Spot the Easter Egg

Have you seen the first Easter Egg of the season yet?
I spotted mine on 21st December. Not the big ones in boxes but a whole shelf of Creme Eggs and similar and my major weakness Mini Eggs (btw the packaging in the photo is wrong. In the UK it is yellow. These things matter)

But...
Easter Eggs BEFORE Christmas?
Maybe shops have just had enough of Christmas after 3 months and are hoping we have too.
Or maybe they are making a theological statement about the links between Christmas and Easter.
One which I think is best expressed in the service of Midnight Communion on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day when we share bread and wine and remember that the child born came to die for us - to be the best present we could ever have by offering himself to be broken for us. That the broken world may be made whole again. And that resurrection - symbolised by the eggs we eat - is part of that present.

So perhaps those Easter Eggs were acting as, well, Easter Eggs to point us forward so we don't just get misty eyed about babies but are are struck in awe and wonder about just what Immanuel - God with us - means.
As the carol I love to sing on Christmas Eve goes (to the tune of Greensleeves if you want to sing along)

Why lies He in such mean estate,
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christians, fear, for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.

Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,
The cross be borne for me, for you.
Hail, hail the Word made flesh,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

and, perhaps even better, the rather wonderful poem by Steve Turner Christmas is really for the Children

So, to celebrate the season of birth and death and new birth for us all - God's present of his present - I am going to eat a (yellow) bag of Mini Eggs.

The greatest gift

Christmas Day is almost upon us - and, indeed, might well be over by the time you get to read this post - so it is a time to reflect upon the greatest gift ever - the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Isaiah foretold:

'For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.' Isaiah 9:6.

When the angel gave Joseph the news that Mary would bear a son, he said:

'She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.'

There are accounts of the birth of Jesus in both Matthew's gospel and Luke's - may I encourage you to read these - perhaps you have read them many times before, or perhaps this will be your first time of pondering upon them.

At Christmas time we don't so often turn to the gospel of John because he didn't actually record an account of the birth of Jesus, but in John 1:14 we read:

'The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.'

John chapter 1 gives us a profound insight into the purpose of the coming of Jesus to earth - He is indeed the divine gift that John talks about in John 3:16:

'For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life'

The greatest gift we can receive this Christmas time is Jesus.

In writing to the Ephesians, St Paul says:

'For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.'

Among the busy-ness of Christmas, let's be mindful of the real reason for the season - the birth of our Saviour.

I (Hazel) asked the team to reflect upon that wonderful verse from Isaiah 9:6 and respond creatively. Perhaps you too would like to join us and be prompted to create your own response - we would love you to share your creations with us - please leave us a comment so that we can visit your blog.

Thank you for taking the time to visit our blog.

We wish you a very Happy Christmas
and every blessing for the coming New Year

Hazel



Pauline

Kim

The Perfect Gift

I've been getting slightly frustrated this week as I've been waiting for an order from an online store. It contains 4 presents for various family members and friends and was ordered at the end of November. This would have been ample time for it to arrive, but then in Central Scotland and across most of the UK we had huge snowfall which has caused chaos on our roads, railways and with our postal service.

I have an admission to make to you...I am a perfectionist. I love things to be 'just right'. I love to be organised. It makes me really happy to be on top of things, to be in control. However, in this instance it's completely out of my hands. I have no way of changing the situation, I just need to sit back and wait for the store and the mail system to catch up after the chaos of the beginning of December. It's out-with their control and it's out-with mine. That's not an easy thing for me to deal with. I don't like things being left in limbo.

There are many passages in the Bible that speak of waiting, of expectation. In Isaiah 9:1 we read,

"Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee...will be filled with glory."

and then in verse 2,
"The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine."

It's not about the 'perfect gifts' that I've chosen for people. Christmas is about the joy that is found in Jesus, He is the perfect gift.

It's just over a week until Christmas Day. In that time I hope you will reflect on the joy in our faith, and in the perfect gift given to us by the Father.

Pauline
x

Believe

Proverbs 14:15 The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps

When I grew up, we had next to nothing. My parents were divorced and often did not see my Dad for long periods because of his line of work. Shortly after my Mom's second marriage failed . My mom started school to finish her high school and get a secondary education so she could provide for us. There was never any extra money because of this or that. It did not help my Dad was again married himself and had a family to provide for there. We often went without , during this time we got involved with the local food bank . When i say got involved we did lots of stuff with them. Christmas parties, Easter, and generally whatever else was going on at the time. My Mom did a lot of community service with them because often that was how we got food for the table. The people were always interesting and kinda off balance but it made things special. I think even as a child I believed in God , I have shared my testimony a bit here and there. About how i grew up in a church setting that i no longer believe in. I believe God was always there guiding and directing my sisters and my path.My friend said to me just the other day that she is dreaming of the simple life. Where no one is too busy to help and give of their time or even of their pocket books. To believe to show other by being the evidence of God to show others he does exist. To believe-to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so: Only if one believes in something can one act purposefully.Have a look at this link to a beautiful song or this
song.............................

Stacy



Pauline

Hazel


Kim

Ruth

Crazy Love

I recently started reading a book by Francis Chan titled, "Crazy Love" and I'm 'loving' it! Here's a quick blurb from the back of the book, "It's crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe - the Creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor - loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss. Whether you've verbalized it yet or not...we all know something is wrong. Does something deep inside your heart long to break free from the status quo? Are you hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with tangible, even radical, solutions? God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. Because the answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts - it's falling in love with God. And once you encounter His love, you will never be the same."

In reading the beginning of the book I realized that Francis and I have had some similar life experiences, in particular with our fathers. He relates that his emotions about his earthly father often got mixed up with his emotions about God. I understand those feelings and they have often made me struggle with the idea that God loves me. I know He loves other people but really...He's just kind of tolerating me, right? I mean I still sin so much...I don't deserve His love.

The truth is...I don't deserve God's love but for some reason, in His most wise and infinite knowledge, He called me unto Himself. I know that He has because I can see the changes that have taken place in my own heart and conduct. Changes that I would have never made on my own for I dearly loved my sin far too much to give it up for "religion." This alone should cause me to be overwhelmed by His love but...I tend to hold back...to be conservative in my emotions for letting someone really love you is too risky...at least that's how I was raised. But I recognize that isn't a very healthy or right view of God and that is what led me to pick up the book Crazy Love. So far it has been a real blessing...God has used it to soften my heart and to enjoy His love and to allow real change to take place...not just from aquiring head knowledge but as a love and affection overflowing from my heart, a gratefulness for all that God has done in my life, for allowing me to want to really reach and help those around me. It is so good to let go and embrace all that our great God and Savior Jesus Christ has to offer because when you're wildly in love with someone, it changes everything.

I would highly recommend Francis Chan's book, it's a quick and easy read, but full of straight forward talk and honest ideas, based fully on Biblical principals about God, His nature, and His overwhelming love. A love so great that He sent His only Son to die...so "that man might have life and have it more abundantly: (John 10:10). All praise and glory be to our great God!!