A Thrill Of Hope...

Every day in December I've been writing an advent entry of a XMAS story. Tomorrow is the final entry, but enjoy today's entry, and then follow the link to start at Day 1 and read the whole thing.

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It was a beautiful, clear night. Avi and Eli were lying out under the stars, enjoying the cool, crisp air, relaxing, even while keeping an eye out for any potential threats, after all, their sheep were quite valuable. The fields were quiet, though, save for the occasional bleating coming from the flock.

10 Things To Love About Fall

 

It's the first day of Fall! This is perhaps the greatest season. It has a good back-and-forth with Winter for my favorite season, but I think, at least for the time being, Fall has taken the lead. There are so many fantastic things about this season.

• Cooler weather: It's time to wear jackets, hats, scarves, etc..., but it's still warm enough to go outside and enjoy the weather.
• Changing leaves: All the absolutely gorgeous colors that fill the world during this season are breathtaking and leave you in amazement and awe of the beauty of God's creation. It also means that there will soon be large piles of leaves to play in with my kids. (Of course who's kidding, I like playing in big piles of leaves too :) )

Presents?

Another newsletter post. It comes after Christmas, but that's ok.

Christmas is coming up quick, and before you know it, it will be Christmas morning, but what’s this whole Christmas thing really all about? Presents of course! That’s why we have a tree, to put presents under. That’s why we have bows and ribbon, to wrap presents in. That’s why we bake cookies, to give Santa, who brings us presents. It’s all about presents, what we are going to get and what we are going to give, right?

When I was a kid we lived close to the ocean, and we would regularly visit the beach. On one such visit, my parents discovered a shirt, buried in the sand and soaked in salty ocean water. It was just my size, and I think, had planes or some sort of vehicle on it. So what did my parents do, what anyone would do! They picked it up, took it home, washed it, and gave it to me as a gift. This shirt became one of my favorite articles of clothing!

Christmas really is about gifts, or rather, a gift. Jesus, all powerful God, became a weak human baby in order to ultimately give us the gift of salvation through Him! He willingly wrapped Himself in the dirty, sandy, salty, wet shirt of humanity, and then He did what we could not, He cleaned it and made it sparklingly pure, and finally, He gave it back to us, a present of salvation. You can deny the present, refuse to take it, say that it’s not good enough, or He’s not good enough, but ultimately it is the greatest gift you will ever receive, and once you accept it you will want to wear it and show it off to everyone around!

So, while you are getting and giving gifts this Christmas make sure that you don’t miss the best gift of all, the one that God has given you!

Merry Christmas!