His Presence

   My family has come and gone and they've sucked the energy right out of this house. I'm sitting here in the sunroom today, marveling at the quietness and stillness. But the house doesn't seem empty. There's a Presence here. His Presence. The One whose birthday we celebrated on Christmas.
   This cloudy, wintry day is trying to pierce me with its' coldness all the way inside. The Christmas tree is tilting to the left and the Santa is in a puddle in the yard. In times past, my mood would plummet also. But not today. There's a Presence here. His Presence.
"The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His Life brought Light to everyone. The Light shines in the darkness and the darkness can never extinguish it", John 1:4-5.

A Happy and Blessed New Year to everyone of you!!!

Finding Jesus

    In the midst of all the craziness of moving and Christmas I found this beautiful poem by Rachel Holley in "Pursuing the Christ: Prayers for Christmastime" by Jennifer Kennedy Dean. It has reminded me of the need to pursue time with Jesus, even in, especially in, this time of year. It has inspired me to dig in, to set my mind steadfastly, on the Word that became flesh and made His home with us as I go about my busy days.

"I found You in the spaces in between
I found You in the dark and not the light
I looked for You in drama
In the earthquake and the fire
And found You in the quiet.
You were waiting for me there.
I looked for You in miracles
In the loud, in voices raised
I looked for You in gatherings
In signs, in prayer and praise
But I found You in the gentle breeze
The still small voice, the darkened cave.
I found You in the spaces
between sleeping and awake
I found You in the waiting
The worry, in the fear
I found You in the sleepless night
I found You in despair
I found You in the questions
No loud answers anywhere.
I found You in the silence
Silence full, not silence void
I found You in the spaces
You were looking for me there.

Multi-tasking

   Women are champions of multi-tasking. This month, I'm surely heading for a gold medal. Not only do I have to buy presents for a large family but I have to get packed up to move to our new house on December 21, just in time for our daughters and their families to arrive for Christmas. On top of that I have to mail out photo cards, wrap presents, decorate, and bake cookies.
   My husband isn't such a mutli-tasker. He, instead, zeroes in on one thing and exerts all the considerable force of his energy towards accomplishing that goal. As soon as we decided to buy our new house I would ask him daily, "When are we going to move?". And he would say, "Not until after the first of the year". But I kept asking him because I knew what he would eventually say, "I think we can be moved in by Christmas". So here we are.
   I think Jesus must look down with sadness on His children here on earth. We have managed to turn the majesticaly simple time of His birth into a hectic, stressful conglomeration of materialistic consumerism. If I take a little time each day to sit quietly and listen to His voice, I can hear Him say, as He did to Martha, "there is only one thing worth being concerned about". "But the Lord said to her, "My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details. There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her", Luke 10: 41-42. NLT
   I WISH TO ALL OF YOU A MAJESTICALY SIMPLE CHRISTMAS SEASON.