A brief rundown of events from Holiday Season 2013.
1. I attended two Christmas Eve services and ate my weight in rice crispy treats and candy cane truffles. Not at the same time.
My whole family in one place at one time = happy me!
2. I worked on a proposal to give candy cane truffles as the prescription for anyone who’s sad or sick because they are hope. Until they’re not. Then they’re 4 extra pounds around your midsection.
3. My cul-de-sac does not get a lot of sun and, therefore, grew very icy.
4. I made this bread recipe into *bread bowls for clam chowder until my eyeballs glazed over and my hair was white with flour, but those bread bowls? Were delicious. As was this particular clam chowder.
5. I ran over my mailbox. Please refer to #3.
All-in-all, it was a fun end to an interesting year. How about you? What’s your most striking memory from the holidays?
Hide your mailboxes,
Bo
*Divide one recipe into two rounds and bake for 19 minutes with the lid on and 7-10 minutes with the lid off. Cut a circle in the baked loaf and hollow out the inside in one big piece. Cut the piece in half and spread each piece and the lid with garlic butter and grill in a skillet. Fill hollow loaf with clam chowder, top with grilled lid and serve the extra grilled garlic bread alongside.
Memorable moments from Christmas 2012:
1. Hugging my mom and giving her encouragement.
2. Giving my dad a blanket with pictures of all of us on it for him to look at–he has Alzheimer’s, and doesn’t remember who we are.
3. Giving “love” coupons to each other, instead of material gifts, to be redeemed during the year! The kids really got into this one and were very creative!
Oh, I LOVE the blanket idea – that’s just beautiful.
By far, the most striking holiday memory for me was the hope of a homecoming in February becoming a solid confirmation in mine and Trey’s hearts. I cannot wait to take your church history class when we get over there:)
I cannot even say enough Yay’s to this comment, Mrs. Anderson. I truly cannot wait!
I think Lorelei’s comment made me just as happy as the post!
Me too, Whit!
Amen. Amen. Amen.
God is good and He is Sovereign.
He sees from a higher, eternal perspective and when our particular situation doesn’t “seem” to match up with our knowledge and understanding of His Word, we can simply rely on the fact that He’s got more information than we do. Somehow, from His vantage point, it makes sense and He’s working.
I’ve wrestled through these questions for years. Why does God heal some and not others? Why some are healed instantly and some progressively? Why do some “very deserving” people (in my opinion) never receive healing and other “undeserving” ones do (like those 9 guys who Jesus healed of leprosy who didn’t even bother to come back to thank Him)?
To me, it helps to compare the situation of healing to that of salvation. As Christians, we’re called to preach the Gospel to everyone. As we talk to someone about Jesus, we can urge them and compel them to surrender their lives to Jesus. We know it’s God’s will for them to be saved. God’s not willing for anyone to perish. He loves everyone. Yet not everyone responds. People have a free choice, but God says that it is the Holy Spirit who draws people. Why do some feel “drawn” to repent to God and others turn and walk away? We can even preach to a big crowd of people, all hearing the same Gospel message at the same time, and yet some will feel conviction and others don’t. If no one receives Christ or if the vast majority turn away, does that mean that we stop preaching the Good News of God’s salvation? Of course not. We don’t have to worry about the results. We can’t “save” anyone (no matter how good we preach or how well we put all the steps in order; the job of turning hearts belongs to God. We’re simply the delivery service.
At the same time, we can’t “heal” anyone. That’s God’s business. He can do anything He wants. He knows more than me and He will never fit in a box.
His Word is true. Completely true.
He is trustworthy. Completely trustworthy.
He is good. Completely good.
And only He know the future.
Dear Bo, whenever you and Steve come across my mind, you’re in my prayers, for healing and continued strength and daily grace, no matter what. We’re trusting God with you for a miracle and for His amazing wonderful kingdom to be expanded through your lives and family.
And I know that in the end, everything is going to make sense.
We love you.