What Are You Watering? by Bridget A. Thomas

Posted on January 6, 2022 by Bridget

Happy New Year, Everyone! I love starting a New Year because it always feels like there is so much hope on the horizon. And we sure need a whole lot of hope these days!

But the truth is that we never know how the year will unfold. 2020 is a great example. In January we heard many puns based on 2020 vision, as people predicted that they would have perfect sight that year. Yet that year blindsided us all. When 2021 approached, we thought things would look up. However, 2021 was also a tough year for many of us as well.

Will 2022 be a better year? We don’t know that yet. And honestly the truth is that every year will have low points and high points. This might make us feel a bit nervous, because we can’t control what comes our way. But there is hope and there is something we can do to help guide our year.

A few weeks ago I saw a meme on social media that said, “Too many people think the grass is greener somewhere else, but the grass is green where you water it. Remember that.”

This hit me because it’s so true and because there is so much we can learn from this. We don’t know what each day will bring, but throughout the year we can take steps to water the good things in our lives. We can set aside time with the Lord and water our connection to Him. We can spend time with loved ones and water those relationships as well. We can focus on our careers and water our growth in that area. We can practice gratitude and water our attitude. We can set aside time for rest and water our souls. We can eat better and exercise and water our health.

Perhaps you have already written down your New Years Resolutions or chosen a word for the year. Or maybe you are the type that finds New Years too depressing and you skip all those traditions. Either way, I hope you will join me and prayerfully consider what things you might water in your life over the next twelve months.

“The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.” – Isaiah 58:11

Image by Markus Spiske on unsplash.com

© 2022 Bridget A. Thomas

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Reclaim by Julie Arduini

Posted on January 5, 2022 by juliearduini

Merriam-Webster defines reclaim as follows:

Definition of reclaim

transitive verb1a: to recall from wrong or improper conduct : REFORM

b: TAME, SUBDUE

2a: to rescue from an undesirable state also: to restore to a previous natural state reclaim mining sites

b: to make available for human use by changing natural conditions reclaim swampland

3: to obtain from a waste product or by-product : RECOVER reclaimed plastic

4a: to demand or obtain the return of

b: to regain possession of

Reclaim is the word God gave me for 2022. It’s not just for me to focus on, but I believe it’s a promise and proclamation. It’s also for you.

The last two years have been hard at the very least and devastating for most. There has been loss of life, jobs, finances, peace, relationships, and more.

During Christmas break, we were in New York State. The mandates there are stronger there than most states, and whether I agree with that or not isn’t my point. My husband was in the state less than three hours when he pulled in to greet me. One of his first comments was he couldn’t wait to get out. When I probed why, I actually knew, because I could feel it.

His answer? He could feel the fear and oppression. It was spiritually choking both of us. Even with masks on, you could see and feel the fear, even in the most faithful people.

Do we take the events seriously? Absolutely. But to live with that fear? No.

It’s time to reclaim.

If Jesus is Savior to you, we have every right to proclaim His promises. We are promised peace beyond all understanding. We have the authority under the blood of Christ to cast out infirmity and demons. And after feeling absolutely paralyzed by grief and trauma last year, I am ready to reclaim.

There’s an old song I remember teaching kids when I first taught Sunday School. It’s about going to the enemy’s camp and taking back everything he stole from us. I’m a visual person and I can picture the enemy with his fancy tent, mocking me, mocking you, with his accumulated spoils.

Here’s the thing. He is the defeated one. Not us. Not you. Not me. Even if nothing changes around us, and I think in 2022 we are going to see a LOT of change, we aren’t defeated. Never forget that. Picture yourself, Jesus marching ahead with purpose, yet also in the back as your rearguard, literally surrounding you, as you make your way to the defeated one’s territory. I don’t make a habit of addressing the defeated one, but I do believe in the power of proclamation.

I see myself gathering up the joy, peace, health, and lost opportunities and placing them in the arms of Jesus. I envision walking over to the defeated one and placing my foot in such a way he falls to the ground and my feet rest on his broken self. “By the blood of Jesus, I reclaim all that has been stolen and place the defeated one under my feet. The enemy has no authority over me or my family. I reclaim that promise by the power of Christ for the glory of His name.”

And Jesus and I skip back home.

Sure, my picturing it is a form of story-telling, but the proclamation and promises of Jesus are real. Use them. Reclaim what has been lost. This is the year.

***

I created a short story, Unwrapping Hearts, as a prequel to my 2022 release, Anchored Hearts. This FREE contemporary romance is the origin story of patriarch Paul Hart and how after years as a widower, saw his neighbor, Shelly Hoffman, in a new way. Look for Anchored Hearts, the first book in the Surrendering Hearts series about the Hart sextuplets, by spring.

Unwrapping Hearts

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Whose Side? by James R. Coggins

Posted on January 4, 2022 by jrcoggins

At a morning church service, we sang a song about God being “for us.” The idea comes from Romans 8:31: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (NIV) One of the pastors then told us to greet each other and say, “God is for you.” But one woman came up to me and asked, “Do you really believe God is for you?” It was a probing question that required some thought and soul searching. As I pondered the question through the rest of the service, Joshua 5-6 came to mind.

Joshua had led the people of Israel into the Promised Land and was about to begin the long campaign to conquer it. Suddenly, he was confronted by a soldier with a sword in his hand. Joshua didn’t recognize the man. He could have been one of the hundreds of thousands of Israelite soldiers, or he could have been a Canaanite. If the man was an Israelite, great. If he was a Canaanite, Joshua would immediately have had to fight. So, Joshua asked the obvious question: “Are you for us or for our enemies?” (Joshua 5:13) That is, he was asking: “Whose side are you on?” It turned out that the man was a messenger from God. From our modern entitled perspective, we would expect that the messenger would reassure Joshua and tell him not to worry because God was on his side. After all, it was God who had promised the land to the Israelites and told them to go in and conquer it.  

But God’s messenger did not give that reassurance. Instead, he said, “Neither” (Joshua 5:14). And then he went on to say that he was the commander of God’s army. Specifically, he said that he was the commander of the army of Yahweh—the true God who had revealed Himself to Abraham, Moses, and the Israelites. And then he told Joshua to take off his sandals because he was standing on holy ground, that is, because he was in the presence of God. It was the same thing that God had told Moses from the burning bush (Exodus 3:5). And then the messenger gave Joshua instructions for what the Israelites were to do while God conquered the city of Jericho for them.

There is a story, quite possibly apocryphal, that one of US President Abraham Lincoln’s assistants asked him during the American Civil War, “Do you ever worry that God might not be on our side?” Lincoln supposedly answered that the question did not bother him at all but that he often worried that he might not be on God’s side.

The difference is profound. In our modern entitled age, we sometimes get the idea that, since we are children of God, God is on our side, that God will always bless us, that God is our servant. It is the other way around. God is not our servant. We are to be God’s servants. That is why Joshua took off his shoes, to show that he was submitting to God as God’s slave. It is also why Joshua and the Israelites obeyed God’s instructions to just march around Jericho and let God conquer the city. And when Israel sinned and disobeyed God, God did not help Israel when Israel attacked the next city, Ai. In fact, God fought against Israel, and Israel was defeated.

The great battle in life is not between us and our enemies, us and our challenges. It is between good and evil, God and the evil one. The question is not whose side God is on but whose side we are on. The question is not whether God is for us. It is a given that God loves us and wants to bless us. But the determining factor is whether we submit ourselves to God so that He can bless us. The question is not whether God is for us, but whether we are for Him, obeying Him and being totally committed to Him. That includes confessing when we are wrong and asking God to forgive us, as the Israelites did after their failure at Ai (Joshua 7-8).

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LIVE LIFE IN COLOR by Vicki Hinze

Posted on January 3, 2022 by Vicki Hinze
Photo by Eve Kurnaz on Unsplash

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

 Philippians 4:8

It’s a new year, and most of us are glad to shake the dust of the challenges of 2021 from our shoes.  We know what we want to leave behind in the ashbin of history, but what do we want to move toward?

When we think about that, we often start with a simple thought like “I want to move toward a better year with fewer challenges.”  That’s fine, but to actually help ourselves get to that place, we need more specific information.  We need to define our vision of a better place.  We need to identify what makes it a better place in our view.

As we think about the specifics, they become clearer in our minds.  What had been a gray area starts to fill first with opaque colors.  The more we think, the bolder the colors become until we’ve gotten very specific with exactly what we would love to see in our lives and what we do not want to see.

Now many stop thinking right there.  Once they have a clear picture in mind, they consider the work done.  But the truth is only half of the work is done. Why?

Because we haven’t actually done anything to make our lives better.  At best, the painting is only half-done.  It’s like planning a trip.  You make the reservations, map out the path to your destination, pack and do all the things to prepare for your trip, but you haven’t actually gone anywhere just yet.  You prepare, and then you go.

Preparation is like faith.  You prepare believing you’ll go on that trip.

We’ve all heard about faith without action.  This is the same principle.  Yes, identifying what makes life better for us is critical.  But vital as well is continuing on in our thoughts, focusing on concrete actions that help us get from where we are to where we want to be.

These movements can be little things or big things.  For a child, the wish might be for better dental checkups.  Less time in a dentist’s chair would make a child’s life better.  So, the action to get there would be to brush and floss morning and night and after meals.

1.  Faith.

2.  Action.

For adults, the formula is the same:

1.  Define the challenge and your vision of life without it.

2.  Identify reasonable things you can do to remove the challenge.

3.  Act to bring your vision to your life.

That’s living deliberately.  That’s doing what you can to make your life more of what you want and less of what you don’t want. 

Note the Bible verse above.  Where we are instructed to focus our energy and our thoughts.  Simply put, it’s on the good things.  The message on this is clear and simple, and the impact is profound.

Too often people focus on the challenges to the exclusion of the blessings.  The above verse makes it clear that’s a mistake.  It cautions us to be positive and constructive, grateful and to focus on the good.  

There’s a key to a door of peace in that verse.  When you focus on good, you think on good, you tend to do good.  That makes for fewer challenges and more contentment all on its own.  But when you deliberately act to do good things to get to your better, you multiply the potential for achieving it.  

True, you might not get the better you envisioned, but you’ll get closer to it.  Or perhaps you’ll exceed it.  Gain more than you envisioned.  That’s possible, too.

Taking the lessons from the verse, doing what you can to define not only what you need to make life better, but to also define existing things that make life good you’d like more of in your life.  Acting on both.

When you act on both, you minimize specific challenges you want out of your life and maximize good things in your life that you want more of in your life. 

With each action you take and sustain, you enhance life and the colors in it grow bolder and bolder.

And that’s living in color.

Wishing you all a colorful and blessed new year!

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The Earth, Design, and Written Records by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 29, 2021 by jrcoggins

Today I will not be presenting a new blog (which, in the chaotic lull between Christmas and New Year’s, no one will have time to read anyway). Instead, for your reading pleasure, I offer some original poems. (Yippee!) Hey, they are all short, and there is always an outside chance that you might find one of them mildly insightful or thought-provoking (or at least silly enough to laugh at).

Earthly Revolutions

Blithely we make New Year’s resolutions

which anticipate great revolutions

in our way of living.

And yet, unless the spirit deeply yearns,

we’re only like the earth that merely turns

round to its beginning.

Design

Entering the cocoon,

the butterfly knows nothing of future beauty,

the promise already made.

She knows only blind obedience

to the irresistible call

of the One who knows the end from the beginning

because He planned it all.

The Written Record

We think we write in pencil,

not indelible ink,

unaware that we are not

the One who holds the eraser.

We think we will have a chance

to revise our record

before it is handed in to the Judge,

covering up the mistakes,

polishing the errors

till they shine,

unaware that the report has already been read,

the Judge not being bound by time.

Waiting Rooms

In waiting rooms for any cause,

we slip into idle, neutral, pause.

We cannot think or read or write

throughout the day or through the night.

We cannot hold our hand or mind

to steady work of any kind,

distracted wait in wakeful snooze

to hear the good or dreaded news.

The Great Cat Race

The cats agreed to hold a race

to determine first and second place.

And so they all began to run

till charges sidelined all the fun.

“You’re a cheetah!” one cat cried.

“And you are lion!” he replied.

Though he ran till he was hot,

the leopard could not change his spot.

“The race is fixed!” he cried aloud,

his cries unheeded by the crowd.

A sleek gazelle then happened by

and quickly captured every eye.

“The gazelle is mine!” rang out the call—

the race collapsed into a brawl.

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Clear Away the Clutter

Posted on December 28, 2021 by Author Mary Alford

Another Christmas has passed. I hope you each had a wonderful celebration of the birth of our Savior.

At my house, it’s time to take down the tree. Put away the decorations for another year and prepare for the New Year.

As we look forward to 2022, a New Year always represents a time of excitement and anticipation as well as a little unease over what it will bring.

After the past two years where COVID has dominated our lives, and the world has become more troubling with each passing day, I find myself a little more uneasy as 2022 approaches than I normally would be.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

This year, as I clear away the Christmas clutter, take the tree out to mulch, and tuck the decorations away for another time, I realize I need to do some more decluttering. Anything that gets in the way of me having the closest relationship I can have with Jesus in 2022 is clutter and I want to get rid of it, so that no matter what comes my way in 2022, I can find the peace that comes from resting in Jesus knowing I will get through it all.

I hope you will join me this year in clearing away the unimportant clutter from our lives, and I wish for you a blessed and uncluttered New Year!

All the best. . .

Mary Alford

www.maryalford.net 

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New Year Expectations by Tara Randel

Posted on December 27, 2021 by tararandel

I hope everyone had a beautiful Christmas. I enjoyed time with my family, exchanging gifts and eating good food. My husband and I watched a Christmas Eve livestream service with our daughter and let me say, it was one of  the best times we’ve had together, in or out of church.

Soon we’ll be putting away the gifts, taking down the decorations and getting ready for a new year. I don’t make resolutions, but I do strive to take a measured look at the year to come. I’m thankful that I have work throughout the year. I love my job and wouldn’t want to be in any other profession. But as much as I can’t wait to sit down at the keyboard, I know there has to be balance in my life.

This year I’m focusing on just that; balance. Intentionally making sure I spend time with loved ones. Making sure I don’t get in over my head. Although, that’s a foregone conclusion since I’ve already signed contracts, but being able to manage my time so I don’t feel so under the water is a goal.

I will stop to take deep breaths.

I will read and study the Word.

I will go to the gym early and start my day off with exercise.

I will go to Disney whenever my daughter wants to go.

I will smell the roses along the way.

Simple intentions, sometimes hard to carry out.

There’s no telling what 2022 will bring. Who would have thought we’d have had so much stress and tension in the last two years? But no matter what we do or where we are, we must always remember; I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. No matter the struggles, standing on God’s word will bring us peace and  purpose in this new year.

Happy New Year!

There’s still time to enjoy a little more Christmas fun!

Amazon

Harlequin

B&N

Apple

Kobo

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The Spirit of Christmas Part 2 by Bridget A. Thomas

Posted on December 23, 2021 by Bridget

A few weeks ago my husband and I were trying to decide what to eat for dinner. We each threw out options, but nothing sounded appetizing. Then my husband mentioned Chinese, and that sounded good to me. There is a Chinese buffet in the mall in our small town. As my husband and I normally do with most of our restaurant eating, we like to take it home. So we went in, filled up a couple of takeout containers, and headed to the checkout.

There was an elderly gentleman who was making his way to the checkout with his bill at the same time we were. He was slow moving and bent over a bit, using a cane to aid him. We let the man go ahead of us. Then my husband told me he wanted us to pay for his bill. I agreed. So my husband then approached the man and asked the man if we could pay his bill. The man seemed a little disoriented at first, but then he said it was okay.

After paying we went to man’s table to meet his wife and granddaughter. And the man spoke to us for a few minutes, asking us several times to pray for him. He told us his name and a few things that he had been through recently. But the beautiful thing was that this man seemed melancholy when we first laid eyes on him, but had transformed into a more chipper man by the time we parted ways.

This encounter brought a blessing on both sides. My husband and I were talking about it as we drove home and agreed that the reason why we went to that restaurant was just for that man.

My coworker told me a similar story recently. There is a grocery store very close to our office, almost diagonal across an intersection. Many of my coworkers go there at lunchtime to grab something to eat. The preferred route is to turn right at the intersection and left into the parking lot. But on this particular day, my coworker went straight at the light and right into the parking lot. (Going this way is more of a hassle because you have to go through a gas station, past a fast food place, and also go by a car wash.) On this particular day, my coworker noticed what appeared to be a homeless man sitting on the ground near the car wash. So when he went in the grocery store, he added an extra sandwich, chips, and coke to his basket. After leaving the grocery store he handed the man a bag of food, and the man was so thankful to receive it. My coworker mentioned that he knew that was why he took that route to the store when he normally goes the other way.

In both of these incidents, I am reminded how much we need to tune into the Holy Spirit and listen to His promptings. Sometimes we will feel a little “nudge” on the inside that tells us we should go to a certain place or take a particular path. Or the Lord might prompt us to give to someone in need, as we see in these two stories. There are many reasons why God might speak to us. If we turn an attentive ear towards Him, He will gladly direct our steps.

And I am also reminded of the importance of giving. People in general seem to be more giving around the holidays. But giving is something we can do all year. This Christmas season (and beyond), may we keep our hearts open for situations where we can give. And remember that giving doesn’t always require money. We can also give our time, our attention, an ear to listen, or a helping hand.

“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” – 2 Corinthians 9:6-8

I pray you and your loved ones have a very Merry CHRISTmas!

© 2021 Bridget A. Thomas

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Happy Early Festivus by Julie Arduini

Posted on December 22, 2021 by juliearduini
Image courtesy ABC 7 LA

Part of my marketing work is to create social media discussion. It helps me engage with readers, and honestly works an algorithm I don’t understand. I often use the Holiday Insights calendar for inspiration, and it rarely disappoints.

For instance, my social media discussion today is about Festivus. Ever hear about it? I remember watching Seinfeld every Thursday as a college student and then after graduation with my family. Although my dad has been gone since 2004, I can still hear him laugh over the Constanza antics.

Festivus was no exception.

As an author, I love learning the why behind things, especially beloved TV shows. I love The Office Ladies podcast for that very reason. I enjoyed reading the article about Festivus and how the Seinfeld readers came up with the story.

This year has been hard. This week will be busy and carry a lot of emotions for all of us. There has been so much loss and anxiety. Laughter really is a healing balm.

—Julie Arduini

I thought today I’d share the article I found on Festivus. I hope it gives you a smile.

I of course want to also wish you a Merry Christmas. May we never forget the supernatural events leading up to, including, and following the birth of Jesus.

As a gift, I’d like to share a Christmas short story I wrote. It’s a prequel origin story to my new series, Surrendering Hearts. I had fun writing it, and I’m super excited to share Book 1, Anchored Hearts, in 2022.

You can access the story within my newsletter HERE. No subscription necessary, although it’s a great way to stay connected.

Merry Christmas!

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Who is Jesus? by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 21, 2021 by jrcoggins

We sometimes look at the various announcements of Jesus’ birth and gloss over the detailed statements of who Jesus is. Luke 1:26-38 tells the story of the angel Gabriel appearing to Mary and telling her about the baby she would soon give birth to and who He would be.

First, the angel said that the baby should be called “Jesus,” which means “Yahweh saves.” Yahweh was the name by which God revealed Himself to the people of Israel. It means “I am” or “the God who really is.”

Second, the angel said that He would be “the Son of the Most High” and “the Son of God.” Contrary to some people’s statements that Jesus never claimed to be God or that the Bible never proclaimed Him to be God are these statements that He is indeed divine. And these phrases are not just figures of speech. God clearly suggested that He would be Jesus’ Father (Luke 1:35).

Third, the angel said that Jesus would rule as a King in David’s line. Kings were one of three groups to be anointed with oil in the Old Testament (along with prophets and priests). Therefore, the angel was clearly saying that Jesus was the promised Messiah (which is translated “Christ” in Greek and “Anointed” in English). But note that although David’s rule came to an end, the angel stated that Jesus’ rule “will never end,” making him greater than Israel’s greatest human king.

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2021 Winter Catalog is Here!

Posted on December 16, 2021 by Vicki Hinze

View it via this link!

Christians Read 2021 Winter Catalog
Christians Read Author Catalog Winter 2021

We hope you enjoy it, and wish you and yours a blessed Christmas!

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It is tough to write at Christmas by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 15, 2021 by jrcoggins

It is tough to write at Christmas. Christmas is the season of love and joy and peace. Everything that is written—a blog, a sermon, a story, a poem—must be filled with love and joy and peace. That is why we get so many stories about children and puppies and romance, angels and Santa Claus and miracles, fulfilled hopes and restored relationships and sappy endings. It is what is expected.

I have on my bookshelf a remarkable book called Christmas (Alfred A. Knopf, 1984). It was one of the first books I reviewed when I became a magazine editor, in the same year that the book was published. It contains the words of the Christmas story (King James Version) illustrated by a series of beautiful, evocative pictures by Jan Pienkowski. Pienkowski is a renowned illustrator of children’s stories. He was born in Warsaw, Poland and grew up during the German occupation in World War Two. The first panel Pienkowski chose to produce for this book illustrates the opening phrase from the gospel story, “In the days of Herod the King.” It is a haunting picture, filled with imprisonment, torture, execution, and even a hint at Herod’s sexual improprieties.

One part of the Christmas story that we do not like to think about but which medieval artists occasionally portrayed is “the slaughter of the innocents,” Herod’s murder of hundreds of innocent children in an attempt to kill the baby Jesus.

Jesus did not come to this world because it was filled with love and joy and peace. He came to this world because it was filled with hate, fear, violence, cruelty, corruption, sin, and evil. He came to be murdered. He came to change things. For us, that change must begin with a recognition of the evil in the world—and in our own hearts—and the need for change.

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The Simplicity of Christmas

Posted on December 14, 2021 by Author Mary Alford

If you are still in the middle of getting ready for Christmas you probably think, “There’s nothing simple about this.”  And you’re right. Preparing for Christmas gets harder every year, but the simplicity of God’s plan for Christmas couldn’t be less complicated or more beautiful.

Instead of being born to wealthy parents, God chose an innocent teenage girl from Nazareth to be the mother of the Savior of the world. His earthly father was a carpenter. They didn’t have a lot of money. The coming Messiah certainly wouldn’t be raised with the luxuries of this world at his fingertips.

When the time came for His Son to be born, there was no expensive chariot to take the expectant mother and Joseph to Bethlehem. Though the Bible doesn’t specify a mode of transportation, it was likely they walked or perhaps Mary rode on a donkey.

The sleeping arrangements in Bethlehem were not fit for the coming King either. Because of the census that was taking place, Bethlehem was packed and all available inns were filled.

And so, Mary gave birth to the Son of God surrounded by animals in a stable.

And the first people to hear the announcement of the Savior’s birth were not kings or rulers of the Jewish faith, they were shepherds living out in the fields with their sheep.

Back in the days of Jesus, shepherds were considered dishonest, untrustworthy, and unclean thieves. The lowest of the low. Yet God chose shepherds to announce the birth of the Good Shepherd.

Don’t you love how God works? He picked the humble in life to use as examples to let us know all are welcome to His saving grace. Not just the rich, or those born with the right pedigree. All are welcome.  

So, as you celebrate this Christmas season, I hope you remember that the simplicity of that Christmas long ago is the most important, life-changing event in all of human history.

Merry Christmas!

All the best. . .

Mary Alford

www.maryalford.net  

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Drawing Near by Nancy J. Farrier

Posted on December 10, 2021 by Nancy J. Farrier

During the week of Thanksgiving, my daughter, Abigail, and her two boys visited us. Her boys are six years old and three years old. As you can guess, they are full of energy and kept us running. We took walks to the park, baked cookies and croissants, read books, and played games. My arms almost fell off from pushing them on the swings, but I loved every minute.

One of the cutest things was how Finn, the three-year-old imitated his brother, Jimmy. If I fixed food, Finn was ready to eat—until Jimmy said, “I don’t want that.” Immediately, Finn refused to eat it too. If Jimmy wanted to swing or climb up the slide at the park, Finn had to do the same. No matter what his older brother wanted to try, Finn was game and followed his example.

I started thinking about this leading to negative attributes. What if Jimmy decided to do something a little daring, but which would be dangerous for his younger brother. Would Finn still try it? I’m pretty sure he would.

And how does this relate to us as adults and as Christians? Ephesians 5:1 tells us: “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” (NKJV)

We are to imitate God, not others around us, yet the temptation to try to be like someone we admire is almost too strong to ignore. And, yes, there are certain admirable traits that we want to emulate. Still, we must be careful. Even the best of us are led astray at times. 

What do we do then? What does scripture say over and over? Let’s look at a few verses.

“…for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.” Hebrews 7:19 (NKJV)

“But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all Your works.” Psalm 73:28 (NKJV)

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw nearto you….” James 4:7-8a (NKJV)

Drawing near to God gives us the incentive we need to become imitators of God, not imitators of mankind. He is the One we need to be like. God will never lead us astray. We can always trust Him to have our best in mind.

Jimmy and Finn were so cute together. Finn imitated his brother in everything because he admired his brother and wanted to be like him. That wouldn’t have happened if they didn’t spend so much time together.

We must spend time with God. Good quality time where we can see His character and study how we should be. Like these little boys know each other so well, let’s take the time to know God by drawing near to Him and imitating Him.

Posted in Nancy J. Farrier | Tagged , | 3 Comments

The Spirit of Christmas by Bridget A. Thomas

Posted on December 9, 2021 by Bridget

At my place of employment around Christmas, we collect non-perishable food, toiletries, stationary, and things of that nature for the elderly in the community. My heart always goes out to the elderly and I like to help them. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that when I was a kid, my mother often had elderly friends she would help care for, take to the doctor, clean their house, etc. Or maybe it’s because of my love for my grandmothers in their elderly years. I also feel sympathetic towards those who seem to be forgotten by their loved ones. And one day I will be elderly and run the risk of having no one to care for me. I suppose it could be a combination of all of these.

Whatever the case, I really wanted to help. But I was hesitant to go to the store and buy needed items for the elderly. You are likely wondering why it was so hard. I don’t really have a good explanation for my anxieties. I am an introvert who very much keeps to herself, so perhaps my hesitations stemmed from that. But whatever the reason, I had a debate going on in my head. Thankfully, I managed to talk myself into going to the grocery store and filling my cart with canned goods for the elderly. In the end, I was so glad that I did.

You might wonder how I talked myself into proceeding. Well I am glad you asked, because that is the true point of this post. It boils down to love. As children of God, we are called to love one another. Jesus came to this world out of love. Jesus lived a life of love. And Jesus died out of love. Jesus should be our role model, and we should love others as He did. Sometimes to love others that means we have to be inconvenienced. Sometimes to love others we have to push past our fears.

In the spirit of Christmas, I pray we can look for ways to spread the love of Jesus to those around us. Let us be inconvenienced and let us push past our fears. When we do something difficult in the name of love, it will bring honor and glory to the Lord.

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. – John 15:12 NKJV

© 2021 Bridget A. Thomas

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