It was a yearly journey that foreshadowed our future.

With much excitement, the Christmas tree had been assembled and now it was time to arrange the destination. My older sister carefully removed the treasured ornament from its box and moved to place it in a very strategic location on the tree – a little above the cardboard table on which the tree stood and not so high that neither of us could reach it. Throughout this procedure, I would gaze in awe at the tiny girl swinging in a silver star. Read more »

My Dad was born into a very large family who were rich in love, but poor as church mice. His proud Father was a master-carpenter by trade, who could barely put food on the table. Christmas’s around their house were usually very scant and barren to say the least. With barely enough money to put food on the table, any sights or sounds of the holiday regalia would have to be visited by another, more privileged family. Read more »

Making Thanksgiving crafts is a great way to bring your preschool Sunday school class together and teach the values that Thanksgiving stands for. You can choose to make beautiful color pages to display on the wall, or make pilgrims from tissue paper rolls. There are tons of fun crafts available. Consider that any project you choose for a preschool class should not include small parts or require sharp objects. There are many categories of Thanksgiving crafts as well. You can choose from decorations for the wall or window, table decorations, or just crafts to display throughout the house. Read more »

The Bible never mentioned a sleigh with jingle bells,
It never spoke of Santa or his helpful little elves.
I’ve looked for any reference to a decorated tree
With shiny lights and garland bringing in the Season’s glee.
I’ve searched with care… it isn’t there…
You can look and see.

But it does tell of the Christ-child, the Son of God on Earth,
And it tells of all the angels that announced His holy birth.
It revealed the precious Gift that God had given man…
Jesus Christ was born to fulfill God’s master plan.
It’s in the Book… just take a look;
He came to set us free.

So why has man forgotten why we celebrate each year?
He’s the reason for the season… not Santa and his deer.
It’s okay, don’t take me wrong, put up a pretty tree…
But don’t forget that Christ was born to die for you and me.
As you celebrate don’t hesitate
to lift Christ for all to see.

copyright 2008 Gerald Shuler
I’m an introverted extrovert with an annoying pessimistic optimism. Sometimes I confuse myself so much I simply must write to find out what in the world I am actually thinking. In spite of that, I remain a faithful servant and minister of my Lord, Jesus Christ.

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com

The holidays are upon us once again and that means one thing: parties, dinners and get-togethers of every kind. And you can bet next year’s check that at least a couple of them will have some Christmas theme to them. But how do you balance style and dressing up for the occasion? Getting spiffy for the season might call for a different color palette, but it still uses the same set of fashion rules as any other time of year.  Read more »

Could you give up your son? Watch this funny and poignant video from The Skit Guys.

I recently received an email asking me to comment about keeping Christ in Christmas. Perhaps you can identify with him:

“Could you write about keeping the focus of Christmas on Christ when you have young children? This is something my family and I have struggled with in light of not only the commercialization of the holidays, but also the visual images (colored lights, trees, etc.) and the predominance of secular movies and specials on TV. I know, we could just turn off the TV, but we try to be as selective as possible without being on a strict blackout. Would appreciate your thoughts and practical suggestions.” Read more »

While the holidays are traditionally a time of religious and spiritual contemplation and rejoicing, everyone can use some humor in their life. This is especially true in today’s tight economy where many families are discovering that they will be unable to travel to see family and friends this holiday season. This realization is making the use of Christmas cards and photo cards, once again, a great way to reconnect with loved ones without breaking the family bank account.  Read more »