ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHRISTMAS EVE SERMONS

Christmas 1959 Alexandria, VA , Mom, Dad, Wayne, Davy, Roberta

When I was a teenager my dad began the tradition of attending a candlelight church service on Christmas Eve.  My mom would stay home with the two little boys. The older kids would attend the midnight service. After the service we would rush home and finish decorating the tree and wrapping presents.  Our family carried on the observance of Christmas Eve in the same way after Chris and I were married; but instead of staying up until midnight we find a service in the afternoon or early evening.

Here is a link to one of my favorite Christmas Eve sermons. Or click on the title below.

It Came Upon A Midnight Clear - Christmas Eve 2018.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF LEADER

Dave, Davy, Jay, Evy, Roberta, Wayne, Grace

It was in 1956, after Wayne was born, that I noticed my dad reading the Bible every night.  He was a changed man.  He had surrendered to Jesus Christ.  We had always been a church going family.  But there is a difference between attending church and actually being a part of The Church.  

Here is a sermon given by our pastor on Jesus--a different kind of leader.  Scroll down to listen to the December 16th sermon.  Those who love Jesus pattern their lives after Him.

UNCOMMON BRAIN

Even though G. K. Chesterton was Catholic many protestants read and relish his wit and wisdom. Much like Chesterton I am grieved when falsehoods are taught as truth.When a book by Holbrook Jackson was published in 1911 it rubbed Chesterton the wrong way. He proceeded to correct the fabrications. Here is a blog about how this critique has survived and been republished with the truth to which Chesterton pointed.

We know that according to Hebrews; (Hebrews 5:12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, 13 for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil) digging into the meat of the Bible is the way to discern good from evil. 

PRAYER IS THE ONLY ANSWER

Groveton High School classes of '60 and '61--  50 year reunion

Yes, in the good old days we prayed in school.  Maybe some didn't agree that prayer would make a difference but they respected those of us who did. 
  

As many are condemning the U.S. many more try to leave their countries and to live in our country.  So we must have done something right to have gained this good reputation.

The United States has passed laws, thrown money at problems, and tried every other man made way to bring peace to earth.  The best thing we can do now is pray.  

During my prayer time I choose Scripture to pray.  Here are some of the verses I like:

Psalm 47:8 God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne. The princes of the peoples gather as the people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; he is highly exalted!

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God and renew a right spirit within me.

Numbers 10: 35 And whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Arise, O Lord, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.” 36 And when it rested, he said, “Return, O Lord, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel.”

Psalm 74:20 Have regard for the covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.

Psalm 119: 136 My eyes shed streams of tears because people do not keep your law.

Isaiah 45:8 “Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout; I the Lord have created it.

Luke 2: 30 Speaking of the baby Jesus Simeon said -- for my eyes have seen your salvation

II Peter 2:8 (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard);

Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. 

II Corinthians 1:11 You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.

Revelation 5: 8 And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Revelation 8:4 and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.

John 9:31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.

One person can change history just by seeking God.

 James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

What are some of your prayers?

HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT

Jean Pierre Gatera and his family

Some people are gifted with extreme energy.  Here is a story about a man who God has blessed with intelligence, organizational ability, and tremendous energy.  But most importantly, at a point in his life after many trials, he dedicated his life to Jesus.  Click here to read his story.

II Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Isaiah 40:31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

HAPPY THANKSLIVING

My mom's youngest sister's family in 2015.

Yes, I say that we can live thankfully every day.  That is why I say "Happy Thanksliving."  The people of the good old U.S. of A. are very blessed.  Most of us have food, clothing, and shelter.  We don't have Roman Law where we have to prove ourselves innocent.  Rather we are innocent until proven guilty.  Our first forefathers who settled in Cape Cod had a government for the people and by the people.  After the first harvest they actually thanked God who is our great provider.  

My Thanksgivings have always involved a big crowd which I love and Chris doesn't.  Go figure--he's the extrovert and I'm the introvert!  Growing up we had 5 kids so even if it was just our family we had a big crowd.  

While attending college in Eastern Washington my Aunt Jeanne and Uncle Hollis, my dad's older brother, would always invite the poor starving college students to Thanksgiving.  They would also invite any neighbors who would be alone on that day.  I so appreciated their generosity and tried to follow their example.

Jeanne and Hollis

When Chris and I lived in Spokane, after we were married, I made an effort to spend Thanksgiving with them.  I wasn't happy if there were fewer than 4 people at the table.

After moving to the Seattle area we would spend Thanksgiving with my mom's older sister and her family.  One year it snowed; as a result we were the only family who showed up at their house.  Chris had grown up in Eastern Washington and we had a truck.

When our grown children were going to be away for the holiday I would invite  another family and usually end up being invited to their house.

The year we lived on our boat in San Diego my cousin on my mom's side invited us to share their dinner.  They made creamed corn, Chris's favorite.

Dick, Nicole, Phillip, Joanne, Chris

We have enjoyed many meals in San Diego with our cousins on my dads side of the family as well.

Ron, Susan, Michael, kids, Becky, Rachel, hubby, Ryan, Aunt Emily

Now with both of our grown kids married we are usually guaranteed a big crowd for which I am truly thankful.

Heather, Jessie, Natalie, Andrew's friend, Andrew, Samantha, Jessie's grandmother

I know, this is Christmas.  I couldn't find the Thanksgiving picture.  Jennifer, Heather, Jessie, Jessica, Jes, Chris, Bobbi, Samantha, Natalie

Colossians 3:15-17 15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the LORD Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

IN HONOR OF OUR VETERANS

Steven Spielberg's special tribute for Veteran's Day -- The Concert for Valor (2014). Another reminder of the honorable people we have in our military. They never forget!

BROKENHEARTED AGAIN

Something has gone terribly wrong in the United States.  It seems every week we have another bioterror or bomb threat,  kidnapping or attempted kidnapping, shooting, stabbing, and or pedestrians mowed down by cars, buses, or trucks.  We have sex-trafficking, and anarchists who continue to harass elected officials, private citizens, talk show hosts, and vandalize property.  And to add to the chaos we have loss of life due to natural disasters and or arson.  Then we have our young people going off to war in the Middle East and losing some there.  What are we to do?  

I will have to disagree with those who think that prayer does no good.  As I have learned to pray of one accord with other moms we have seen healings, success in school, safety, love and peace in families, and many more ways that God works in our lives.  For more testimonies click on this link to go to the Moms in Prayer website.

I learned to pray of one accord with a Moms in Prayer group.  Suddenly one hour of prayer a week seemed very easy. It is my prayer that every parent will take one hour a week to pray for their children.  I pray that every pastor would encourage their congregations to pray at least for one hour a week.  Such a little time spent will result in God doing a great work in the young and old of our nation.  

Psalm 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

KEEP CLIMBING

One of the volcanic mountains in Tahiti. I believe this is the church we attended one Sunday.

My Bible study is done on November 20 for this year.  We have a break for the holidays then.  When I don’t have a Bible study I feel spiritually dry. I sometimes read a Psalm and a Proverb each day.  Or I start reading through the Bible from this plan: http://static.esvmedia.org/assets/pdfs/rp.chronological.pdf . The pdf is only 2 pages so I can print it and then check off what I read.  One can start at any date and eventually one will read through the Bible.

I also find verses in the reading for each day that I can pray for my family.  I highly recommend reading the Bible every day for comfort and peace in our lives.    Maybe some of our older children would be interested in reading these passages each day.  At least they could give it a try.  After reading through the Bible I feel like I have climbed a mountain.  I'm weary and dragging but what you see and feel at the top of the mountain is worth it.

I wrote this blog in 2015.  It's about encouragement to get started in Bible reading and study. https://stowellbrown.blogspot.com/2015/01/how-sweet-are-your-words-to-my-taste.html

Psalm 119: 103 How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

 

ACCIDENTAL TOURISTS

One of Daniel Boone's homes

On Tuesday, February 20, I believe it was in 2006, we arrived in Jacksonville, FLA, located on the east coast of Florida. We were there to attend a Power Squadron Conference. Jacksonville is about the size of Seattle but with seemingly half the traffic.  We stayed at the Hyatt on the peaceful St. John River.  The hotel is the biggest convention center in Jacksonville, featuring a rooftop swimming pool, hot tub, and four restaurants, which we took advantage of.  The weather during the day was in the 70’s and it cooled to sweater weather at night.  While Chris was in meetings, I either rode the free trolley around town, (the driver tried to convince us we should move to Jacksonville), or I walked over to the outdoor mall 3 blocks from the hotel.  (A huge black man wearing a hat with ear flaps complimented me on my haircut.)  The Landing had many stores and every kind of food.  One night we took a taxi to the other side of the river and ate at the Chart House.  (The taxi driver tried to recruit us to move to Jacksonville too!)

We left early for the airport on Sunday, Feb. 25, to catch our flight from Jacksonville to St. Louis and then to transfer planes for a flight to Seattle.  Everything went smoothly until we got to St. Louis.  Our flight to Seattle had been cancelled because of snow in New York. Go figure!  

After standing in line for over an hour to talk on a phone to a ticketing and scheduling agent we were offered a flight which might as well have been to the North Pole by the way of Las Vegas and several other stops in between.  After serious consideration I made a desperate call our dear friends who were our neighbors in Spokane 30 years ago and who happened to live within 30 minutes of the St Louis airport.  There was no answer so I left a message on their answering machine.  Chris said they were probably at church.  We found out later that he was correct. Chris had a cell phone so I left a call back number. 

They set a beautiful table and fed us.

They came to the airport and picked us up. We made an emergency stop at Target to get clean underwear and socks and needed prescriptions.  We stayed with them Sunday night and Monday night. Chris was able to get seats on the Seattle flight for Tuesday morning.  We had a quick tour of the historical downtown on the way back from the airport.  

On Monday, Donna showed us all around the countryside while Mike was working.  We went out to the site of Daniel Boone’s house and historical buildings that have been restored and grounds that are used for student archeological digs.  

The church on the Daniel Boone property.

It was sunny but chilly.  Chris was glad he took his heavy coat.  My windbreaker of my jogging suit helped a little but I kept moving.  I’ll attach pictures of Daniel Boone’s house and the historical church which is on the grounds.  The tour guide played the organ in the church for us and rang the bell.  No pictures were allowed to be taken inside so we just have outside shots.

Me with Donna.

Our flight home went smoothly and our luggage was being stored for us in the baggage area at Sea Tac.  (We had tried on Sunday to find out where our bags were but the airlines didn’t know at that point.)  At least this time I wasn’t on the no fly list!  I thank God for that!