JOY

     Happy Christmas Season everyone!

     I keep being reminded to choose joy: from the Tuesday afternoon kids program at church, to my devotions, to my planner, to the decorations at my job... to constantly choose to be joyful, even in the midst of this insane thing called life.

     This is a crazy time of year, but honestly, it is my favorite. I love everything about the holiday season. But it is so easy to get hung up on the "holiday season" - shopping, traffic, nasty people, addressing cards, endless hours of running around, wrapping gifts, gatherings and parties, exhaustion, the credit card bills to follow, the weight gain from all the times you said "Well, just one."

     We get so stuck on all the stuff we dislike that we forget to enjoy it all, even the things that drive us crazy. Sitting in traffic gives you time to listen to more Christmas music; the more cards you address, the more people you can call friends and family; the endless gifts you have to wrap are ways to show people you care about them; all the parties and gatherings, and everything that goes with it, are reminders of how many wonderful people you love and have around you.

     Enjoy this beautiful season. It does not last very long. Appreciate every bit of this holiday time, even the parts you hate. Cherish those special times because the memories will last when those people or traditions are not around anymore.

     At the heart of the season is Jesus. "Jesus is the reason for the season!" The center of Christmas is Christ: the Son of God came down to be a Son of man. To live here and love and save us. Remember that this Christmas season.

     And choose joy.

Encouragement

Hi all! A few words to update and encourage!

Our homeschooling convention went better than we hoped! Yeah! God is so god to those who put their trust in Him! ~Psalm 78:7~

I went to Pilgrim camp for Memorial Day Weekend. I worked hard, saw many old friends, and was blessed by the meetings!

I feel like I need to say this again. God is just so awesome! When you think you can't handle anymore, God is right there for you. He never gives us anything we cannot handle. He is there through it all. It doesn't feel like that all the time. We feel like no one is there and that is far from the truth. GOD IS THERE. He's with you at school, home, work, in your car, etc. ALWAYS. I'm still learning this truth. Believe me, I don't have it all down pat. I can't give you steps 1, 2, & 3 and the problem will go away. But, most the most important thing is to realize that HE is there. HE is right beside you, and sometimes, He's carrying you through. If you can accept that fact, such a peace will cover you and the situation may not get better; in fact, it might get worse. BUT you will have peace, knowing that it's all under the blood!

Here are two songs that have been encouraging me recently.  

"Through it all,

 through it all,

 I've learned to trust in Jesus,

 I've learned to trust in God.

 Through it all,

 through it all,

 I've learned to depend upon His Word." - Andrae Crouch

"His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,

His power no boundary known unto men;

For out of His infinite riches in Jesus

He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again." - Annie Flint

Meditate today on the fact that God is carrying you "Through it all!"

Blessings!

~Abby

PS - Prayer Requests: 1) My mom - she is having some health issues that require lots of prayer! 2) A friend's mom had a heart attack last Friday and she had an operation and appears to be doing fine, praise God! Please pray for her recovery. 3) A dear friend is in the army right now. He is in basic training in Oklahoma (unaffected by the tornadoes) but please pray that He grows spiritually even more! 4) The people that were affected by the tornadoes in Oklahoma! For peace and comfort for all involved!

Previous postings to deleted blog :P

My blog somehow got a gadget added to it that I couldn't remove so my previous four or five posts are below. Sorry for the inconvenience!
Merry Christmas!




12/24/11 at 10:14 pm.

It's 10 o'clock on Christmas Eve. My sister is staying in my room for the night, and we're listening to Christmas songs :) I really can't stop listening to Christmas music!

We had our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service tonight at 6. We sang a lot of songs, read from Isaiah 40 and Luke 2. My favorite verse from tonight was this- "The glory of the LORD shall be revealed. And all flesh shall see it together..." What a wonderful promise! God's glory will be revealed to all! What a glorious hope that He gives to us! Thank you, Lord for all the wonderful promises You give us! Sometimes we forget that He is coming back to fulfill all of His promises. He has already given us so much- His Son, Jesus Christ, love, joy, peace, food, clothing, family, friends, and the Holy Spirit! 

Well, I shall say G'night! 
A Merry Christmas to all!

12/24/11 at 8:10 am.

It's Christmas Eve! I can't wait!

I've been up for a while tossing and turning for some reason, but now I'm up and getting ready for breakfast at my Oma's!! (That's German for grandma) I'm thinking red sweater with my black jeans. Anyway....

MY Christmas song for the day is...Andrea Bocelli- The Lord's Prayer

Beautiful song for the Day!

In Him,

Abby

12/23/11 sometimes in the evening.

So it's the day before the day before Christmas!

I love this time of year! The music, the lights, the joy, and so much more! People seem to be a little different around the holidays. Sure, most people are grouchy some are in a rush, and some are just plain unhappy. But people forget to easily what Christmas is really about. It's not just the presents, and the food, and the movies, the pictures, seeing friends and family. There was a little Baby who came to earth over 2,000 years ago. Most people even then didn't know He was here. Most thought it was another ordinary day. But what they didn't realize was that day would change the course of EVERYTHING on earth. Nothing would ever be the same again. And why? All because of a little baby, born in a stable, in Bethlehem. "And that's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown!" So this Christmas season, let's remember who it was that came to this poor, lost world, all to save such wretches as us. The presents, lights, music, food, games and everything else is nice. But HE is the real reason for Christmas! 

In Him, 

Abby

12/22/11 sometime in the morning.

Today... 

I am coming to realize that I am not strong enough to handle everything on my own. God only can do that. He creates a plan for your life and then acts on it. That's when it's hard to follow Him. It's in these times that we learn to lean on Him more.

The song below is really how I have been able to go through this last day and a half. God's plans don't always make sens or seem right. But He knows BEST.

Strong Enough

I have a busy day, but hopefully I'll be able to post again :)

Love in Him,

Abby

12/21/11 late that night.

..............hmmmmm........ a new beginning........ 

I had another blog on here but my life has been changing a lot and I didn't post for months at a time. :/ ill be posting more on here though. Ill give a more detailed posting later but below is my song for the day :)

Our God

In  Him, Abby