The light and the Redeemer of the world; the Spirit of truth who came into the world, because the world was made by him, and in him was the life of men and the light of men.
Doctrine and Covenants 93:9
Day 15
Time to Rededicate
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 5:16
Day 16
A Wonderful Time of Year
And this shall be a sign unto you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
Mother can you stay with me? This is a question I would ask my mother often because I was scared of the dark, still am, truth be told. I would wake up in the middle of the night and lay by our floor fan in front of my parents room. You should know that I had long hair, back then ,so it would get sucked into the fan. My mom would wake up to the "tick" "tick" "tick" of my hair. Now that 1 have children of my own a few of them try to delay bedtime in any way they can. It should be a sport or an Olympic event when it comes to my daughter! My Kindergartener likes to lay on the floor on front of our door. Hmmm..... sound familiar?
Even though I am all grown up, at least as far as my age dictates, I still want my Mom sometimes. She lives in another state so I don't get to see her. Who them can stay with me until I fall asleep? Who will stay with me when my mind plays my thoughts as if they are on repeat? Who will stay with me when I am worried or scared? Who will stay with me when I am not sure I can face another day? If I have these feelings so do my children! Oftentimes, I have to keep the bed time routine short because I need to put other kids to bed or finish the house. When they say will you stay with me it is for a good reason. They may need to talk or don't know how to get those last little wiggles out.
I can stay.
I can be your calm.
I can listen.
Who will stay with me?
Another word for stay is abide. This makes me think of the hymn Abide with me;' Tis Eventide. It is almost like a prayer to me. O Savior, stay this night with me; Behold;' tis Eventide.
Another hymn that should also be mentioned is Abide with me. There is a phrase in particular that always speaks to my heart. It is " I need they presence ev'ry passing hour" When everything else fails he is still there. His patience will never diminish. The video really explains it better than I can.
As the night falls we think of our day. We think of the good and the bad. But do we invite him as our guest into our hearts and home? We can talk to him and he will stay with you! He can be your calm and will listen no matter what time it is, or what you may say. It is a sweet relationship that we must nurture and initiate. Prayer brings peace; plain and simple.
Because he is willing to stay with us, can we not stay a little longer with his children? What do they need in that moment? What did Jesus do in 3rd Nephi 17:5 when the people begged him to stay?..... He tarred a little longer.
"And it came to pass that when Jesus had thus spoken, he cast his eyes round about again on the multitude, and beheld they were in tears, and did look steadfastly upon him as if they would ask him to tarry a little longer with them."
I have been in the depths of worry and despair due to finances being strained because of several years of medical tests and no answers. There has also not been much improvement in my health. I still have days and weeks , and months where I struggle. Yet if I get on my knees and can see through mists that cloud my mind, I feel that peace. He is with me.
We are all like little children. We need Jesus and his healing power.Let us all ask the question,Who will stay with me? Who will calm my troubled heart? He is the only one!
The light and the Redeemer of the world; the Spirit of truth who came into the world, because the world was made by him, and in him was the life of men and the light of men.
Doctrine and Covenants 93:9
Day 20
Time to Rededicate
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
9th
I decided each night this week that I would read a thought from this post by ldsliving.com. The first thought is
Making Christmas Real
There was no darkness in all that night, but it was as light as though it was mid-day. And . . . the sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order; and they knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born.
3 Nephi 1:19
10th
“The Great Refusal”
And behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
Matthew 19:16
11th
We had our church Christmas program tonight with dinner and a sweet little nativity play.
12th
13th
We do a progressive dinner with my husbands family. This way we get to see each others decorations and lights each year! One of my sister in law came up with this cute the Brunch stole Christmas theme and it was a ton of fun! Ugly Christmas sweater contest also included! I am glad we finished before the storm hit!
Day 6
Read Luke 2:1-20. Some years I break the scripture into different segments. This year we just read the whole thing.
Day 7
Tonight we did our annual cookies and caroling. We invite friends to decorate cookies and then go caroling to neighbors. We got a little wet from rain, okay soaked but it was a ton of fin to spread Christmas cheer. We went to one house and she had stuffed bears for each kid. They were so excited. Even my son, who is reluctant to do things in groups came.
Day 8
I share this story of the miracle of a tiny Christmas tree. It was a symbol of hope and love just like this time of the year is for us! The Christmas tree means everlasting life. The needles on the tree never die just like Christ lives and gave his life for us. All he has done he has done for us!The lights symbolize this gift. He also wants us to find our light and let it shine as it says in Mathew 5:16-
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
It has been a busy couple of days! I guess even when you try it is hard to not over schedule. Although I do try to have only one activity that day and if I participate in an activity, I try to have a day of rest in between. That didn't happen this weekend. I am going to look at my schedule this week and try to make sure it is not too crowded. Who wants to join me? Or, you could look at your to do list and drop a few of them. You can do it! I want to savor this time and make it a very personal one for me and my family and for YOU too!!
Day 3
Due to our business,I almost forgot to do our tradition of hiding the baby Jesus and having the kids find him. The one that finds him gets to hide him the next night. We always talk about how we each need to find Jesus. We can seek him everyday and come to him.
We also watched Getting into the Christmas spirit-the true meaning of Christmas. How many of you can relate to the conversation the parents were having? I know I can.
Day 4
Today we went to our neighbors annual hot chocolate party. It was great, visiting with all our neighbors and friends. It got pretty late so we didn't get to do a devotional.
Day 5
My daughter and I participated in the coolest Christmas idea yet. It is called a holiday market. We signed up and made 10 homemade gifts to sell. They could be from $0.50-$2.00. When you get there you set it up and are given play money to buy things. It is a great opportunity to help your kids get gifts for everyone in the family. So neat right?
Here are her sock snow men! Aren't they cute!!!
Tonight we opened our gift we promised to give to the Savior from a from last year. It was fun to read them and be reminded of those gifts. Next, we wrote new ones for next year! It will be here soon!We are all trying to be more like Jesus.
We also read My gift to Jesus.
What are your traditions? Are you finding some peace this Christmas? Are you finding time for the Savior?
You know you are a mother to mostly boys when ninjas show up!
This was from 2 years ago but it is still one of my favorite memories of our Christmas countdown. I had to share it again! I love spending time with my family and learning about Jesus Christ. What better gift to give the Savior then love and time to his children. Sometimes I lose focus on how important that is as a parent. What gift will you give that really matters? What will you give to Jesus? What do you think he really wants?
Here is a list of possible spiritual gifts. Just like the 3 wise man gave their best and rare gifts, I would suggest starting with these 3.
Serve others-Isn't that what we do for our family everyday?
Study the scriptures and pray everyday. Not just a quick prayer but really talk to him.
Live in thanksgiving and have faith during the difficult times in our lives
The greatest gift is to come unto him and be perfected in him. Moroni 10:32
Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.
There is many gifts we can give our Lord and Savior. Choose one to work on this week and be better at. We don't have to worry about doing it perfectly but just to be willing and obedient. What will you give to Jesus?
Okay so without further adieu here is that post I promised.
Day 2
This is what the kids,and yes,my husband came dressed up as ninjas.
They had to go around the chair and passed the chair without making a sound and then sit down for the devotional. Apparently we are having a ninja Christmas!<<<big sigh>>>
Sing Away in a manger
Read Mathew 1:18-24
Here is our Christmas tree calendar.They put an ornament(pom pom) on each day.
Where would we be without the Savior? I think each day would feel like it was just ticking away. I would feel lost and searching for my purpose in life and grasping on to what little hope I might feel. My life would be scattered and confusing. Lets face it, life would be bleak and we would surly be tossed by every temptation and belief. I actually know some people who live without divine direction and it is much like as I described above. I have such peace and joy to fill my life and mortal design.
He has come!
He paid the ultimate sacrifice!
He lives and loves us!
Jesus was born in a stable because there was no room in the inn. Are we very different from that inn keeper? Are there times in our lives when it is so full of things that there is no room for him or his teachings? I often think if I was that inn keeper would I turn Mary, great with child, and Joseph away! I would hope that I could find a spare room, ask someone to give up their room or give up my own bed. More importantly, I need to make room in my heart and in my life.
Elder Maxwell said that "each of us is an inn keeper who decides if there is room for Jesus" You can get a cute hand out of the innkeepers key with a poem found here. She attached a key to it as well. Love it! I had to share the cute poem too!
The poem is called A Prayer For December:
Dearest God,
Please never let me
Crowd my life
Full to the brim.
So like the keeper of Bethlehem’s Inn,
I find I have no room for Him.
Instead, let my heart’s door
Be ever open,
Ready to welcome
The newborn King.
Let me offer the best I have
To Him
Who gives me everything.
–author unknown
