Christmas Morning Staircase

      I am just so in love with Him. He has always been there for me when hope seemed so far away and sadness filled my heart as a child. I knew I could come to Him no matter the hour…no matter the circumstance….He remained beside me and comforted my aching heart. I know some may have had it much worse than myself as a child, but I have learned not to minimize my own suffering. It was real. It was shameful. It was a hard road to trod with heavy baggage in tow. I longed for love and peace to abide within the walls of the old Victorian. 

My brothers and me on Christmas morning. Shane (left),  me (middle), Shawn (right)

It’s Christmas. My favorite time of year. My husband and I were married this season of yuletide joy  24 years ago on December 28th…that’s how much I love Christmas. It was the one time of year…the one day…the one morning…I could rest assure there would be no fighting between the walls of my childhood home. And He…as in all other days…was with me as I would skip the first three steps and jump to the landing of the endless staircase. My fair skinned hand would slide down the rail and guide me to the bottom of the decent as a peered through sleepy eyes. I would turn to the parlor room…grand as always with 10 foot ceilings and a cherry wood fireplace with ornate tile in the hearth. There the angel hair covered tree stood in all it’s glory with wrapped gifts scattered beneath. I would just sit on the oriental rug in the middle of the huge room and gaze in amazement and take it all in as my heart felt peace. And He was with me. I know He sat beside me.

I am forty-eight years old this Christmas. It has been a year of healing for me as I walked through some rough childhood memories. It was painful. It was hard. I am not done yet for the tools I have learned to use, I will continue to pull out of my tool box for the rest of my life and use when necessary. So this Christmas is just extra special because I have run my race hard enduring much to win this victory over the walk on the shattered glass of a broken childhood. And the one constant in ALL of my life’s recovery…He was with me, He is with me now, and He will be with me forevermore. My friend…my Savior…His name is Jesus. And this Christmas will be the 38th time we will walk down the staircase together  to celebrate His birthday and I am grateful…so very grateful to Him for loving that little girl with long brown hair and hazel eyes. And so I praise Him this Christmas for His faithfulness, His love, and His grace. 

Dear Heavenly Father, I  thank you from the bottom of my heart for your presence in my life. You took hold of me at a very young age and it has been an amazing ride. It has not always been easy, but through it all you have stood beside me…sometimes holding me when I couldn’t stand. You have left me breathless in your unending love for me. You are my redeemer and the lifter of my head. I am forever grateful!

All my love this Christmas,

Your beloved daughter,

Shannon

Horn of Salvation

Though she loved him, he loved her more. She didn’t know in that moment of joy; He came to die. He came to save her and the entire sin sick world. In time, she would realize just how much he adored her as he would ask John to care for her as he agonized upon the cross.

But in this precious moment surrounded by only the lowly animals of the stable, she wished never to forget the little hands…the tiny feet, the bright star in the clear night sky, and the wonderment painted on Joseph’s face. Her hands trembled as she feared to touch the Holy Child…her son…Jesus. She took hold of the King of the Most High…pulled him close…cheek to cheek, and began to cry.

“I love you.” She whispered softly.

The babe’s heart beat a lullaby of peace to her anxious soul. And there that beautiful night when the horn of salvation resounded in an infant’s cry, Mary treasured the moment and would forever ponder all this that was given her.

Will you take hold of the King of the Most High this Christmas?

Will you dare to pull him close, cry a loud, and say…

“I love you Jesus!”

Sit quietly long enough to hear his heart beat a lullaby of peace to you.

Remember…

Treasure…

Ponder as Mary did so long ago…

Christ was born to die…

For you!

That just how much he loves you!

By God for God

It is so easy for us to forget our sole purpose in being created. We were made by God for God. He created each of us unique. Because God created me different and set apart from anyone else...only I can love Him in the special way He created me and He aches deeply for intimacy with me…the way I can only love Him. What we don’t realize is how much God longs to hear from us and give back to him our exclusive way to love Him. He yearns with expectant hope to hear our voice call his name and praise Him. 

We ourselves as believers in Jesus Christ should desire deeply this intimacy with the Father because of His great love for us. You don’t seem to have this desire you say…then ask God to help you thirst for this alone time with him. He loves to give you the desires of your heart.

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the 

desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:4

As Paul stated in Galatians 2:20, 

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Again, as believers, we need to “give up” our selves for Him because of His great love for us. Quiet time alone with God brings us oneness with God in Christ, oneness with fellow believers, and oneness with God’s creation. As we begin to diligently apply this quiet reflection to our lives on a daily basis, we experience the presence of God in ALL things! We learn to abandon all our desires…agendas…thoughts so we might have immediate contact with God through Jesus Christ. We give God back what He created us to be…by God for God!

A Touch of Death

Discouragement has found it’s home upon my shoulders and whispers in my ear once again. I keep swatting at him as I would a fly that buzzes around my head, but to no avail his nagging still tugs at my shirttails. Why has he come, I ask myself as I sit in the stillness of the night unable to sleep. 

The answer does not arrive quickly as the clock ticked at the midnight hour. So I do the only thing I know which is to just “be” with Jesus. I talked to Him and expressed my feelings as if He sat beside me…everything. As tears appeared and rolled down my cheeks, silence returned to my lips. 

I sat for a very long time alone in the dark and then the question came to me. Why have you put your expectations on man once again? This answer I know was not from my annoying friend discouragement, but from the precious Holy Spirit…my counselor sent to me from my Heavenly Father. I realized at that moment I had once again put my  hope in the work and actions of men. How foolish of me to think my life’s satisfaction could come from a sinful source. 

I asked Jesus for forgiveness for I had touched death in my thoughts as I put my trust in man and not in God alone. I remembered how much Jesus loved me as I reflected on when His blood ran red at the cross of Calvary. For a length of time, I just praised Him relentlessly and professed my trust in Him alone. My eyes closed as sleep came and a peaceful heart was found. I awoke this early morning and my friend discouragement had disappeared and joyful praise unto His name remained.

“Trust in the Lord with ALL thine

heart and lean not into thine own 

understanding, but in ALL thy ways

acknowledge Him and He will make thy

paths straight.”

~Proverbs 3:5-6

Mighty to Save

I sit here this early morning in awe of a God who loves me. He is such an amazing Father. He breaths life into me each and every day no matter what my circumstance. I know some might look at my life and say I have everything and it also would be easy for others to think I am in want of nothing. This statement is completely true. But it is not because of the material things I have been blessed with, rather I have everything and want for nothing because He…my best friend…Jesus….gave His life for me and in Him I put my trust.

However, there are things I long for…I continue to wait for…with confidence of not “if” it will happen, but trust and stand on God’s promises that it will be. Some may wonder what this something could possibly be that I so long for within my life. It is actually not something I desire for myself, but for my husband, whom I love dearly with ALL of my heart. It is for him to know Jesus and His great love. Tears flood my eyes as the salted drops run down my fair skinned cheeks. My husband is a good man, but I know his goodness will not get him into heaven. And so I pray…everyday…that his heart would change and he would say yes to Jesus and believe in Him. 

I am sure I am not the only one who longs for a loved one to be saved by Christ’s amazing grace. So today, I not only pray for my husband, but for ALL the unsaved souls near and far. I could not imagine life without Jesus. I desire others to know of His great love. I ask you today if you have read this piece, to pray for one soul…maybe someone you know…to come to know and believe in The Lord Jesus Christ. If you would so kindly just put the first name of the person you are praying for in the comments of this Facebook post or this blog post, be assured I will also pray for that person as well today. We have a mighty God and nothing is impossible with Him.

His Touch of Love

The raindrops fall from the limbs as the tree dries in the refreshing breeze. The wind upon my face whispers softly my Savior's sweet touch of love. The morning dove coos in the distance and the birds chatter and add to the beauty of another day given by the great I Am. I sit quietly on the old wicker rocker and take in all the melody and harmony of God's beautiful creation...and it is good!

Separation Unto the Holy Spirit



The constant daily act of surrender to God is very difficult to do. We often hear... "be in the world, but not of the world". A very challenging task as a child of God. When we come to this crossroad of life, we have to choose a side...self or God. This sometimes daunting decision is made easier for those who rest solely on the Holy spirit to guide and protect. But if we have not a separation unto the Holy Spirit, our choice can become very skewed. We are disoriented...dizzy...and the lines of God's will and our own self desires over lap often leading us to heart failure. The blood with which Christ shed for us no longer pumps well through us as a child of God because we have stood to long gazing in vein at our self in the mirror.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, please help me to continually replace my self image with that of Jesus on the cross remembering the cost He paid to set me free. I do not want to live in the bondage of my own selfish desires. Help me to wait upon God and realize this is my highest and most important work. Amen.

"Search me O God, and know my heart;

 test me and know my anxious thoughts.

if there is any offensive way in me, and

 LEAD ME in thy way everlasting."

Psalm 139:23-24