CHRISTmas 5 of 12

Not so sure what this has to do with Christmas, but hey...another good reminder=)

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: 'For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:35-39 (NIV)

Not Alone at All

When you feel the most alone, it may be the very moment when you are truly "least" alone at all.God is there in your darkest night and coldest wind. He may be so close you cannot see Him, but He is there. And perhaps He has chosen this moment to pull you closer to Him than you have ever been before.

CHRISTmas 4 of 12

Make Room for More

If you give, you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, and running over. Whatever measure you use in giving--large or small--it will be used to measure what is given back to you." Luke 6:38 (NLT)

We have heard people say, "You can't out-give God." Well, you can't out-give yourself either! You don't need to be wealthy to possess a giving heart.
Give a smile, lend an ear, extend a hand. However you give, God's promise is tried and tested, and you'll see the blessings return multiplied back to you.

(This devotional was taken from about.com)

This is definitely the time of the year, I feel like giving the most. It makes me so sad to think, some precious child won't be getting any gifts this year. I can't make a difference in everybody's life, but I hope to learn how to go the extra mile and be kind to ALL of those around me. Even the ones that drive 10 miles per hour on a street that is not snow covered enough to be driving 10 miles per hour!!!=)

CHRISTmas 3 0f 12

Just a reminder=)

Wonderful Impossibilities

"When God intends to make something wonderful he begins with a difficulty. When he intends to make something very wonderful, he begins with an impossibility."
- Former Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Coggan

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

Wonderful Impossibilities

The birth of Jesus was not just a difficulty, it was an impossibility. Mary was a virgin. Only God could breath life into her womb. And just as God caused her to conceive the perfect sinless Savior - fully God, fully human - He can accomplish through you, those things that seem impossible in your life.

(devotional taken from about.com)

CHRISTmas Day 2 of 12

Not so sure I liked todays devotion. Kind of generic.

How does YOUR family, "Keep Christ in Christmas?"
Let me know what traditions you have incorporated into your Christmas celebration!

CHRISTmas Day 1 0f 12

As I began to prepare for Christmas, in my thoughts a few months ago, I began to hear little pieces of what God wanted me to do. Here and there you hear of parents getting their child 3 gifts to symbolize the 3 gifts brought to baby Jesus. I always thought it was a cool idea, so we will be implementing this tradition (it is really hard though, so we will get them each 3 gifts and the stocking stuffers don't count!) Then after reading a few different blogs, the phrase "Keeping Christ in Christmas" kept repeating itself in my head.

For the past few years we have made a paper chain so Merci could count the days until Christmas. Last year each link had a little something written on it that we could do. (make cookies, make a Christmas card for grandma, etc.) This year we will be doing the same but each day we will implement something to remind us to "Keep Christ in Christmas!" Merci is not allowed to tell us what she wants for Christmas, and is not allowed to say I want, we are trying to get her focus off the presents...We all know how hard that is for kids and adults=) I did some looking on the internet and found lots of great stuff, crafts, coloring pages, poems, stories, etc. On About.Com, they even have daily devotionals. Which I am not sure will be age appropriate for Merci but I love hearing new scriptures, I may have missed or never thought about before, so I will be posting, them for me and hopefully you can get something out of them also!


"This is Christmas: not the tinsel, not the giving and receiving, not even the carols, but the humble heart that receives anew the wondrous gift, the Christ." - Frank McKibben

"And what a difference between our sin and God's generous gift of forgiveness. For this one man, Adam, brought death to many through his sin. But this other man, Jesus Christ, brought forgiveness to many through God's bountiful gift. And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin. For Adam's sin led to condemnation, but we have the free gift of being accepted by God, even though we are guilty of many sins. The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over us, but all who receive God's wonderful, gracious gift of righteousness will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." Romans 5:15-17 (NLT)

The Greatest Christmas Gift

Each year we are reminded that Christmas should not be just about giving and receiving

But if we really think about Christmas, it truly is all about gift giving! At Christmas we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the greatest gift ever given, by the greatest gift-giver of all, our wonderful God and Father!

Taken from About.Com!