Week 4: Don't Stop Celebrating!

I hope your Christmas has been truly special. I wonder, how did you celebrate? Perhaps some of us were alone, or with a small number of friends or family. For others, I know you’ve spent this past week at some of the largest family gatherings of the year! However you like to celebrate, there is so much to celebrate. In addition to the unique ways God has blessed each one of us, we are engaging in a worldwide celebration of the birth of Christ! I can hardly think of anything more awesome.

I am sure 2019 has looked very different for each of us. This week, I encourage you to take time to journal about the highs and lows of this year. Be honest with yourself about the disappointments and sadness you’ve experienced, and be sure to remember all the ways God has blessed you and made Himself known to you. I feel confident each of us have so much to celebrate.
 
Although Christmas is past, I feel something important about continuing our celebrations into the New Year. What better way to prepare ourselves for 2020 than to proclaim how good God has been to us?

I want to leave you with some extracts from the Bible. The Bible is full of celebration – and it has so much to say about  it! As you read through these verses, allow the Holy Spirit to inspire you. How do you like to celebrate? And how can you remind yourself how good God is to you?

Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy! Psalm 47:1

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls 1 Peter 1:8-9

And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. Matthew 2:11

They shall eagerly utter the memory of Your abundant goodness And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness. Psalm 145:7

Then on the fifteenth day of the seventh month you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no laborious work, and you shall observe a feast to the LORD for seven days Numbers 29:12

But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind Luke 14:13

Speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord Ephesians 5:19

Worship the Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling Psalm 2:11

And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate. Luke 15:23-24

The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad. Psalm 126:3

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full John 15:11

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God 1 Corinthians 10:31

With heartfelt blessings for the New Year, Faith Blatchford

Week 3: Good News is Coming

How do you feel when something good is about to happen? I know I go through all sorts of emotions. The path towards a good event can involve happiness and thankfulness, but also feelings of suspense and even anxiety.

Have you ever wondered why the angels who greeted Zacharias, Mary, Joseph and the shepherds began their message with “do not be afraid”? It seems odd to me that the announcement of such great news would begin with this kind of reassurance. But the truth is, good news can sometimes be shocking! It might come as a surprise. It doesn’t always meet our expectations. It might invite us to embrace a challenge. It might provoke all kinds of questions. I am thankful that, with the benefit of hindsight, we can look back at the events of Christmas and recognize that God was most definitely up to something good!

“Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy”

I want to encourage you that this Christmas season, God is up to something very good! Don’t be afraid to bring your concerns, desires, requests and questions to Him: He is listening carefully and loves to respond to us. Don’t forget to watch and listen carefully, too. As His children we can confidently remind ourselves that Immanuel, God Himself, is living and moving in our midst.

The Holy Spirit Himself is eagerly bringing us “glad tidings of great joy!” When you go to bed tonight, I invite you to say to yourself “God is up to something good!” Maybe you can write it on a post-it for your spouse, or remind a friend who is anxious about finishing their Christmas shopping! Let’s use every opportunity to rest in the joy of Christ’s arrival. No matter the challenges we face, God is up to something good.

Week 1: The Antidote to Stress

Christmas is such a fun time of year! Yet as the party invitations, shopping lists and errands multiply, it is surprising how easily stress and discontentment can infringe on our intentions to celebrate.

Are you hungry to experience God’s love, joy and peace in a greater measure this Christmas? I’d like to propose that each of us has a very special choice to make: the choice to abide in God. As simple as it sounds, I believe this is the antidote to all kinds of stress and discontentment! But the good news gets better.

Thankfully, the fruits of the Spirit are not the fruits of hard work! They are the result of resting in God, sending our roots down deep into the soil of His love, and allowing His words to bring truth and encouragement to our hearts. When we turn our thoughts towards God, His love for us and His presence with us, our internal world begins to look and feel different. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control all grow naturally.

What does abiding in God look like for you? One of my habits is to begin my week – and as much as possible, each day – with time alone in my soaking room. I’ve kept this space free of distraction, and full of visual reminders and declarations about who God is. I know people who read the Bible on their lunch break, sing to God in the car, or set a daily reminder on their phone to pray. I expect all our routines look different, but I know each of us can make space for His Presence.

How do you make space for His Presence when life gets busy? And is there someone you could help to do the same? I believe this Christmas could be our most peaceful and joyful yet.

Love and blessings - Faith

Anticipating His Advent

Merry Christmas, everyone! If you’ve known me a while, you already know that I have a Christmas tree in my house all year long – not a real one, mind you! It’s my way of remembering Emmanuel – our God is who always with us, always present, always revealing Himself.

This advent, I wanted to take time to encourage you weekly. It’s a special season, but for many of us, it can also be the most challenging time of year. Stay tuned for the first message!

Love, Dad ❤

I love Christmas! So much so I leave my tree and inside decorations up all year long. It may sound a bit eccentric but trust me; it saves a lot of work. Plus, I come home to Christmas after every trip.  The only thing lacking is the load of presents under the tree, always a big part of Christmas. I admit, I love the gifts part of Christmas too.

Yes, I was one of those children who drove her parents crazy by discovering the hiding place of the gifts. Knowing in advance did not rob me of the excitement of tearing off the paper to get to the present inside. My mother soon gave up on the fancy wrapping. Why bother? Mother didn't believe in wasting anything so the tag on the gift was always part of one of last year's Christmas cards.

Mother was not only the one who wrapped, but also the one who shopped, based on the long Christmas list I provided from my catalogue shopping. It was always a battle to see who got the first look at the Christmas catalogues. By the time I had gone through them with my red marker it was difficult to see anything on a page because I had circled just about everything.

My father left the bulk of the Christmas preparations to my mother. His Christmas contribution was a small white envelope hidden somewhere in the tree. Not wrapped in fancy paper with a bow, but wrapped in love. Yes, you guessed correctly—there was money in the envelope! He always wrote something on the card and signed it— "Love, Dad." I can still see his handwritten words on the small while note card holding the check.

He is in Heaven celebrating with my mother so there is no white envelope hidden in the tree. But there is this reminder from James that "Every good gift and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights." (James 1:17) So the truth is that every single gift I open has the words "Love, Dad." written on the card. Each one is a gift from my Heavenly Father.

As you open your presents this Christmas, I pray you will experience the extravagant love of your Father, the Giver of every good gift.

Have You Made Your Christmas List?

I still remember the excitement I felt as a child when the Christmas catalogues arrived in November. What fun, going page-by- page, circling item after item with a red felt tip marker. I laboriously scribbled my Christmas List on notebook paper, giving product and page number to ensure my parents bought the right item. Their response was, "It would take a miracle for you to get all this for Christmas!" From my perspective nothing was impossible.

Christmas is a season that can re-awaken in us, as adults, wonder, awe and expectation that anything can happen. The birth of Jesus Christ ushered in an eternal season of the miraculous. Who ever heard of a virgin giving birth to a baby? The rest of the Christmas story is filled with the supernatural; angel choirs from heaven, angelic dream appearances, and bright spotlight star guidance.

Christmas is still a season of miracles. We are never too old to make a Christmas List. Why not make a list of every miracle we desire for our family, our friends, our nation, and ourselves? I believe our Father delights when we, as His children, come to Him as the giver of every good gift. Let's take off the limiting lenses we have put on as adults.

I encourage you to make your Christmas Miracle List. No matter how impossible the request is, write it down. We need to be like Ralphie in the movie "A Christmas Story". He wanted that Red Ryder BB Gun more than anything in the world. It seemed like an impossible request, but he believed, in spite of discouraging comments. You have probably seen the movie and know the outcome. Remember the joy on his Dad's face as Ralphie went behind the tree and found the gift?

Our Heavenly Father experiences great pleasure in giving us gifts above and beyond what we have even imagined. So go ahead and make your list. Enjoy a Merry Miracle Christmas!

Happy New Year!

What are you hoping for this year? What are you planning for? What are you dreaming for? These are great questions to ask each other as we enter into a new year. While God is outside of time, I believe he loves it whenever we seek vision, encouragement and guidance for the times ahead.

When responding to these questions, I like to think back on the many wonderful things God has promised us. Sometimes, we can be tempted to build our expectations upon memories, experience, or what other people say. We may even attempt to limit our expectations for the year ahead, perhaps out of fear or uncertainty. Having gotten to know God as a good Father, I am absolutely certain that the most reliable expectations I can choose to focus on for the year ahead can be found in His presence, and in His word.

Seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. (2 Peter 1:3-4, NASB)

This year, let's delve even deeper into the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence! In discovering the Father's wonderful heart for us, we will be filled with fresh hope and certainty in His precious and magnificent promises!