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There is something that is quite disturbing that is happening in our culture. I am sure all of you have noticed it. People in our country feel like they have a right to do or say whatever they want to say or do. I am not saying we don’t have rights, but it is how we choose to use those rights that is important. I know what it feels like to be abused by someone. I know what it feels like to be ignored. I know what it feels like to be afraid. I could go on and on with my issues but the point is, I choose to follow the example of Jesus. I am not perfect and there are times when I get mad, but going out and breaking a window and hurting innocent people is not the correct way to handle my anger. Do you really think that is what Jesus wants us to do? Do you really think that action is going to solve anything? Hate never solves anything and Jesus knew that. Martin Luther King, Jr. also knew that same principle. “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”

I realize that everyone has opinions but if you are a person that has given their life to Christ then I really think all of us need to be reminded of some general facts. Please understand me. I am not talking down to you. I am also reminding myself of how I am supposed to be living my life as well. For goodness sakes we are scaring the children with our actions and talk. So, take a time out and go to your room and think about what you are saying and doing. (I just had to add that!)

When Jesus was on this earth, He was hated and loved by many. He knew how to handle both types of people. He knew what to say and when to say it. He wasn’t afraid to speak truth. He depended on His heavenly father for help and support and that is what we are supposed to be doing as well. He spent hours in prayer every day so He could handle whatever came His way.

He taught many things but one very important principle He taught was about love. Matthew 5:44 says, “But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Luke 6:27 says, “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.” Now, I don’t know if you have ever had an enemy, but I have. It is also no fun when you have someone who hates you. I have always felt like I was a pretty good girl and I did what I was told and was a good employee and had a good work ethic, but sometimes there are people out there that just don’t like you. They even hate you and you don’t understand why. It made me very afraid when I was being hated and attacked. But, I am called to love that person back. I am called to pray for that person. I am not called to attack back. I know that is a foreign concept in our culture. Now, I am not talking about someone in an abusive situation. Get out or get help! I am not saying we should ignore wrongdoing either. But, we need to handle things the way Christ would want us to. Attacking each other is not the solution.

Really, we are not each other’s enemy. There is one enemy and his name is Satan. He is a liar. He is a thief. He is here to destroy our relationships and ourselves. He has been trying to destroy me since the day I was born. He is very deceptive and cunning. He knows how to get into our lives and work things around. We need to be aware of what he is doing at all times. We need to be on guard and the best way to do that is to know scripture and fight back with it because scripture is truth. Jesus shows us in Matthew 4:1-10 how to fight back. Satan tried to tempt him in his physical needs, his desires, his possessions, his power and his pride. Jesus did not give in. He did not waver. So, when you are tempted to shout at someone or lash out in anger or say things you will regret, please pause and pray and ask the Holy Spirit to help you be like Jesus. Respond in a way that brings life, not death to a situation. (I am preaching to myself as well!)

You see, I was yelled at most of my life. I was cussed at too. It isn’t fun being raised by someone who is full of anger. It made me very afraid. I felt like I was walking on egg shells most of my life. I never knew when the eruption would begin. So for everyone’s sake, please think before you speak and try not to speak in anger. You might not understand the damage you are doing to someone. We are called to speak the truth in love. Ephesians 4:15

I know there are many of us who prayed for this election. We prayed for God to put the right people into power. So, let’s think about this. If you prayed as I did, and you are not happy with who God put there, then you need to go to God and talk to Him about it. When you lash out about who He chose, you are lashing out at God Almighty. By your words, you are telling God He made a bad decision. Just take a minute and think about that. Does God make bad decisions? I don’t think so!!! So, please think about that! I don’t want anyone to be in trouble with God. Please take the time to get your heart right. This makes me think of the verse in John 8:7, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” In other words, we are not supposed to judge one another. We are all sinners and we all make mistakes. And for goodness sakes we are not supposed to judge God or His decisions. He is God and He doesn’t make mistakes! 

The bottom line is God is over our country and the whole world. Psalm 22:28 says, “For dominion belongs to the Lord and He rules over the nations” and Psalm 47:8 says, “God reigns over the nations; God is seated on His holy throne.” We need to trust Him and His decisions because He knows what He is doing. I know that is hard to do when you don’t agree with what is happening. But, remember God knows things we don’t know and He knows people’s hearts. We need to trust His ways. Deuteronomy 32:4 says, “He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.”

We as Christians need to remember we have a heavenly father who is large and in charge. We have to trust His ways. We need to agree to disagree and love one another as Christ commanded us to do. Hate should never be a solution to the problem. If you are struggling with hate, then go before the Lord and confess your sin and ask Him to help you with it. I have struggled with hate and anger before and the only thing hate did was hurt me. It eats us up and causes other issues like resentment and bitterness. We all know people who have let that happen to them and they are no fun to be around. Please go before the Lord and ask Him to help you. He will.

Can we please join together in praying for our nation and praying for each other? Can we please love one another and agree to disagree? Can we let the Lord handle our country and let Him do what He needs to do? After all, I really don’t want anyone else in charge. Do you? Everyone makes mistakes. Can we please pause and ask the Lord what He wants us to do and then respond in a manner that gives Him glory? Remember the children are watching. Until next time dear friends….

1 Peter 4:8 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”

Life can be challenging. Everyone on this earth has struggles, trials and setbacks. Since it is a new year many of us are trying new things that we hope will improve our lives. Whether it is exercising more or relaxing more or spending more time with your family or reading the Bible more, we want to make changes that put us in a better place or state of mind. I would like to share with you some of the teaching that has helped me improve spiritually, mentally and emotionally.

When I was in the worst shape of my life, I began to study God’s word with Beth Moore. That woman helped me in my relationship with God more than anyone else had been able to do before. She is real. She tells it like it is. She showed me how much God wanted a relationship with me. She showed me how she had broken free of so many things in her life. She was also abused as a child, so she was able to speak to my heart like no one had been able to do so before her.  She has been one of the most influential woman in my life because she was able to help me understand so many things.  If you ever have a chance to do a Bible study of hers, do it!

Beth also introduced me to journaling. She talked about the importance of writing things down. At the same time, my counselor was telling me to do the same thing. I wouldn’t have this blog today if I wouldn’t have journaled about my life. Journaling has been my way to deal with my life. I would write about my feelings, what I was learning, scripture I found, how my life was going, etc. For me, journaling became a type of therapy. It still is. When I write, I feel like I am sharing my life with God. And as I am writing, I can hear Him speaking to me. I have found intimacy with Him through journaling so that is why I recommend it.

There are so many scriptures that I have learned, but one of the main ones I learned in “Breaking Free” by Beth Moore is Isaiah 61:1-3. “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, at the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.”  That my friends, is what God wants to do in us!

Another woman who has helped me in my faith is Priscilla Shirer. I will never forget this concept that she taught me. “My friend, whatever you treasure in life—your kids, your marriage, the money you have made, the car you are driving, or the lifestyle that God has blessed you with—remember to hold it loosely so that it doesn’t hurt when God has to pry your fingers open to take it away. Don’t clutch it tightly. Always remember that your possessions are not truly yours. God gives them to us on loan to manage until He comes again.” She is referring to Matthew 6:21 when Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will also be.” Now, there is nothing wrong with having great kids or a great marriage or having money or material possessions. But, I have to be very careful not to make anyone or anything more important in my life than God. Because when I do, I am putting them above God and that is not where they are supposed to be. Because I am a pleaser, it has been so easy for me to put my relationships before God. It is a daily struggle for me. I have to go to Him every morning and spend time with Him and make Him the most important person in my life. My husband and kids have to be second and third. I am a much better wife and Mom when I put the Lord first.

I can’t emphasize this next concept enough. If you are searching for answers or needing help with issues, please seek authors, counselors or pastors who have good sound biblical teaching or training. You need to look for people who point you to scripture and truth. In order to heal, I have had to read so many books and do many studies. I have found many women (because I am one) and men who have been able to help me on my journey. If you are searching for authors to learn from or studies to do, there are many to choose from. I would love to share with you who has helped me. You can message me and I will list them for you. God has blessed me with wonderful teaching. Each author has helped me in a different way.

Another author I am going to mention is Ann Voskamp. That woman has a way of saying things. The first book I read that she wrote was “1,000 Gifts”. She taught me to look for my own 1,000 gifts and in that process it made me aware of what God was giving me and doing in my life on a daily basis. I tried to write down three things every day in a notebook. Looking for those things really changed my attitude and helped me look for the positive in my life. It took me over a year to get to 1,000, but I was so glad I did it! I highly recommend looking for gifts to anyone who is trying to change their outlook on life.

R.T. Kendall is the man who taught me how to forgive. He wrote a book called “Total Forgiveness”. I cannot tell you how much that book helped me to forgive my father. I think I underlined at least 3/4 of that book. At the time, I was mad at God for giving me a father who hurt me. I was mad at myself for allowing my father to continue to hurt me and I was mad that I had to forgive! I guess you could say that I was mad at my heavenly father, my earthly father and myself all at the same time! That’s a lot of anger for a body to hold inside. Kendall states, “The bondage wasn’t worth holding on to my unforgiveness. The absence of seeing Jesus’ face wasn’t worth it. The lack of peace wasn’t worth it. But getting that old peace back (I had forgotten what it was like) was worth it all. God is a jealous God and won’t let us enjoy this inner peace if we have an unforgiving spirit.” Forgiveness isn’t easy, but it is necessary and God commands us to do it. If you are struggling in this area, I highly recommend this book.

The point of me writing all of this to you is to tell you there are so many great resources out there to help you with whatever you are struggling with. I knew I needed help, so I grabbed as many things as I could so I could get better. The picture I posted for my blog is most of the material I have read or studied in the last fifteen years. Everything I have read or studied helped me learn and grow. Each author helped me look at things with different eyes. Each person helped me learn scripture and principles to live by. It has been a journey and I am grateful for it. These studies and books pointed me to scripture that has been my life line. The Bible is the most important book I have read. I have written down verses and carried them with me on the days I had extreme anxiousness. Whenever I needed help, the Bible had a verse for me to cling to. God uses His word to help us in times of trouble.

There have been a lot of tears but also a lot of joy! So when I was trying to think of a name for my blog it was easy to name it journey2joy. I really want to help you if you are struggling with life. Please message me if you are looking for a book to read or a study to do. Chances are I have read it or studied it. Thank you so much for going along with me on this journey! Until next time…..

I would like to propose something a little different for the new year. Instead of writing down all the goals you would like to accomplish, why not sit before the Lord and ask Him what He would like to accomplish in you. I am not saying that goals are bad or wanting to accomplish those goals are bad. But, I have discovered that when I come before Him and ask Him what He would like to do in me, He shows me something that I hadn’t thought of or discovered about myself yet.

For example, one of my goals every year has been to know the Lord more and spend more time with Him. I am sure most of you think that’s a great goal and some of you probably have that same goal. I realized recently that the focus of that goal has been focused on me. I am the one who is making the effort and I am the one who is striving to spend time and know the Lord. But, what if I change that up a bit and ask the Lord to come after me more? What if I ask Him to pursue me with all His might? Because in a relationship, both people are supposed to be working and helping one another. What if I completely allowed the Lord to come after me? What does that look like?

If you are up for the challenge, I would love for you to try this with me. He is telling me this is what He wants to do not only for me but also for you. This is going to be interesting and exciting. I am just a vessel that He speaks through and I can’t wait to see what He does and what He reveals to us. Just this morning as I was reading “The Broken Way” by Ann Voskamp, God showed me what He wants me to see about myself. He knows that I have always struggled with a low self-esteem. He wants me to see that He believes in me.

I just have to share some of what Ann writes. “Maybe we believe in Jesus; we just don’t always believe in Him working in us.” That has been one of my biggest struggles. I belittle myself and think why would He want to do anything in me. When I think that way about myself, then I am limiting what God wants to do in me. He doesn’t want me to think that way about myself. He wants me to claim that I am His child and He desires to work in me and wants to do mighty things through me.

Sit for a minute and think about that. The God of the Universe wants to work in you. He lives inside of you (if you have accepted Him into your heart) and He believes in you. Ann tells a story about sitting next to an Orthodox Hasidic rabbi on an airplane. He says to her, “Why do you people always say it’s about having a strong belief in God? Who sits with the knowing that God’s belief in you is even stronger than yours in Him? You may believe in God, but never forget—it’s God who believes in you.” He then went on to say, “Every morning that the sun rises and you get to rise? That’s God saying He believes in you, that He believes in the story He’s writing through you. He believes in you as a gift the world needs.”

This is life changing for me! What would my life look like if I allowed myself to believe how much God believes in me? And what would your life look like? Because I have always been so performance oriented and a pleaser, I have always struggled with doing, doing and more doing. Because I love the Lord so much and I love others, I fall into the Martha trap. But, what if this year, I allowed myself to think about how much God believes in me and wants to work in me every single day. What if I look for Him to come after me? What if I allow Him into every part of my life and watch Him do what He needs to do? That means I have to let Him into all the areas I want to control. Yikes! But, I think I am ready for that. I am ready for Him to take me over so I can live my life abundantly.

Ann Voskamp says so many wonderful things, but this statement really hit my heart. She says, “God made the work of Jesus to “bind up the brokenhearted” and there is more belovedness in Christ for us than there ever is brokenness in us. When Jesus is gracious to us, why would we be cruel to ourselves.” There it is! Why would I be cruel to myself? I have been cruel to myself for so many years because I didn’t feel worthy. I have said terrible things to myself and believed them. I cannot do this anymore. It isn’t right! It isn’t fair to my God who sent His son to die on the cross for my sins. He wants me to stop! He wants all of us to stop our destructive behaviors and believe in Him. He wants us to believe that we are a gift. Say to yourself, “I am a gift.” Say it over and over again. Say it a million times if you need to. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you believe it. I am going to do the same.

I want this year to be the year that I stop attacking myself with horrible words. I want to quit doubting the Lord believes in me and believe that I am a gift. (I still wince when I say that I am a gift. God has a lot of work to do in me!) I want to open myself up to Him and ask Him to come after me and help me live my life abundantly. I can be whatever God wants me to be. He can give me the power I need to do it. He has given me the power to write this blog. I would never have dreamed in a million years that I would be doing this. Every single time I write to you, I look back at it and say, “Wow! Look at what the Lord has done!” I need to remember to do that for myself as well. I want to look back at the end of this year and say, “Wow! Will you look at what He has done in me and for me?”

If you are up for the challenge, I would like to suggest that you write things down. You don’t have to extensively journal, but carry a little notebook with you and write down what God is showing you and helping you with. Keep your eyes focused on Him as much as you can and look for Him to work in your life. He will! At the end of the year, you will have all of the things the Lord gave you for 2017. I am going to leave you with one more statement by Ann. “The moment God stops believing in me, He’d have to stop believing He is enough.” We need to remember that He is more than enough to give us the abundant life He wants us to live. Until next time dear friends…

I don’t usually like to reflect on things. I like to look forward and move ahead. But, I need to take the time to look back and see what I have learned and then keep moving ahead with those principles. The one thing that stands out to me the most in this past year is that God is with me. He has been with me through all the emotions of this past year and will continue to be with me in the future. He doesn’t leave my side. He is for me and not against me. He is the constant help that I need every single day.

My problem is that I tend to look at the bad things that happened this past year and not the good things. I struggle with seeing the positive. It’s that stinkin’ thinkin’ that has plagued me most of my life. So, that is one thing that I would like to change about myself with a lot of help from the Holy Spirit. The thing that helps me the most is keeping my mind focused on God and writing things down that He has done for me throughout the day. I struggle to keep up with it, but when I do, my outlook on life is so much better. When I look for Him and what He is doing, it makes me smile inside and it makes me feel loved.

I guess you could say that I kind of fell apart this past Fall. My medication wasn’t working as well anymore for my PTSD and my panic attacks came back full force. I have prayed for healing for so many years and I was so desperate to have it, but the Lord had a different plan for me. My doctor told me of a different therapy that he wanted me to try. It is called EMDR which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy. This type of therapy is used with people who suffer from PTSD. I am currently in this therapy and will continue until I am told to stop. The reason why I share this with you is that I finally have come to the realization that healing can come in different forms. I always thought God would heal me and I would completely be free of my issue. But, He has shown me that my healing is a process and not a quick fix. 

My healing has been a process of different things. The first thing was medication to get my body under control. Then, it was counseling for many years. As I processed through my childhood and let the Lord lead me and show me His love, I began to heal in my mind and in my faith. I began to see the Lord as someone who was for me and not against me. He became the Father that I desperately needed. And now He is using EMDR therapy.

I have to say that I have cried out to the Lord so many times to heal me from this, but He has chosen a different path for me. I have struggled with Him and asked “Why?” so many times but now I can look back and see that this is the way He chose for me. His type of healing has been different than what I wanted. I wanted an instant fix and He wanted me to go through the growth and the learning that I would have missed out on with the instant fix. I now see that! I don’t know why it has taken me so long to see this, but it has.

I think it is because I don’t like pain. My life has been very painful. I run in the other direction when I think I might have to go through anything painful. I put off surgeries, going to the dentist, or going to the doctor if I think that pain will be involved. I just don’t like people messing with me!!!!! This is a huge problem of mine. But, I am learning that the Lord is over me and I need to trust Him through my painful situations. I have to trust Him to work in my pain. He wants me to trust Him and see that He is there for me.

I think the hardest thing is overcoming things that have been ingrained in me since birth. I am still at 57 trying to overcome fear, trust, pain, abandonment and loneliness. God knows these things about me so He has put books, people, scripture, bible studies, counseling and church in my path to help me overcome these issues and be set free. I believe that some day I will be able to move past all of this. It has just been more of a process for me. I have to remember that it took me all those years to develop wrong thinking and bad habits, so it is going to take some time to change them. I already have made a lot of progress, but still have a ways to go. I am extremely hard on myself and the Lord keeps telling me I need to show myself grace. He shows it to me, but I struggle with accepting it. I want to fix myself now and I get so impatient with the process.

I want to share these verses with you. Proverbs 4:20-22 “My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body.” I just found this wonderful piece of scripture and it pretty much sums up what God has been telling me through my journey of healing. He has been whispering in my ear that His words, His love, His grace and His spirit will heal this war-torn body. Oh how I love Him even more for showing me these words of encouragement.

So, dear friends, I want 2017 to be a year of revelations. I want the Lord to show me more of Him. I want to follow Him even more than I do now. I want Him to whisper in my ear and encourage me with His words. I want to tell myself to “shut-up” and listen to what God has to say on the matter instead of listening to myself. I want to trust Him and His timing because His ways are far better than mine. And this is my hope for you too! I pray that 2017 will be a year of revelations for you. I pray you will dig into His word and find Him and draw closer to Him every single day. And I pray that His words will bring healing to you! Until next time….

I have been seeing things with new eyes this Christmas. You know how you read something over and over again and it hits you in a different way. Well, that has been happening to me this Christmas. First of all, one of the main verses that has hit me with new meaning is Matthew 1:23. “She will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel, which means “God is with us.”

Most of my childhood and even into teenage years and adulthood, I felt very alone. I spent hours with other people but still felt very alone. I honestly didn’t realize that God was with me. And now this Christmas I realize even more that He is with me at all times no matter what is happening. I can see His great love for me even clearer than I have ever seen it before. The God of the Universe is with me through panic attacks, fear, times of despair, and well basically everything! I am finally realizing that fact. WHEW! Genesis 28:16 says, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it.” That would be me!

I have always been a performance driven person. It has been a curse for me because I will drive myself into the ground to get things done. But I am learning that isn’t what Jesus wants for me. He wants me to be content just being with Him. He wants me to remember that I am His child. Ann Voskamp says, “God doesn’t want to number your failures or count your accomplishments as much as He wants you to have an encounter with Him.” She also says, “Why profane His coming with fleshly performance, frantic pushing, futile preoccupations?” He just wants me to sit and look at Him in wonder as the shepherds did the night He was born. He wants me to experience the wonder in having a relationship with Him. The fact that God loved me and you so much to send Jesus to be the ultimate sacrifice so we could spend eternity with Him is completely mind-blowing to me. Jesus came as a baby and would grow into a man who would ultimately have to die for all of our sins is almost too much to believe sometimes. This is what I would call “true love.” God came down to earth that night because He loved us so much! Just sit in the wonder of that for a few minutes. Think about it. There is so much to be grateful for!

And the fact that He loves us so much makes me think about His heart. Have you ever just sat down and thought about God’s heart towards you? I have been doing that a lot lately. Because I experienced a difficult relationship with my father all of my life, my thoughts about God’s heart were tainted by my experiences with my earthly father. I am now seeing God through new eyes. Deuteronomy 5:29 says, “Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever!” God is looking at us as a father. He wants us to have hearts that are inclined to hear of His love for us. I realized as a parent that when I gave my children rules it wasn’t because I wanted them to just obey me. I wanted them to keep those rules because I knew it was best for them to follow them. I knew if they didn’t follow them they would suffer and I didn’t want my children to suffer. God is the same way. He loves us so much that He gives us His words to live by because He knows if we don’t, there will be consequences. Everything He does is from a loving heart. He is the ultimate father who gave His one and only Son to us. Jesus came out of love for us. Again, my brain has trouble understanding that kind of love. But, I am so extremely grateful!

And because of His great love for us, God didn’t choose nobility to fill His bloodline. He chose people who were just like you and me. He chose brothers who hated each other so much that they almost killed each other. He chose people who played favorites. He chose a prostitute. He chose a widow. He chose men who were willing to pass their wives off as sisters so they wouldn’t get killed. He chose brothers who sold their brother into slavery. And then He chose a young shepherd boy to be king. God chose the most unlikely people to be in His family tree so we could understand that we don’t have to be perfect. We just need to be forgiven. And for that I am also grateful!

I just have to share what Ann Voskamp says that has encouraged me so much this Christmas. “Every little thing is going to be okay because God is working good through every little thing. All that’s happening is happening to make miracles. The mundane is what’s making miracles.” It is so easy for me to get caught up in the mundane and what isn’t happening every single day, but God wants me to be looking at Him and trusting Him for the miracles. He wants to take the mundane and make something beautiful out of it. Just look at what He did with Jesus’ birth! He took a normal couple and called them to be the Mom and Dad of Jesus. Instead of having Jesus born in a palace, He chose a stable with animals. He humbly came unnoticed by most. God showed us that night what He can only do. He chose the mundane to produce a miracle. Again, I am beyond grateful!

Christmas is about the love of God. He sent His one and only Son to us to redeem us from our sins. He gave us the greatest gift we could ever get. The chance to open up our hearts to Jesus and let Him into our lives and accept Him as our Savior so we can live with Him forever! Ann Voskamp says, “The miracle of gifts….is never not coming. When your Father’s hand isn’t readily apparent, it’s only because He’s readying gifts. Gifts always come out of the unseen and hidden places.” I can tell you that a lot of my gifts have come out of some dark places in my life. Places I didn’t like living in, but I am so grateful that God has taken them and made them into good gifts.

I pray that you will take the time to come before Jesus and revel in the wonder of Him. There will never be anyone who is like Him because He is God in the flesh. He loves like no other because He is God. He forgives like no other because He is God. He works miracles like no other because He is God. He deserves our bended knees this season. He deserves our worship. He deserves our love. He deserves everything we can possibly give Him. He is our King and He is our Redeemer. And the funny thing about Him is that all He wants is a relationship with us. He wants to spend time with us. And really now that I think about it, isn’t that all we want as a parent? We want to spend time with our kids. We want to do things with them and we want them to enjoy being with us. It is that simple.

This is the message of Christmas. Jesus was born in a stable to become a man who had to die on the cross for our sins. He wants a relationship with you. He wants to share your life with you. He wants to forgive your sins for you. He wants to live with you forever. He loves you. No matter what has happened or happens to you, He is with you. He enjoys being with you and He wants you to feel the same. If you are struggling, reflect on Him. Look for Him. Pray to Him. Talk to Him. The simplicity of His birth is quite amazing. The God of the Universe came down that night to live among us. And for that, I will be eternally grateful.

I pray that you would look at Jesus with new eyes this Christmas. I pray that you would see His great love for you. Look for Him. Expect Him to turn your mundane into a miracle! Until next time…

“It is good to be children sometimes, and never better that at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child himself.”  Charles Dickens