For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
I can hardly believe that this month has flown by so quickly! Today is probably my favorite Sunday of Advent. The Sunday that we can celebrate LOVE! God shows us what love really is by sending his son to earth for you and me! All we have to do is believe!
Romans 5:8. Tells us But God commended his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Can you imagine a love like that?
When I was little my family had a ranch in Refugio, Texas. It was a beautiful place full of so many happy memories. One of the memories I have as a child is loading up our trailer with bales of hay to take to the South Texas Children’s Home in Beeville, Texas. The home was set on a beautiful piece of land and they had cows too! South Texas is notorious for droughts and we had way more hay than we needed so my parents wanted to make sure that the STCH’s cows had plenty of hay too! I remember asking my mother where the children’s parent were? Why did they get to live at camp all year long? It is a very hard concept for a child that is born into a house filled with love to understand. Today I am so thankful that the STCH continues their hard work, giving a loving home to children in need. The great thing about STCH is that it is a Christian based program that uses loving house parents and counselors to share love with the children. Do you see how much love there is to share?!?! God shares his love with everyone! I’m so glad that God loved us so much that he sent his son, Jesus, to forgive us for our sins!
My sweet mother went to heaven 28 years ago. She was my best friend and I still miss her. After she died, I found this lovely angel statue at our garden center. It weighs a ton! It reminded me of my mother and that she is watching over us from heaven. I’m sure she has lots of good advice that I’m not taking. Whenever I get sad or lonely, I go have prayer time next to this lovely angel statue. For me, prayers in the garden are sometimes the sweetest. I remember the love that my mother showed me and it pales in comparison to the love that Jesus shows me everyday. Jesus came to earth for the sole purpose of dying to forgive my sins. He came to forgive everyone’s sins, all you have to do is believe that Jesus is God’s son!
I ordered a needlepoint pillow from an antique shop a few weeks ago. It has a festive nutcracker stitched on it and I knew it would go perfectly with my Christmas decorations. What I didn’t know was that sweet Anne, from Church Hill Homes was going to include a lovely little teaspoon in my package. What Anne couldn’t have known was that little teaspoon was in the same pattern as my grandmother’s silver plate. The pattern is First Love made by Rogers Bros. It was produced in 1937 and for several years following. 1937 was towards the end of the Great Depression and I feel like this purchase was a celebratory splurge for my grandparents and their family. I was lucky enough to inherit my grandmother’s entire collection of First Love and I use it often. Receiving that little teaspoon was a reminder of how much love my family is filled with. I absolutely love sharing a meal with my family using this flatware, knowing that my grandmother used it in many loving meals with her family. We are making traditions every year with simple things, like sharing a meal using my grandmother’s silver plate. Sharing love is teaching love! Our children will share love if we share it with them, just like God shared Jesus with us. The ultimate love!!!
Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!