Merry Christmas

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Christmastime the Jesus Way

Christmas Eve

From my journal...

December 24, 2008

Wednesday

Christmas Eve

It is 9:00 a.m. and my grandparents will soon be arriving. There is a feeling of love and celebration in the air. I pray that it lasts throughout the week. There will be much cooking, feasting, laughing and loving, as more family will be arriving on the morrow. I will cherish this time with family, for no one knows what another day will bring forth. All time spent with those I love is precious. May Christ bless these days with His sweet presence, and may His name be glorified.

Come and Worship

In just two short days it will be Christmas. The multitudes are thronging the stores, doing their last minute shopping, spending massive amounts of money. Families are loading up their vehicles and heading out to see loved ones and friends all across the country. The smell of Christmas resides in every kitchen. Some parts of the world will be blessed with a blanket of snow to enjoy. Trees are decorated, music of the season is ringing out from stores, homes, and churches. Families are gathering. Gifts are being exchanged. Children's faces are aglow with wonder and excitement. It truly is a wonderful time of the year.

For me, this season is a celebration of much more than family, friends, gifts, feasting, decorations, and snow. It's a celebration of a true event in history, an event which should stagger the imagination of all of mankind; an event that changed the world. It's the celebration of "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory..." (John 1:14). The Son of God came to earth in human flesh, as a baby, born of a virgin Jewish girl. He was given the name Jesus for a very specific reason. His name means Savior. This is why He came--to save His people from their sins and from themselves. Though we do not know the exact date of Christ's birth, December 25 is the day we have set aside to marvel at the wonder of the Incarnation. But I pray that my heart would rejoice every day at this great mystery, and not just at Christmastime. For Jesus Christ is my hope and peace, and without Him my life means nothing. So, I will celebrate. I will marvel. I will gather with family. And I will worship the Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Joy to the World

Last night, we hosted a Christmas caroling party at our home. Several families from our church came, and we went to 5 or 6 houses in our neighborhood and sang Christmas carols from some little music books that my mom had ordered. It was so thrilling to me to be standing there, singing the praises of Christ in four-part harmony with about 35 others! There was one lady who, after we finished singing, burst into tears. She told us that she had been out of work for several months and was struggling to make ends meet. She was so appreciative of us coming out and singing to her. I hope she listened closely to the words we sang, words of life and hope in Jesus Christ. We prayed with her on her front porch and invited her to go to church with us. I pray that she will.

After caroling, we came back to our house and ate some finger foods and Christmas treats, and talked and laughed with one another. I always have a wonderful time when I get together with these precious friends. I'm so thankful for them, and for the precious gift of music, with which I am free to sing praises to Christ. There truly is joy in the world....all because the Lord Jesus Christ has come.

Of Pain and Providence

It was a beautiful and striking reply, given by one in affliction, who, when asked how it was that he bore it so well, replied, "It lightens the stroke, I find, to draw near to Him who handles the rod." --Tyron Edwards

Resignation and faith behold God in the smallest hair that falls; and the happiest life is that of him who has bound together all the affairs of life, great and small, and entrusted them to God. --J.W. Alexander

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

Trimming the family tree...


Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

My Best Life...Then

Revelation 21:3-5

And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them, and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful."

(Emphasis added)

The Greatest of These Is Love

From my journal....


December 5, 2008
Friday

Read 1 Corinthians 13 this morning and am feeling somewhat overwhelmed. I can never love this way apart from the Spirit of God. Spent time praying for the Spirit of Christ to help me love others the way He loves me. Praise Jesus Christ, whose perfect love for me drives me to love my family, church, and the world. I pray that my life would not become "a sounding brass or clanging cymbal", but that the love of Jesus would flow from my heart.

Burning Holiness

Christians today appear to know Christ only after the flesh. They try to achieve communion with Him by divesting Him of His burning holiness and unapproachable majesty, the very attributes He veiled while on earth but assumed in fullness of glory upon His ascension to the Father's right hand. The Christ of popular Christianity has a weak smile and a halo. He has become Someone-Up-There who likes people, at least some people, and these are grateful but not too impressed. If they need Him, He also needs them......the blessed news is that the God who needs no one has in sovereign condescension stooped to work by and in and through His obedient children.

--The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer

I fear being one of those Christians of whom Tozer wrote. I don't want to think of Christ as having a weak smile and a halo. I never want to forget that Jesus Christ is none other than God the Son, who is holy, holy, holy.

Lord Jesus, may I continually be awed at Your majesty and holiness. And may this drive me to worship You, for You are infinitely worthy. Amen.

I Give Thanks....

• For God the Father, who is my Mighty Fortress;
• For God the Son, who is my Savior, Treasure, High Priest, and coming King;
• For God the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, who gave me eyes to see the beauty of the Son;
• For the power of the Cross;
• For the Word of God, where I see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ;
• For my family, who daily blesses and serves me, and whose love for me is astounding;
• For my brothers and sisters in Christ, here and around the world, to whom I am eternally bound by the blood of Jesus;
• For the Reformed Baptist Church of Nashville, whose love and service to me are overwhelming;
• For the roof over my head, the food in my cupboards, the clothes on my back, the shoes on my feet, the books on my shelves, the music in my heart, indoor plumbing, clean water, fresh air, and all the other daily blessings that I take for granted;
• For the trials and tribulations that God has brought me through, because I know that He is using them for His glory and to make me more like Jesus;
• For the beauty of God's creation;
• For the great and awesome privilege of prayer.
• For our soldiers who have paid the ultimate price for freedom...there is no greater love than that.

What shall I render to the LORD for all His benefits toward me? I will take up the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD.

Psalm 116:12-13

Happy Birthday!

Happy 19th Birthday, Jessie Rae! I love you so much, and am eternally grateful to our God for your friendship. You bring so much joy to my heart and soul. If laughter truly is good medicine, you and I will live forever! :-) God bless and keep you, dear sister.

Love always,

Ashley

Pray for China

I received an e-mail update today from ChinaAid which said that these prayer bands have been declared illegal in China. The prayer bands were sold during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing as a reminder to Christians to pray for China's Christians and also for those who are not. Now, Christians in China are being arrested and even evicted from their homes just for wearing these wrist bands. It's hard for me to imagine living in such a country. I was thinking this morning of how in America I have the freedom to go out into the middle of the street, lift my hands to heaven, and shout the praises of Christ at the top of my voice. Chinese Christians can't even wear these simple wrist bands. These saints of God truly know what it is to suffer for the sake of Christ. The least I can do is get on my knees for them. May God give me a burden to do so.

The Zeal of a King...Yet, the Captivity of a Nation

I finished reading 2 Kings this morning. My favorite part of the whole book is the account of Josiah, king of Judah, and how he very zealously followed the Book of the Law, which had been found by a priest in the Temple. After having been read the law by the priest, Josiah tore his clothes and lamented bitterly that they, the people of God, had abandoned His laws. Josiah then went all over Judah and completely destroyed all the pagan places of worship. He burned the pagan altars, idols, and he even executed pagan priests. He gathered all the people of Judah and made a covenant with God that they would worship and love none but Him. After reading this account, I thought, "Surely God will relent and his wrath will subside and He won't destroy this nation! Surely He will look on the great zeal and Godliness of Josiah and give Judah another chance." I was wrong. God did not relent. Judah continued to rebel and worship idols, and He allowed Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, to come into Jerusalem and take them captive. Jerusalem was the city where God would "put His name forever." How is God's name there forever if His people are taken captive by a pagan king? Did God really break His covenant with His chosen nation? The answer, of course, is no. God never breaks a promise; otherwise, He wouldn't be God. He had clearly told Moses and the Israelites that if they followed His commandments they would be blessed; and if they chose disobedience, they would be cursed. In a national sense, it didn't matter that Josiah (and others) were Godly kings that loved the Lord their God. God is still God, and He did what He said He would do if Israel disobeyed.


2 Kings has taught me several things:

1. Our God is FULL of great mercy. Way back in the book of Exodus, God told Moses that Israel would be cursed if they disobeyed and did not repent. Yet, they did not go into captivity until hundreds of years later. The Lord gave them chance after chance to repent.
2. God always has and always will keep His promises. He promised that He would bless them if they obeyed, and He did. He promised that He would curse them if they disobeyed, and He did.
3. Our sins have consequences, even when we repent. King Josiah repented of the sins of the nation, but Judah was still put under captivity.
4. What a treasure we have been given in Jesus Christ! In Him, Jews and Gentiles alike have a Redeemer that has paid the price to free us from the captivity of sin.

Remind Me of This With Every Decision

After hearing a Sunday school lesson on an overview of the book of 2 Kings, I have been reading through it this week in my personal devotions. This is not the first time I have ever read 2 Kings, but I must say that I have never enjoyed it so much as I have this week. There are so many amazing and wonderful acts of God, and it is full to the brim of God's mercy toward the wicked kings of Israel. However, there are some very disturbing stories and phrases written in this book. One particular phrase that has caught my attention (perhaps because it is continually repeated) is "And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, as his fathers had done; he did not depart from the sins of [King] Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin." What is it that strikes me about this phrase? I think it is the fact that the sins of one man effected his descendants that reigned on Israel's throne for generation upon generation. Jeroboam's posterity was absolutely ruined by a mere decision...or was it a 'mere' decision? His decision was to utterly abandon the law of Jehovah, the God of the universe, and walk in his own ways instead of the ways of God. I wonder if Jeroboam ever took into consideration the effects his sins would have on future generations. I wonder how often I think about it.

Sara Groves, one of my favorite Christian recording artists, sings a song called "Generations". The chorus says this:

Remind me of this with every decision:

Generations will reap what I sow.

I can pass on a curse or a blessing

To those I will never know.

This is a sobering thought. Do I realize that my decisions can either be a curse or a blessing on people that I will only see in heaven, God willing? Every time I sin (choosing to walk in my own ways instead of God's ways) I am sowing seeds that will be reaped by my children, grand children, great grandchildren, and so forth. This song has become my prayer. If God grants me generations of descendants, I pray that my decisions will be such that they will reap the blessings of a life lived for the glory of God. I pray that God will "remind me of this with every decision."

Pirate, Princess, and Poppins

Some of the ladies in our church have been getting together on the last Friday of the month for a Scrapbook Night. In October, we hosted it at our home; and since it happened to be on the 31st, we decided to have a little fun.....

Quick Quote

"Draw Close. Hold hands. Life is short. God is good."

--Jan Karon

All Things

In the last several days, I have come face to face with suffering and the sovereignty of God. Last week, I traveled with part of my family to Missouri for two funerals. Then, earlier this week, I received a phone call from a very dear friend that her sister had lost her unborn daughter in her 7th month of pregnancy. I have seen deep suffering on the faces of family members and heard unspeakable grief in the voice of a friend. Through all of this, I am tempted to ask God, "Where are You? Why are You letting these things happen to the people I love?" But even if I do ask God why, I am almost certain that I will not receive the answer my heart is searching for. I want specifics, I want absolutes, I want the whole story. But our God is not bound by what I want; He is not bound by anything or anyone. That is why He is sovereign. Psalm 115:3 says, "Our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases." This verse answers both questions that I previously stated. Where is God? He is in heaven, ruling from His mighty throne. Why are these things happening? He does whatever He pleases in His goodness and righteousness. But there is more. Romans 8:28-29 says, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son..." This is why Christians experience suffering in this life, in order to be refined in the fire and be made like Jesus. This verse is a promise that all things, both good and bad, easy and difficult, will be used in the lives of God's people to sanctify them and make them like our glorious Savior. I can't think of a better outcome of suffering. Though I don't understand the ways of God, I trust them completely. Though my heart aches for my loved ones who are suffering, I trust my merciful and sovereign God. He is always good. He is ever faithful. And when I am suffering or grieving, I pray that He will give me the strength to cling to Him who is my rock, my mighty fortress. And I will pray for those who are grieving, that those who do not yet know God will come to that knowledge, and that those who do know Him will find in Him an immovable anchor, to keep them and comfort them; and that they will be reminded of those two very glorious words, "all things".

Our Guide

"Don't you mind him," said Puddleglum. "There are no accidents. Our guide is Aslan."
--The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis

As I look toward the future of our country under the leadership of our new President elect, my heart is resting in the solid truth that Jesus Christ, the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God, is my true Leader and King. I belong to His holy city, whose maker and builder is God, my Father. And, as Puddleglum the Marshwiggle so wisely put it, there are no accidents. All things have a purpose. Our guide is Christ. Amen.

Reformation Day

Today marks the 491st anniversary of the event that sparked the Protestant Reformation, namely, when the German reformer Martin Luther nailed his 95 Thesis to the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany. Luther's actions were a mark against the Catholic Church, and later led to complete excommunication from it. He risked everything, including his own life, to be true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, condemning many of the teachings of the Catholic Church. I am eternally grateful to the Lord for Martin Luther and other such men and women, both past and present, who lay down their lives for the sake of Christ and His Truth.

So, Happy Reformation Day! May God give grace to His Church to reform ever closer to the image of Jesus and the truth of Scripture.

Be Anxious For Nothing...Pray About Everything

I am continually amazed at how God speaks through the preaching of His Word each and every Sunday morning. This past Sunday, our pastor preached on the topic of anxiety and how Christians treat this as one of those "acceptable sins", as opposed to "really bad sins", such as murder, adultery, etc. However, the fact is, God sees anxiety in the same light that he sees adultery--it is outright sin, nothing more and nothing less. The sermon text was Philippians 4:6-7: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." All throughout the sermon, I felt as if Christ were standing there, peeling back the layers of my heart and showing me that there is much anxiety there; and I didn't even realize it until that moment. At first I was feeling a little bit helpless and wondering how to conquer this "acceptable" sin in my heart. I realized that one reason why I hadn't been praying regularly was that my heart was full of anxious thoughts; and instead of praying about them, I just kept thinking about them. It's so easy for me to sit down to pray, and then instead of really praying, I just start thinking about things. There is a huge difference between thinking and praying. And I believe that Satan was using my sin to make me just think about my anxieties instead of bringing them before an Almighty God. So, what should I do? Am I really helpless to deal with my sin. Certainly not!! I should be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let my requests be made known to God. I should pour my heart and soul out before Him, the One who already knows my every thought and worry. But let us not forget two very important words in that Scripture verse..."with thanksgiving". What am I supposed to thank God for in the midst of anxiety? It's very simple...I thank Him that He is GOD. He is sovereign when my heart is in turmoil. He is a shelter in the storm. He is holy when I am nowhere close to holiness. He is merciful to forgive my sinful worry. And, if I cry out to Him, "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus." This verse doesn't say that my circumstances or situation will change immediately or get better. It may get worse, or I may deal with it for the rest of my life on this earth. It promises a peace in Christ that is far more glorious than my finite mind can comprehend. What a blessed promise this is! I praise God for His peace. I praise Christ for purchasing this peace on the cross. Blessed be His name forever!

Pracitcal Atheism in Prayer

It has come to my attention (and not by any sort of accident or coincidence) that most days I live my life as a practical atheist. I do believe in God, believe that He exists, and that He is very personal, and not just out there somewhere. But they way I live my life, day in and day out, would seem to suggest otherwise. I am talking here about the area of deep, true communion with God, aka prayer. Prayer is an area of my life that I have struggled with for many years. I am not saying that I do not pray at all, but I know that oftentimes my prayers are "short and sweet", and afterwards I have not felt like I had true fellowship and communion with the Lord; and sometimes I feel like the prayers I have offered to God are just bouncing off the ceiling and God is not hearing me. There are also times when I pray with a lingering doubt in my mind that God can or will do what I am asking. This is where the practical atheism comes in. Is my prayer life a true reflection of what I believe about God, whether or not He really is there and is hearing me and is going to answer according to His good pleasure?I desire with all my heart to fellowship with God daily, to know His presence, and to know the help of the Spirit in prayer.



So, what can I do about this? Ironically, the first thing that comes to my mind is, "Pray for help!!" This may seem to be a bit humorous, but I think it's a good place to start. I know that I can't even begin to pray without the help of God's Spirit. So I must say, "Holy Spirit, help me to pray..." and then pray. And I can do this, because I am God's child. He has in His Word bid me to seek His face. He hears the prayer of the upright in heart. Those who have clean hands and a pure heart may approach God in prayer any time, any place, for whatever reason. And how can I, who am a sinner, have clean hands and a pure heart? The answer is very simple--the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. "Seeing then that we have a great High Priest, who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:14-16) God is real, He does hear my prayers, and He will give me grace to commune with Him and help in time of need. He will draw near to me, if I humble myself and draw near to him. And it's all because of Jesus. Praise God for Him!

The Flatts in Nashville

'Amazing'....this is the word I must use to describe the Rascal Flatts concert! Jessie and I had a fabulous time singing our hearts out and cheering on our favorite country band. We also had really, really great seats (thank you , Dad!!). As I mentioned in my earlier post, Taylor Swift opened the concert, and she totally surprised me with how good she was. I enjoyed her more than I had anticipated. When her set was over, the crew came out and completely changed the stage around for Rascal Flatts. The room exploded (quite literally, as there were pyrotechnics!) when the guys came out...it was great! Here is a video of the opening of their set ( the person that you hear screaming obnoxiously and incessantly is none other than my sister):

"It's the girls in the front row singin'..."

Most of you know that my family has given me the nickname "Eeyore". Well, right now I feel more like "Tigger"! I just found out that Jessie and I have been given two free tickets to the Rascal Flatts concert tomorrow night at the Sommet Center in downtown Nashville. (It's nice to have a dad that works for people in the country music industry :)) Wow!! Rascal Flatts is our favorite country artist/group, and we are super excited. I have never heard them live, and I just can't wait! Taylor Swift will also be there, which is nice, but I'm not really a fan of hers. I am sure I will take tons of pictures, so I'll post some of those this weekend. Yay!!

Olivia Jane

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord...

Psalm 127:3

A Day With the Girls

Yesterday, Mom, Jessie and I did something that we rarely get to do....we had a girls day out! Dad and Ross are camping this weekend with some friends, so we decided we were going to take advantage of this opportunity to have "girl time".

First, we visited the famous Pancake Pantry, where I had a most scrumptious plate of French Toast (the best I have ever had!), a side of hashbrowns, and, of course, coffee!

Then, we drove over to this amazing used bookstore called Elder's Books (No, I don't think I am related to the owners, even though the last name is similar). I bought quite a few great books with some birthday money I had been saving, my favorites being a 1935 edition of Anne's House of Dreams (from the Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery), and one of my all time favorite books, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (I think this one is a 1960s edition, not super old, but the cover is pretty). We probably spent about an hour and a half in that bookstore, and I know there are shelves that I didn't even look at!

Next, we headed over to the Farmer's Market, where we selected a couple of really nice pumpkins and a gourd. I also bought 8 very miniature pumpkins to give to my music students at CHET.

After that, we went to see Fireproof at the cinema. I thought that this was a great movie! It's so refreshing to see a truly Christian movie. My favorite line in the movie was something like this: "You can't follow your heart, because your heart can be deceived. Instead you gotta lead your heart." Wow! You will probably never hear that in Hollywood! If you haven't seen it yet, I recommend it. I cried at the end :-)

Hobby Lobby was our next stop. Their scrap booking supplies were 50% off, so we took advantage of that and bought some paper, stickers, etc. When we were finished there, it was about 8:00 pm, so we decided to call it a day and go home.

I am so thankful for this blessing of getting to spend an entire day with my mother and sister, two of my best friends in the whole world!

Rain

Right now, a steady, much-needed rain is falling. Many times, I see this form of precipitation as most inconvenient...mainly because the rain and humidity makes my hair do amazingly horrid things. However, in Psalm 65, David saw the rain as an abundant blessing from God.

You visit the earth and water it;

You greatly enrich it;

The river of God is full of water...

You crown the year with Your goodness,

And Your paths drip with abundance.

Instead of complaining about the way the rain makes my hair look (a sure sign of vanity!), I am thankful today that God is visiting this part of the world with His rivers of water. His paths truly do drip with abundance!

Seventy-Six Trombones Led the Big Parade...

Last night, our family attended a stage production of The Music Man in Smyrna. It was wonderful! The play was put on by a church there in Smyrna that has a theatre group called Lamplighters. I had never seen the movie version of The Music Man (I know that a handful of you reading this may literally be shocked at this confession!), so I really had no idea what the play is about. Anyway, I loved it. The acting was excellent, the music outstanding, and the choreography delightful, not to mention how funny it was! A lot of the songs were very familiar to me, I just never knew that they were from this play. We have been to one other production there, Little Women, which was not a musical, but was still a fabulous play. In December, they are doing It's A Wonderful Life, and then in February they are doing Pride and Prejudice (a personal favorite book and movie!). It's such a blessing to live in a city where there are so many opportunities to be exposed to the arts!

Worry Not

This morning, I was reading in Matthew in the passage where Jesus talks about not worrying about life. In 6:26, Jesus reminds us that God is the one who feeds the birds of the air; they do not have to "sow or reap". Then He says, "Are you not of much more value than these?" Jesus is saying that if God is that mindful of the needs of the birds, who have no soul within them, how much more mindful is He of mankind, who is made in His image and is His "very good" creation (Genesis 1:31)? In this time of corrupt governments and failing economies, it is so easy for me to be anxious about my life and about this nation. But I am so thankful that because of Jesus Christ, I belong to another Kingdom, one that can not be shaken (Hebrews 12:28), whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:10). I am profoundly thankful for the nation in which I live and for the way God has bestowed His common grace upon it. However, my trust is not in America's leadership (present and future), nor her economy. My trust is in my heavenly Father, who knows what I have need of before I even ask Him for it (Matthew 6:8).

Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed,

Because His compassions fail not.

They are new every morning;

Great is Your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22

Crowns of Thorns and Crimson Stains

After being challenged (to be precise, I was double dog dared!) by a very dear friend to start a blog, I have decided to take the plunge. I have actually been thinking about doing this for a good while, though I am just now taking action.

I struggled with what to call this blog. What is my purpose in starting a blog? What kinds of things will I write about? What is the theme of my life? Where Joy and Sorrow Meet is the title of a beautifully written song, in which are these lyrics:

There is a place, where hope remains,

In crowns of thorns and crimson stains;

And tears that fall on Jesus' feet,

Where joy and sorrow meet.

This is where Jesus Christ bore my sorrows for the joy set before him--the sorrow of my sin and the joy of glorifying Himself in the redemption of my soul. This is the cross, the center of my life now and the hope of life eternal. And this, dear friends, is the center of this blog. I will write about many things--family, friends, love, literature, music, joy, sorrow; but all of these things have at their core the beauty of the cross of Jesus Christ. Without the cross, I have no hope. Without the cross, there can be no true joy in the midst of even the deepest of sorrows. My prayer is that all who ever visit this blog will find in the posts the love, forgiveness, and beauty of the Savior.