and daughter surprised their Granny doesn’t even come close.
I came out from behind the bushes and joined in the best, loving family celebration. The “Trick or Treat” surprise was the beginning of a special week-long visit with Granny. Words cannot begin to express the importance of our time with her.
From Psalm 133:1: “How very good and pleasant it iswhen kindred live together in unity!”
William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) was an Irish writer. As a poet, he was one of the most influential of the 20th century. In 1923, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
From Nehemiah 8:9: “And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.’ For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.”
From 1 Corinthians 3:21-23: “So let no one boast about human leaders. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.”
From 1 Corinthians 3:21-23: “So let no one boast about human leaders. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.”
Big Sky Buckeye 