New Things

Thought I would sneak in a quick post between all of our Christmas and New Year's activities. Are you all celebrated out yet? Like Evelyn Underhill once said, "I do hope your Christmas has had a little touch of Eternity in among the rush and pitter patter and all. It always seems such a mixing of this world and the next--but after all, that is the idea!" What a wonderful way to think about Christmas--a mixing of this world and the next... With that in mind, I guess you could say I had a mixed up Christmas, and I hope you had the same :)

As these last hours of 2007 slip away, let me pose a question (or two or three...you know how I am!). Have you given any thought yet to what the new year may hold in store for you? Are you excitedly anticipating the new things that may come your way in 08? Are you facing the new year with hope and faith that God will bring about good things in your life?

In Isaiah 43:19 (NIV), Isaiah tells us that the Lord says, "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." Pretty exciting, huh? What new thing do you think the Lord wants to do in your life this year? It makes me think of the unplowed ground I wrote about in my inaugural post (if you've forgotten, check it out by clicking on the label "inaugural post").

I challenge you to be ready--to be looking for and expecting God to do new things in and around you as 2008 unfolds. If you're having trouble seeing the possibilities, just remember that God is able to make a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. The best part? He will be with you every step of the way.

Happy New Year to you all!

Merry Christmas!

Things are very Christmasy at the Barker house. Our kids are home, and we are in the thick of enjoying each other and all of our traditional Christmas activities -- eating, playing games, eating, watching Christmas movies, eating... Bet it sounds a lot like your house :)

And guess what our kids did? They surprised us with a digital camera for our anniversary! Yes, we are a little late moving into the digital age. Now I just have to figure it all out :) Thought I better post a picture on the blog while they are here to show me how to do it. Hopefully, I'll be able to remember all of the ins and outs so I can share more pictures with you in the future :)

Today I simply want to wish each and every one of you a "Merry Christmas" and leave you with a little something to think about as you celebrate this most precious holiday:

"...she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." (Luke 2:7 NIV) Is there room at your house, in your heart, for the Christ child?

"God always fills in all hearts all the room which is left Him there." F.W. Faber

May you be blessed this Christmas -- and don't be surprised if I don't post again for a week or so. I'll be busy eating fudge and Christmas cookies. Hey, a girl's gotta celebrate! Merry Christmas!

Pray For These This Christmas

We're coming down the home stretch before Christmas, and you probably need a quick read as much as I need a quick post :) Let me just ask you to remember a certain segment of our population that could use our prayers during these days when so many are happily singing "I'll Be Home For Christmas". Consider for a moment the loneliness and heartache that will be experienced by prisoners and their families.

Don and I got a glimpse into the lives of some of these families as we delivered Angel Tree gifts to the children of four prisoners a couple of nights ago. (Others in our church bought and wrapped the gifts.) In just those four visits, we saw that all kinds of people are touched by the grief of having loved ones incarcerated. The homes ranged from run-down to modest to upper middle class. One family was Caucasian, another was Hispanic, and two were African American.

People of all races and income levels will be missing a loved one who can't be "Home for Christmas" this year. Prisoners will be aching for the comforts of home and the arms of loved ones. And let's not forget that in some countries, some of our brothers and sisters in Christ will be spending Christmas in prison simply because they are Christians.

Take a few moments this Christmas season to lift prisoners and their families in prayer. "Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners..." (Hebrews 13:3a NIV) As you do so, you will bring Christmas blessings into the lives of hurting people. People not so different from you and me...

December Giveaway Winner!

Drum roll, please :) The winner of the December Giveaway (and a copy of The One Year Life Verse Devotional) is... Matthew! Congratulations, Matthew! You should have a message in your inbox from me. I'll send the book as soon as I get your mailing address. Enjoy!

In this last full week before Christmas, may God bless all of you with quiet, worshipful Christmas moments and inspire you to seek out such moments with Him each and every Christmas season. Be blessed!

O Little Town of...Cancellations?

Old man winter showed up in force over the past few days across our portion of the Heartland in the form of an ice storm. In our community, we actually got off easy -- we didn't lose power. Yes, it did go off momentarily on Sunday, and at one point on Monday the lights dimmed. Thank goodness that was the extent of it. Those moments were enough to strike fear in my heart, though, as I thought of the prospect of no heat. When I woke up Monday morning, the first thing I thought was "we still have power -- thank You, Lord!"

This kind of weather certainly plays havoc with our lives. Cancellations abound. All of our church services on Sunday were canceled -- which means our choir didn't get to do the cantata we had been working on for the past several weeks (it has been rescheduled for this Sunday, though). I had also spent time practicing for a trio number for Sunday morning. That one may have to wait for next Christmas. Classes on Monday were canceled at the college so that messed things up for Don. He was counting on getting in some more lecture time before finals started today. And to top things off, a fun Christmas outing I had planned with a friend had to be put on hold as well.

These cancellations were really relatively minor. At least our electricity wasn't "canceled" by mother nature. Nor did the storm come on Christmas and cancel everyone's travel plans (knock on wood!). The first weekend in December last year, however, we had a huge snowfall that canceled a much-anticipated family weekend gathering and outing to see Silver Dollar City decked out for the holidays. We were one disappointed lot over that.

Life can hand us even harder "cancellations" than these, though. Do you happen to be dealing with a cancellation in your life right now? Maybe your job was "canceled" due to a lay-off or downsizing, or maybe your marriage was canceled through divorce. You might be going through the break-up of a relationship or even tragically faced with the end of a relationship because of a death. Maybe you've had to cancel your plans or put your dreams on hold to care for a loved one. You might even have had to cancel plans to go home for Christmas for some reason.

When our lives and times don't go as we planned, it helps to remember that God is in charge and that He is able to work things out for our good. So if you are faced with some sort of cancellation in your life, I encourage you to look to God and say, "But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, 'You are my God.' My times are in your hands..." Psalm 31:14-15a NIV

Go Ahead -- Indulge

Are Christmas goodies starting to appear at your house yet? I've scaled back on what I make now that I'm supposed to be watching my sugar intake. Since fudge is a particular weakness of mine, I'm skipping it altogether and have just asked Kristin to bring some of hers when they come for Christmas. If I had it here all month, I would be sneaking bites of it constantly :)

I did, however, make some peanut clusters the other day in an effort to try to spread out some of the baking and goodie-making that I need to accomplish over the next couple of weeks. You know what peanut clusters remind me of? My Grandpa Barnes. I can't think of peanut clusters without thinking of him -- and Grandma, too, for that matter.

When my sisters and I were growing up, Grandpa was famous for buying peanut clusters at the Woolworth's candy counter every time they came to town. He always shared them with us and even let us order pop at the soda fountain there. (For some reason, Mom always ordered a limeade, but I, of course, wanted pop.)

Both Grandpa and Grandma liked their sweets (maybe that's where I got my sweet tooth!). When we visited them on their farm, we'd make sure to check out their candy drawer in the kitchen. That's right, they had a candy drawer. They probably had other things in there, too, but all I cared about was the candy. Now that I think of it, I have a candy stash at my house as well. (Figure I might as well tell you about it before one of the girls pipes up with that bit of news as a comment!) Anyway, peanut clusters and orange slices (the candy not the fruit!) along with other old-fashioned candy treats could be found on a regular basis in Grandpa and Grandma's candy drawer. That's just one of the great memories I have of them.

Don't you just love giving in to nostalgia? Christmas, with all its heartwarming memories, is the perfect time to do it, too. So go ahead -- indulge in some nostalgia. If not now, be sure to take time for it later. Let your mind wander back and remember the people and places of your past. Relive those scenes, those aromas, those feelings you have tucked away in your heart. Savor your memories. And this year as you make new memories, capture moments that you can look back on in the years to come.

I'm reminded of someone who did just that over 2,000 years ago. After the baby Jesus was born and the shepherds had come to see Him, scripture says, "But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." (Luke 2:19 NIV) I wonder how many times after that she indulged in nostalgia and recalled every moment of that amazing night? Let's take time to remember that night of all nights as well. "O come, let us adore Him!"


**Don't forget to sign up for the December giveaway! The deadline is this Friday. Check the Dec. 2nd post for details.

Christmas Tree Joy

Do you have your Christmas tree decorated yet? Probably depends on whether you're going to get a real one or not. If you're like us and use an artificial tree, chances are you've been delighting in it for several days already.

I absolutely love having our Christmas tree up during the holidays. Excitement, joy, peace, and contentment all seem to emanate from it. Nothing makes me happier than to find a valid excuse to put the tree up a few days early, and this year was no exception. I have to admit that I don't like the work involved, especially when I have trouble with the lights (yes, I'm mechanically challenged) and with my garland that never quite fits around the whole tree. The end result is perfect, though, and always worth the effort.

Now when I say perfect, I don't mean magazine perfect with everything color coordinated and evenly balanced. I just mean perfect to my eyes and heart. (Did I mention before that I love our tree?!) I guess you would say the theme of our tree is "hodgepodge" -- a little bit of this and a little bit of that. And each little "this and that" is dearly loved and meaningful in some way, except for a few ornaments that I am trying to convince Kelli to finally start putting on her own tree :)

About 20 years ago I bought a couple of Precious Moments porcelain ornaments that reminded me of my girls, and over the years several others have been added to our tree (most of them gifts from Don or the girls, but a few represent some lucky after-Christmas sales!). We also have a Precious Moments angel tree-topper that Kelli, when she was just a little girl, named "Carolyn" after her Aunt Carolyn. Carolyn was probably in her late teens at the time and considered very cool by her little nieces :)

The rest of our ornaments come from a variety of people and places. Kelli's favorite (the twirly one) has been handed down from Don's family, and Kristin's favorites are her "Baby's First Christmas" ornament and the one that has her picture on it as a 2-year old. Several are gifts from dear friends while many others represent vacation spots we enjoyed together as a family. We even have a couple that Dad brought back for me from his travels in Russia. Then there are those that I've simply treated myself to when I splurge a little while on vacation :)

Each ornament holds special meaning and memories for me. That's one of the reasons I love our tree so much, but there is another reason as well. I know Christmas trees mean different things to different people, but to me they are a symbol of joy. They show there is a celebration going on – a celebration so big that even the trees are shouting for joy. The lights, the tinsel, the ornaments all seem to cry out "Joy to the world! A Savior has been born!" Funny as it may sound, Christmas trees actually lead me to worship.

I pray that you will enjoy your tree this year, that perhaps you'll look at it in a new way. If you listen closely, you will probably hear it singing for joy at the miracle of our Savior's birth. Take time to sing along and enter into that joy yourself this Christmas season. Worship and be blessed!

"Then the trees of the forest will sing, they will sing for joy before the Lord..." 1 Chronicles 16:33 NIV

Ho, Ho, Ho! December Giveaway!

Are you wondering if I'm planning on doing a giveaway every month now? Well, the answer is "no", but I just couldn't let the month of giving go by without doing a giveaway! My girls will tell you that I love playing Santa so let's just say that this one's from Santa :)

This month I will be giving away another one of the books on my Books That Will Bless list. This time it's The One Year Life Verse Devotional (the book that has a devotion in it that I wrote!) If you've already run out and bought one for yourself since you know one of the contributors :), try the giveaway anyway and bless someone with it as a gift.

To be included in the drawing, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post by midnight Dec. 15th and follow these guidelines: Be sure to include your name as well as an email address if I don't know you personally. If you have time and since it's the month for giving and receiving gifts, tell me about one of the most memorable gifts you received as a child. (Be sure and comment by the 15th -- I thought I would cut it off early this month so I can get the book to the winner before Christmas.)

If you're like me, you can probably remember several gifts you received during your growing up years. Chances are, though, one or two stand out in your memory above the others. I'll never forget the year I opened a tiny little package from my dad, and inside was an English walnut. He said, "A nut for a nut!" (yes, I was crazy back then, too!) Everyone roared, of course. He insisted that I go ahead open it and eat the nut so I played along trying to be a good sport. Guess what I found when I cracked it open? A five-dollar bill! I thought I had hit the jackpot. The neighbors probably heard all my whooping and hollering. Come to find out, Dad had very carefully taken the nut apart, cleaned out the inside so he could put a surprise in it for me, and glued it back together. What looked very ordinary at first glance actually held something quite extraordinary. I'll never forget that gift.

Another gift given over 2,000 years ago looked very ordinary as well. A baby boy was born to an ordinary couple in a very ordinary stable in Bethlehem. At first glance, some might have thought He was just an ordinary baby, but there was nothing ordinary about Him. He was the Savior of the world. And the world has never forgotten that Gift.

"...I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10b-11 NIV

First Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations, Shawn! You are the first-ever giveaway winner on Cheryl's R & R! I drew your name out of the hat -- it was a bowl actually :) -- after saying a prayer and asking God to give the book to the person He wanted it to go to. I'm sure Thomas Kinkade's The Art of Creative Living will be a blessing to you.

Everyone check back soon -- I've got something else up my sleeve :) Happy December 1st!