Friday, December 31, 2010

hoppin' into 2011




isn't it fascinating that 2010 has rolled to an end already?  that a whole other year is beginning?  i remember when years used to just drag on and on...  it seemed like time took forever to pass...  i had all the time in the world to get things done or do whatever i wanted to do...  now though - tick tock, tick tock...  i must hurry up or it's going to just whip by me before i know it.

how does that happen and why as we get older?  shouldn't it be the other way around?  slow down as we age?  doesn't quite make sense to me but it's only one of many things.

what does 2011 have in store for you?  many blessings i hope and pray...

have a safe happy new years eve. 

happy day.....

Saturday, December 25, 2010

o come all ye faithful


"so they hurried off and found mary and joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  when they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.  but mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.  the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising god for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told."  luke 2:16-20

happy birthday, jesus!

merry christmas, all...


happy day.....

Saturday, December 18, 2010

from the mouths of babes...

don't you just love it when children tell stories?  the perspective they have?  the words they use?  the innocence?  they just say it like it is.... here's one version of the christmas story.  it is precious beyond words...





happy day.....

Friday, December 17, 2010

christmas thoughts...

this little story was forwarded to me and i thought it was worth passing along... 
too many times we get caught up in the hustle and bustle at this time of the year... we worry about the exchange of gifts - what to get for whom, what we're going to get from whom.... do we stop for a moment to breathe, to reflect, to realize the true meaning - it is the birth of baby jesus - and to give pause that really it shouldn't be just at this particular time of year we should be doing these things but throughout the whole year?  we should be nice to each other, give gifts, pray for peace, share blessings, bestow generosity, be thankful... if only...
this will make you ponder...
An excerpt from
The Simple Blessing of Christmas
by Mark Gilroy
Norman Vincent Peale, noted minister and author from the previous century, tells the story of a young girl from Sweden spending Christmas in big, bustling New York City. She was living with an American family and helping them around the house, and she didn't have much money. So she knew she couldn't get them a very nice Christmas present - besides, they already had so much, with new gifts arriving every day.
With just a little money in her pocket, she went out and bought an outfit for a small baby, and then she set out on a journey to find the poorest part of town and the poorest baby she could find. At first, she received only strange looks from passersby when she asked them for help. But then a kind stranger, a Salvation Army bell-ringer, guided her to a poor part of town and helped her deliver her gift. On Christmas morning, instead of giving them a wrapped present, she told the family she served what she had done in their name. Everyone was speechless, and everyone was blessed - the girl for giving, the wealthy family for seeing others with new eyes, and the poor family for receiving an unexpected gift.
All of us have opportunities both large and small to show kindness, especially at Christmastime. We can help strangers by delivering gifts to needy kids or serving homeless families at a soup kitchen. Or we can simply look for everyday ways to be kind, like allowing someone to go ahead of us in a lengthy line at the department store, or giving that bell-ringer a little change and a few encouraging words.
Maybe it's because we're in gift-giving mode anyway that giving to others becomes so important at Christmas. Or because we're more aware of our families and friends and communities. Or maybe it's because two thousand years ago, the earth received the most perfect, most loving gift of all, helping us to understand true kindness.
Whatever the reason, don't let Christmas pass you by without showing kindness to someone. Because it is truly more blessed to give than to receive.

happy day.....