Letter from Jesus

Taken from Vibrance!:

Dear Child,

It has come to my attention that many of you are upset that people are attempting to take My name out of the Christmas season.

How I feel about this celebration may be best-understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your own:

I don’t care what you call the day so much as I do that you get along with and love one another.

If it bothers you that the town in which you live doesn’t allow a scene depicting My birth, simply put in a small Nativity scene on your own front lawn. If all My followers did that there wouldn’t be a need for such a scene on the town square because there would be many of them all around town.

Don’t worry about people calling the tree a holiday tree instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made all trees. You can remember Me anytime you see any tree.  I mean, you could decorate a grape vine if you chose to; I taught about one when I was on Earth, explaining who I am in relation to you and what each of our tasks are (it’s in John 15).

If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth, any of these would be good choices:

1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, they tell Me all the time.

2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don’t have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.

3. Instead of writing the President complaining about the wording on the cards his staff sent out this year, write and tell him that you’ll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow up… It will be nice hearing from you again.

4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can’t afford and they don’t need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth, and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind them that I love them.

5 Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.

6. Someone in your town will attempt to take their own life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless.  Since you don’t know who that person is, give everyone you meet a warm smile; it could make the difference.

7. Instead of complaining about what a retailer in your town calls the holiday, be patient with the people who work there. Give them warm smiles and kind words. Wish them a Merry Christmas even if they’re not allowed to say “Merry Christmas” in return. Then stop shopping there on Sunday. If the store has less traffic and makes less money on that day they’ll schedule fewer people, perhaps even close and let their employees spend Sunday at home with their families.

8. If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary– especially one who takes My love and Good News to those who have never heard My name.

9. There are individuals and whole families in your town who not only will have no “Christmas” tree, but neither will they have any presents to give or receive. If you don’t know them, buy some food and a few gifts and give them to the Salvation Army or some other charity which believes in Me and they will make the delivery for you.

10. Finally, if you want to make a statement about your belief in and loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don’t do things in secret that you wouldn’t do in My presence. Let people know by your actions that you are one of mine.

Don’t forget; I am God and can take care of Myself.
Focus on loving Me and doing what I have told you to do.
I’ll take care of all the rest.

Check out the list above and get to work; time is short.
I’ll help you, but the ball is now in your court.

And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those whom you love and remember :

I LOVE YOU,
JESUS

One more Christmas post

Oh, no, I’m not done yet!

I’ll post two songs I got reacquainted with over the weekend by Kirk Talley.

I Can Still Celebrate Christmas

The lights are unplugged
The candles snuffed out
The tree’s lying out in the street
The mistletoe’s gone
But the memory lives on
Like the rush of tiny little feet
The hustle, the bustle
The long, long, long checkout lines
Won’t be seen ’til Christmas next year
But the man who understands the real reason why we celebrate
Why, he can have twelve months full of cheer

Chorus;
I can still celebrate Christmas
For the Light of the World is the light of my life
I can still celebrate Christmas
It’s much more to me
than lights on a tree
It’s a gift that gives life to me

So, turn on your lights
Put a wreath on your door
Show the world that you can sing too
Try Joy to the World in June of July
Ask a friend to sing along, too
Come on and ring the bells loud
Stand up and be proud
Tell the world the truth that you know
That the little tiny boy
Brought happiness and joy
More than gifts tied with ribbons and bows.

Chorus then:
Yes, it’s much more to me than lights and a tree
It’s more than the gifts that are given to me
It’s more than the lovely shirt Mama gave me
It’s a gift that gives life to me
Yes, it’s a gift that gives life to me.

And because this Christmas my thoughts have been on Mary, here’s Still Her Little Child

(lyrics, interesting enough, written by Ray Boltz)

When she laid him in a manger
He was still her little child
In a city filled with strangers
He was still her little child
Though the inn was full
And the night was cold
She held Him close and smiled
When she laid Him in a manger
He was still her little child

When the angels called Him Savior
He was still her little child
When the wise men gave Him treasures
He was still her little child
When the shepherds bowed before Him
A star shone all the while
When the angels called Him Savior
He was still her little child

When He grew in strength and wisdom
He was still her little child
When He spoke the people listened
He was still her little child
When He healed the lame and dying
They would follow Him for miles
And when he grew
In strength and wisdom
He was still her little child

When the people turned against Him
He was still her little child
When they shouted crucify Him
He was still her little child
And when they nailed Him
To a wooden cross
Then we were reconciled
When she held His broken body
He was still her little child
He was still her little child

Ah, Christmas.

Waukesha Carnival – between Xmas and New Year

The “Xmas” above is intentional because I do like to be provocative.

But onto the matter at hand, the best posts from the Waukesha section of the Cheddarsphere as decided by me. Feel free to add links to your favorite posts in the comments or e-mail them to me at thoughtfulconservative [at] yahoo [dot] com.

Let’s start with posts with a local theme, Josh at Blog Waukesha is anticipating the opening of the Menard’s across the street from Home Depot.

From his spot at Wigderson Library & Pub, James Wigderson compares all the openings in downtown Waukesha with the “dead in the water” Pabst Farms development. James Rowen would be proud. I think.

In general political postings, Dad29 gives us his observations of DUI checkpoints.

At A Little Off Main, Alexander  gives us a 23 minute flash post.

Kyle Prast, blogging at Practically Speaking, was glad to see the word Christmas in some retail advertising.

In the custom of the New Year, Scott Feldstein gives us his ten favorite posts of the past year.

Huckleberry Dumbell, editor and publisher of the Spring City Chronicle, gives us a politically correct Christmas poem.

Wisconsin state senator Mary Lazich (Aide Kevin Fischer?) who blogs at Conservatively Speaking wonders if Santa is conservative.

Lastly, non political posts. Cindy Kilkenny shares an interesting dream she had recently. You can read about it at Fairly Conservative.

Tim Rock is giving us the Top Ten Canadian songs in no particular order at The Other Side of My Mouth. Suggestions are welcome. I trust the pause in posting more has been due to Christmas activities.

That’s it for this week. You can submit a post whether you wrote it or someone else wrote it. I will accept posts written by Waukesha county bloggers or about Waukesha county activities/politics. There are several ways you can get these to me. You can put the link in a comment on this post. You can send an e-mail to the e-mail mentioned above. Or you can use this submission form. Past posts and future editions can be found here.

The Christmas Post

Mom made Christmas. Oh, Dad earned the money, but Mom did the shopping, wrapped the presents, filled the stockings and put them under the tree.

Mom was an “equalizer,” meticulously planning the shopping so that none of us four kids got more or less than the other. My brother and I were close enough to the same age that we basically got the same thing every year, cowboy outfits one year, bicycles another; I don’t know how they afforded it, but they did.

Christmas by Mom continued after we went to Papua New Guinea to work and live. She would make sure we got Christmas presents, even if it meant gathering them in June and mailing them in July! Because that’s what it took to get to us by Christmas.

Mom left us a few years back. Christmas just wasn’t the same for me for awhile.Especially being far from the rest of my siblings and my own family getting together at Thanksgiving added to it, too, I suppose.

But Christmas always turns my thoughts to Mom. There are many others for whom Christmas is not the joyous occaision it could be. I pray they find some comfort and joy in this season.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays for all my readers.

More on Mary, the mother of Jesus

Lance Burri posting at FoxPolitics.net made an interesting comparison between Sarah Connors and Mary and Joseph.

It reminded me of a couple of items by pastor and author Max Lucado from “It Began in a Manger.” The first is 25 questions for Mary. The other is Mary’s Prayer.

And then I’ll share a song from the musical our church did (Two services on Christmas Eve at 4 and 6 if anyone is interested) called “Here With Us” which is similar to the thoughts above (The young lady who sings it at our church does a better version, I feel).

I don’t know how posting will go tomorrow. The two services at church and the kids coming in. Just in case, I pray for a rich and meaningful Christmas for all my readers.

Mary, the mother of God

As a Protestant, I don’t worship Mary or pray to her. I do not believe she was a perpetual virgin, though she was a virgin when Jesus was born, nor do I believe in the Immaculate Conception.

But that doesn’t mean I hold her in low regard. No, she was quite a young woman.

They married young back then and engaged even earlier. She was probably a teenager. A teenager!

She’s one of four women mentioned in the genealogy of Our Lord in Matthew 1. But it’s in the book of Luke that gives me the words that impresses me most.

Luke 1:26-38

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”

29 But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34 Mary said to the angel, “How can this be since I am a virgin?”

35 The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. 36 And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who is said to be barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”

38 Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.[Emphasis mine]

I wonder what Mary thought. Did she know the abuse that would be heaped on her because mankind would not accept that there is a God. How she would be accused indirectly because mankind would ridicule her Son by saying he was the offspring of some blond haired Roman soldier. Called a whore.

And being pregnant while unmarried was worse back then than being Sarah Palin’s daughter. It took an angel appearing to Joseph to keep him from ending their engagement.

And yet later in chapter 1, Mary gives a wonderful prayer of praise, and humbly tells the angel, “I’m the Lord’s servant. Let it happen as you have said.”

Then she had to travel many many miles when she was due to deliver. If you’ve ever been around a pregnant woman, you know what I’m getting at.

And then there was no room and she had to sleep in a barn!

I guess what I wonder is how much did Mary know?