The dancing snowflakes welcomes my favorite season of the year- Christmas. The flakes dances with grace as if to whisper the coming the coming cold and bitter winter. I love the way the snow looks in the early morning sun. It shimmers and sparkles in anyway possible. But its beauty and wonder heightens at night when the moonlight smiles upon the undisturbed white glittering peace. Seeing the snow makes my heart sing "Silent Night" and think of Psalm 139. Each and every snowflake was uniquely designed...there is no two snowflakes alike. Falling in awe of Our Maker's determination and desire to put much thought into something so microscopic as this- makes me smile. All mankind are like snowflakes too- we're all beautiful, unrepeatable miracles.
Looking at snow also recalls to my mind memories and nosies of screaming with glee and laughter as my sisters and I played outside in the winter wonderland. Oh how many time have I prayed as a child for a snow-in day? Countless times! Using our wildest imaginations to built snow forts, snow angels, snowmen, snow dogs, and a snowball fights, we sure got our daily exercise every time we came into the house with rosy cheeks, frozen noses, our heads and body dripping with sweat as we peel off the layers of clothing. A steamy hot chocolate with marshmallows melting on the top was set before us. After our mother warned us about the hotness of the cup, we blew away some of the dangerous heat and drank slowly and heartedly. As usual, I would add in more marshmallows as soon as they melted as if to meet the status quo that marshmallows must always take 50% of the volume of the cup.
Blowing the dusts off the forgotten boxes that were left deserted in the dark corner of the basement, I carried them upstairs one by one. Opening each of the boxes seemed to play loud, joyful Christmas music. Opening the biggest box, my dad and I set up the Christmas tree. I smiled as I remembered how tall the tree used to be as a child. I used to be in awe of it when I couldn't reach the top without my dad lifting me up to put the old fashioned bright star on the top. Now, I can reach the top with no problem or any help from my dad. I also missed the magical realm of Christmas as a child. I miss those simple times. After untangling the string of lights, my sister and I plug them in with our fingers crossed. A quick thank you prayer shot up to the heavens, when we discovered all the lights worked. With a smile on her face, Carrie stringed all the lights onto the evergreen and artificial Christmas tree.
Putting the ornaments on each branch of the tree flashes my life before my eyes over the years, each ornament was given, made, or bought from different people with different purposes. My faces made a funny face when I pull out ornaments we made over the years for our parents. Some were adorable and some...were in sad shapes. It made me wonder if my parents were hiding a grimace face being the smile when their children gave them such ugly ornaments. In those cases, it was the thought that counted. I admired the detailed paintings of the ornaments my grandmother on the Sneller side gave to each of her grandkids for every year from birth to 18 years old. At the bottom of each, she marked it with the year and the name of the grandchild. I'm amazed that I barely remembered what happened each year especially in 1992, 1996, 0r 1998. Reminding myself to treasure life as a gift, I put them onto the tree to display its beauty. I see the reflection of myself as I hung the brightly colored ornaments on the tree. It's funny. I remember seeing myself in those bulbs over the years. For a second I see a six year old me, a 12 year old me, and a 21 year old me. It's scary how much I have changed both physically and spiritually. I thank God for the changes He in me (and still is) since birth.
We put out the Christmas quilts, candles, stockings, teddybears, snowmans, table runners, and all the other Christmas decorations. We plugged in the lights. In an instant, the home jumped alive with the Christmas spirit. I love how cozy and warm the house feels in this time of the year. It makes me smile.
Honestly, my favorite part about the season is going to the Christmas Eve Candlelight service. There's something amazing about seeing the Christmas trees and lights displayed in its splendor makes the sanctuary like a big welcoming choir. The lights are dimmed as the candlelight danced around each members' face as they hold the light in their hands. As if one body are united for this special occasion. The nativity scene takes center stage with the spotlight shining upon it. My heart warms when I see the baby Jesus. The choir sings happy, cheerful songs like "Hark, the Herald Angel sings..." Sure, Jesus isn't a baby anymore. Jesus grew up in the image of man, lived the perfect live (though struggling with the temptations), ministered to the poor, the social outcasts, to foreigners, to sinners, then gave up His life out of his great love for us. To set us free from the bondage of sin, to be reconciled with Our Maker, to experience His great love, joy, peace, forgiveness, and saving grace. Jesus achieved victory over death. Now all creation wait in anticipation of His second glorious coming. I love Christmas because...we celebrate the Savior's birth. And I love how he was born quietly. He wasn't born with trumpets, cymbals, and all the crazy loud instruments. Nor was He born into a wealthy king's family where he would be adored with gold, silver and fine linen. Or nor was He born into a mighty warrior family to save Israel from the Roman Empire. Nope. God surprised everyone by having Christ born in the humblest way possible- in a manager. It makes me smile knowing that...the world at the time except for a few selected people -Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the angels, etc..- knew that in a small corner of the world, in the town of Bethalem, a history was in the making. They had NO idea what as to come. God did the UNthinkable thing...He let his Son walk into slaughter to save us...why? One word: LOVE.
Christmas reminds me of love and saving, amazing Grace. :)
Friday, December 10, 2010
Loving Your Husband Before You Get Married
Well...I was reading articles and found this one... I found
it rather interesting because it's a different way of thinking than what our culture think... So... enjoy!
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Loving Your Husband Before You Get Married
Carolyn McCulley
Reprinted from the magazine Joyful Woman
In my first year as a Christian, I attended or was part of 13 weddings-including the weddings of my two younger sisters and one ex-boyfriend. The Lord was working overtime on the sin of self-pity that year, but out of His sanctifying work came my informal "ministry" of a wedding coordinator. I started by helping one of my sisters, and as the word got around, I ended up serving countless friends.
At a recent rehearsal dinner, someone asked me if it was difficult as an unmarried woman to be so involved in these weddings. I was glad to genuinely say no. That wasn't always my answer, however. I can clearly recall sitting at many wedding receptions with the wind knocked out of me due to the bitterness in my heart. I would evaluate each aspect of the weddings I attended, and plan for how "my" special day would surpass the event unfolding before me. Like any Cinderella devotee, the highlight of my life would be that special moment when the doors were opened and all eyes-most especially those of My Prince-would be on me. What happened in the "happily ever after" part was the fine print. It was going to be All About Me on that day.
And probably for every day after that, too.
Maybe this is why the apostle Paul thought it was of paramount importance that the older women teach the younger women how to love their husbands. As always, the Bible is radically counter-cultural to the self-centered worldview spoon-fed to young girls through fairy tales and force-fed to young women through movies, magazines, and music. We have to learn how to step out of the princess spotlight and learn how to love well in the way God defines love. A wedding isn't the kick-off to Happily Ever After. It's only a segue into a new season, with new and different opportunities to demonstrate Christ-like love that weren't present when single.
Do him good all the days of your life
King Lemuel was taught well by his mother, and his wisdom was memorialized in the 31st Proverb. Writing of the virtuous woman, he said that her husband has full confidence in her, and she will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.
That's all the days of her life - days before and days after marriage. If you're single, there are things you can do now to sow good seeds for a godly marriage. What if you're not sure if you'll be married? Though marriage is the norm for most, not all of us will receive that gift-that's true. But, we're still called to prepare.
"Problems in marriage are always the result of self-centeredness," writes Douglas Wilson in Her Hand in Marriage. "So the time a person spends when he is single should be time spent in preparation for marriage. This is important even if he never gets married. This is because biblical preparation for marriage is nothing more than learning to follow Jesus Christ and love one's neighbor. In other words, preparation for Christian marriage is basically the same as preparation for Christian living. Christians are to prepare for marriage by learning self-denial, subduing their pride, and putting their neighbor first. Once they learn to love God and love their neighbor, they are prepared to enter into the covenant of marriage with one of their neighbors."
Growing in philandros love
In her outstanding teaching series on the Titus 2 virtues, Carolyn Mahaney notes that the phrase "love their husbands" is only one word in the Greek. It is the compound word philandros, derived from phileo (a warm affection) and andros (man). Loving your husband with a tender, warm, deeply affectionate love might seem like a no-brainer until you think about the caricatures of long-married women in our culture: dismissive, disrespectful, bored, shrewish. Cultivating and maintaining that tender affection can, at times, take some work.
Single women can prepare to grow in philandros love now by understanding the doctrines of sin and God's sovereignty. If God has marriage for us (His sovereign plan), one thing we need to settle now in our hearts is that we won't be marrying Prince Charming; we will be marrying a sinner (the doctrine of indwelling sin). As will our husbands! So now we can do the "heartwork" to cultivate philandros love by working on what undermines it: the bitterness, selfishness, fear, and sinful judgment resident in us. When and if God brings us into a new season of marriage, this preparation will help us cultivate tender thoughts and behavior toward our husbands. Though there's not space for a comprehensive treatment of these topics, below are some questions to we can consider before the Lord while still single:
- Bitterness: Is there any unforgiveness in your heart against the men you've dated, or the men who have never asked you out? Do you regard the single men in your life as brothers in the Lord, or potential husbands? Do you grumble and complain on a regular basis about being single? (Ephesians 4:31-32)
- Selfishness: Are you willing to serve the "unlovely" or the "least" in your church or circle of friends-even when no one is watching? Do you defer to others, esteeming them as better than yourself, or do you insist on your way? Do you view your time and schedule now as a single as a season to indulge yourself, or to be more available to serve others? (Philippians 2:3-4)
- Fear: Do you trust God for your future, or do you think He has forgotten you? Do you think others will betray you, and thus "mess up" God's plan for your life? (Romans 8:28-39)
- Sinful judgment: Do you speculate about the single men around you, for good or bad? Are you assigning motives for their actions without asking humbly for information? Are you constantly comparing yourself with other women? (James 3:13-4:3)
Whether or not the Lord attaches an andros to our phileo love, this kind of "heartwork" is crucial to growing in the likeness of Christ. By working to become more like our Lord and Savior, we will be worthy of the full trust of both our earthly husbands (should we get married) and, ultimately, our heavenly Bridegroom.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Soundslides
For Multimedia I, we had to make a slideshow/soundslide so I made this in iPhoto and Final Cut Express about the testimony of a person that worked at Jumonville.
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