Ponderings

Lord, as we close the book on all the sorrow and sadness of 2020 and anticipate with hope a better year ahead, give us more in 2021.  Not more stuff.  Not more happiness.  Not more money or jobs or security.  Give us more of you. Without you we are nothing but hopeless, miserable creatures struggling to get through the challenges and heartaches of living in a fallen world. With you all things -- even impossible things -- are possible.  Because of you we have hope.  You are Immanuel, God with us, not just during Advent and Christmas but throughout the year, in good times and in bad. You are our Provider, Protector, Peace, Healer, Savior, Redeemer, Strong Tower, Deliverer...the God who works all things together for good for those who love you and are called according to your purpose (Romans 8:28). You forgive us when we sin, weep with us when we are sorrowful, and rejoice with us when we are happy.  You get us, because you created us. The greatest thing we can pray for in the coming year

To say that 2020 has been a difficult year is the understatement of a lifetime, certainly of mine.  We all have witnessed the unthinkable -- a pandemic that has changed our lives in ways we could never have imagined and taken the lives of those we know and love.  It is safe to say that most of the families I know have been touched by sickness, sorrow, and loss.  Ours certainly has, but one thing has not changed this Christmas -- the Savior whose birth we celebrate.  He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Steve and I are celebrating our first Christmas as empty nesters.  Our son moved out in July, 2020 and our daughter moved back home to Tennessee Thanksgiving weekend.  Because of the pandemic we made the decision not to travel out of town, or even across town, to visit family for Christmas, opting instead for a quiet holiday at home. Rather than buying for each other, Steve and I decided to bless our kids and those less fortunate, as generously as God's provision would allow