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A Weary World Rejoices…and Grace and Truth Link Up

December 25, 2020 by Lauren 26 Comments

A coronavirus holiday season lacks in the festive department for this pseudo-elf, and my teenager prefers not to do too much with the family.  That is my state of the situation address.  But I tried my best to “Christmas” (if I may use it as a verb), which included WAY more cheesy holiday movies and shows than usual – 15+ in 22 days.  I won’t bore you with all the titles but you can ask me if you want recommendations.  I will tell you that if you like the Hallmark-type flicks, Midnight at the Magnolia on Netflix is really a New Year’s movie.   You should put on your agenda this week.

 

The sweet hubs and I took our Shelby to THREE drive thru events.  This seems to be everyone’s solution for distancing.  Two were forgettable, while the one put on by the Dallas Children’s Theater delighted us.

 

My Allie’s high school jazz choir delivered singing Christmas cards (in the form of front yard caroling) as a fundraiser for two of the four weekends this month.  We hired them one night and invited neighbors to come outside for a melodious and socially distanced treat.  A good friend of Allie’s invited her to see her dance in The Nutcracker while Chuck and I went to an outdoor version of the classic with friends at Lake Grapevine!  Our school also managed to put on a safe Winter Choir concert for us to witness the culmination of a semester’s work.  Allie sang with two choirs and performed a solo rendition of “White Christmas”.  It always thrills me to hear my songbird perform. To watch and listen, click here. 

 

I managed to watch a couple of non-Holiday related things.  The King’s Speech, Joy and the Netflix series Away fascinated and entertained us.  I will warn you ahead of time that the streaming giant opted not to bring Away back for a second season, but the one is worth watching anyway.  And we actually went to the theater to see Honest Thief and a free preview Premiere of WW84 (that’s Wonder Woman 1984 if you haven’t been waiting with baited breath for this one like me).  If you enjoy Wonder Woman at all – SEE THIS.  And watch for the fun surprise cameo.  My only complaint is that when she is supposed to be sick, weak and tired, Gal Gadot still looks better than 99.9% of us.  I guess that’s part of the “wonder” of this woman.

 

My teenager finished up her exams just in time for our son and 4 littles to descend on us for a few days.  Chaos and fun and festive activities ensued.  My parents, sisters and families and brother-in-law’s family came to see us and the out of town guests in the front yard with masks.  Boy will I be thankful when we don’t have to be so careful or so brief.  As I write this, we have just canceled our plans to attend Christmas Eve service at church, and a road trip to spend a couple of days with my in-laws.  My husband and one daughter tested positive for Covid.  Merry Christmas to us.

 

To change gears a little, I see the title of this blog post everywhere right now.  Most of us relate to this lyric from “O Holy Night” to some extent.  This month, and this year, included good moments, milestones and celebrations.  But also more bad moments, grief and tragedy than I sometimes thought I could endure.  Nights filled with tears of grief are far from “silent”, and I see a lot chaos when “Away in a Manger” says things are “calm and bright”.  But the words of my favorite carol explain how we can rejoice even though we feel weary:

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till He appear’d and the soul felt its worth.

We make mistakes and sin against our creator.  But because Jesus came here and was born in that smelly barn, we have worth and can know our worth.  God found us not just worthy of creating, but worthy of saving – worthy of love and relationship with Him – worthy of sending His only son to die in our place.  What a sacrifice.  What a Savior!

 

We find a “thrill of hope” that He came and that He will come back for those who love Him.  And I can hardly contain myself when I think of what He will usher in when He comes again.

Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother;
And in His name all oppression shall cease.

We don’t carry out His laws perfectly here, which is why peace can feel so elusive.  But one day, He promises to set all things right.  I can’t stop the grateful tears now anticipating this (although there probably is some fatigue and disappointment mingled in those tears).  But even here, even in 2020, trusting in Him and believing that all He says is true can break our chains and fill us with a love and peace like no other.  This is my “Grown Up Christmas List” for us all.  Better yet, this is my prayer.  That you rejoice in Christ on this day and all the rest.

 

Merry Christmas,

And now for this week’s featured post!

 

Donna from Serenity in Suffering wrote a post that beautifully encapsulates the theme of my month end review.  When You are too Weary to Rejoice speaks to the heaviness I feel right now, but offers hope, encouragement and even prescriptions for overcoming that weariness.  Thank you, Donna.

 

 

Grace and Truth_Rules

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

 

Grace Truth_Button

 

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

HEATHER HART & VALERIE RIESE – Candidly Christian
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LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

Now Let’s Link Up!

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Sharing is caring! If you liked this post, do me the huge honor of using the buttons below to share it to your favorite social media accounts. And if you want to get these essays emailed to you once a week, subscribe!  Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. Thank you in advance for your help.

 

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The Holiday Dork

December 11, 2020 by Lauren 22 Comments

This is a story about yours truly.  Not very many years ago, my friends threatened an intervention regarding my Christmas sweaters.  I wore them long past in vogue, but way before they came back in style as “ugly Christmas sweaters”.  (For context see the pic of my twin sister and I in our reindeer gear.)  I record ALL the Christmas programming just in case we have time to get to it before the holiday ends.  I scour the paper (back in the day) and the internet for festive activities to drag my family to – including my poor retail manager husband.  He works his tail off this time of year and yet I show him no mercy.

 

I want my decorations up the day after Thanksgiving, and the Christmas music to play exclusively then as well.  I even want Christmas carols at church for the whole month of December.  But alas, no one asks my opinion.  Several years ago I even invented a thankfulness tree.  It’s truthfully a veiled excuse to put the tree up November 1st (with leaves and pumpkins and decorative cards with the people and things we thank God for written on them) so that it’s easier and quicker to deck it in red and green once we finish the turkey and dressing!

 

If I had the only vote, I would watch exclusively Christmas movies and TV shows from December 1st through the 25th.  And since I do have the only vote on what I read, I set all but Christmas books and bible studies aside, even if I’m in the middle of something else!

 

I love all the Christmas things.  The lights, the wrapping paper and ribbon, the scarves and Santa hats, the cookies and smells.  I admit I get carried away.  I surround myself with cheesy, sappy sentimentality.  It’s over the top, but I don’t care.  Yes, Christmas was a magical time during my childhood.  But looking back excites me much less than looking forward.

 

Christmas commemorates the birth of Jesus.  That happened over 2,000 years ago.  But I celebrate because He still lives, and He has big plans for me and all who believe.  God’s word tells us His plan.

In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,  who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.  In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  1 Peter 1:3-6 NIV

 

God sent Jesus to earth to die – taking the punishment for all my sins and yours.  Because of this, believing in Jesus for salvation guarantees us a place with Him in heaven someday.  We call it an “inheritance” because we become His child.  And parents typically pass on good things to their children.  The Bible tells us that God does this times 1000 (Matthew 7:11).  And God protects us with His power until the time comes to go to Him.  That doesn’t mean nothing bad will ever happen to us (hello, 2020).  But that He doesn’t leave us alone to deal with the troubles we encounter in our time on a broken earth.

 

For these reasons I get fired up about Christmas.  Yes, even this year.  Because through all we suffer, He watches over us to fulfill His purposes in us.  And when His will is fulfilled, He rewards those of us who believe by His much more tangible presence in a perfect new home.  We have the victory, because that baby left heaven to come to earth.  Woohoo!

 

So my prayer for you is this:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Romans 15:13 NIV

 

Merry Christmas!

 

And now for this week’s featured post!

 

If you are looking for something new to study in your time with the Lord, read Michele Morin’s compelling argument in Why You Should Read Isaiah this Christmas!

Grace and Truth_Rules

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace Truth_Button

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

HEATHER HART & VALERIE RIESE – Candidly Christian
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

Now Let’s Link Up!

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Sharing is caring! If you liked this post, do me the huge honor of using the buttons below to share it to your favorite social media accounts. And if you want to get these essays emailed to you once a week, subscribe!  Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. Thank you in advance for your help.

 

To find some great places where I might be sharing this post, click here.

 

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About Me

I love Jesus, my husband and caffeine. The order of these can change depending on how tired I am. When my two daughters, stepson, and 4 grandchildren get to be too much, I practice yoga. God graciously allows me to share our adventures, victories and flub-ups from my laptop. May He be glorified here.
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