Receive the gift of spiritual life our Emmanuel died to provide for us.
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved”
Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Category Archives: Christianity
Glory to God in the Highest
The Word Made Flesh
The Son of God in mighty love,
Came down to Bethlehem for me;
Forsook His throne of light above,
An infant on the earth to be.
In love, the Father’s sinless child,
Sojourned at Nazareth for me;
With sinners dwelt the undefiled,
The Holy One in Galilee.
Jesus, whom angel hosts adore,
Became a man of griefs for me;
In love, though rich, becoming poor,
That I through Him enriched might be.
Thou Lord of all, above, below,
He went to Olivet for me;
There drank my cup of wrath and woe,
When bleeding in Gethsemane.
The ever blessèd Son of God
Went up to Calvary for me;
There paid my debt, there bore my load,
In His own body on the tree.
Jesus, whose dwelling is the skies,
Went down into the grave for me;
There overcame my enemies,
There won the gracious victory.
In love the whole dark path He trod,
To consecrate a way for me;
Each bitter footstep marked with blood,
From Bethlehem to Calvary.
’Tis finished all; the veil is rent,
The welcome sure, the access free;
Now then we leave our banishment,
O Father, to return to Thee.
Words: Horatius Bonar, 1843.
The words on the cross say, “Glory to God in the Highest”.
Dear and I will enjoy a meal together before we head out for a candlelight service this evening at our church. Tomorrow all our kids arrive at our place for Christmas day festivities.
Happy Christmas Eve to you all.
Come Thou Long Expected Jesus ~ Hymn
Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus
Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.
Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a king,
Born to reign in us forever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all sufficient merit,
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.
Words: Charles Wesley
Retired Benefits Hodgepodge
It’s Wednesday and time to answer the questions Jo From This Side of the Pond is asking.
1. Do you (or did you used to) watch talk shows? Which are or were your favorite?
I do not watch talk shows and haven’t for probably 40 years now. The closest thing to a talk show that I enjoy would be something like Rachel Ray or other cooking shows like that which I don’t watch now, either. I do not watch TV during the daytime hours.
2. Would you describe yourself as resilient? If so what do you think makes you that way? If you answered no explain why?
As far as my physical body is concerned I’m at an age where I don’t bounce back as easily as I once did. Mentally and practically I have gained resilience from all the life experiences I’ve been afforded along the way these 70 years. Having and raising children helps to make you resilient! Knowing you have a future Hope makes the struggles easier to walk through and recover from.
3. What parts of life have surprised you the most? Explain.
Surprised and grieved that friends who we used to walk side by side with following Jesus have walked away.
4. Why do you live where you live?
When we decided to sell our home on the Westside of the mountains in Washington State and retire we knew we couldn’t afford to live in the Seattle area. Our middle son and our daughter-in-law were well established in the northeastern part of the state with no desire to move away from that area so we knew this part of the state would be a good option for us to consider. Throw in the fact that our two grandchildren belong to this son and daughter in law and that pushed the scales for us to make the choice. Cost of living, cost of housing, country living, and family were all good things to sway our decision. Our other kids are in a position to travel easily and choose to visit frequently and that makes our decision easier to live with, too. We have been here 3 years now and we do not regret moving here. We thank God for our neck of the woods and the friends and family here. We also are so fortunate that there is a Bible teaching/preaching church that does not sway from the Gospel of Jesus Christ that we are now members of.
5. A memory from this week that made you smile?
On Saturday we celebrated the 80th birthday of our grands’ Great Granny with a surprise party. Sunflowers are a favorite of Granny so the great granddaughters wore a sunflower hairband. Addy had a sunflower dress on. JJ had a bowtie in the color scheme of a sunflower.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
I’m slowly revisiting our 21 day road in order with posts on my blog of things we saw and enjoyed along the way. We left our home on September 21st and arrived home again on October 10th.
Tomorrow will continue on day two arriving in Sheridan, Wyoming.
Inside Cathedral of St. Helena
Continuing on our Land That We Love Tour here are the photos I took inside the Cathedral of St. Helena. This is a photo intensive post. Couldn’t leave out any of the photos I took. Dear and I had the cathedral to ourselves on this Tuesday afternoon.
The Cathedral of St. Helena was constructed at the turn of the century during the episcopate of Bishop John Carroll. It is an outstanding example of Geometric Gothic architecture, patterned after the Votive Church of the Sacred Heart in Vienna, Austria. Stained glass windows, white marble altars, statues carved of the purest Carrara marble, and genuine gold leaf decorates the sanctuary. The pews and woodwork are all done in hand carved oak. The magnificent lighting fixtures are of hand-forged bronze with a special lacquer finish. Outside, majestic twin spires rise 230 feet above the street.
In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. Genesis 22:18
Abraham and Isaac
He is risen.
Jesus said to him: Feed my lambs, feed my sheep. John 21:15
All power is given unto me in heaven and on earth.
Baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. John 3:5
To read about some of the history of St. Helena Cathedral click here.
Summertime Bible Verse Challenge
Since summertime can be a busy or less organized time of the year for some our Thursday Bible Verse Challenge will be open to any verse or verses from any Book of the Bible. As you study choose a verse or section that you’d like to share with us. Leave your verses in the comment section and I will add them below. Keep reading, keep studying, keep following Jesus and depending on the Holy Spirit to guide you and illumine the Word.
I’m just finishing up my daily reading of the Book of Romans and choosing the next Book to read for the month of July.
Romans 11:33-36 (ESV)
33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”
35 “Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”
36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
From Patricia:
Joshua 1:9 Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
From Linda P:
Galatians 2. 20
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.
From Maristella:
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
James 5:16
A Real Optimistic Hodgepodge
It’s time to answer some questions again. Thank you to Joyce From This Side of the Pond!
1. Realist, idealist, optimist, pessimist…which one are you? Elaborate.
I would say I’m a combination of a realist and optimist. Because I have embraced what the Bible says about God, mankind, and salvation, I know the reality of my sinful condition and the depravity of the world we live in. Being born again I have peace with God, the Sovereign Creator, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Christ provided the atonement for my sins. I know that God will bring me safely home to heaven with Him and that all things will work together for His good and my sanctification.
2. What’s something currently on your wish list?
Freedom to move about the country in a carefree way.
3. Three things on this week’s shopping list?
Tissue, eggs, conditioner.
4. According to Trip Advisor here’s a list of the top ten things to do in the US this summer-
Chicago Architecture River Cruise, Skip the Line Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Tour, New York In A Day guided sightseeing tour, Charleston’s Old South Historic Horse and Carriage tour, Grand Canyon helicopter tour, Full day iconic sights of LA, Beverly Hills, Beaches and more, D.C. at Dusk guided night tour, Beneath the Streets Underground History tour (Seattle), New Orleans Swamp and Bayou Boat tour, Gangsters and Ghosts tour in Chicago…read more about each excursion in the link here.
Of the ten attractions listed which do you find most appealing?
Charleston’s Old South Historic Horse and Carriage Tour.
Have you already experienced anything on this list?
Yes. I’ve done the Architecture River Cruise, D.C. at Dusk guided night tour. I was born in East Los Angeles and raised in southern California and have been to several beaches and iconic sights of LA and Beverly Hills. We moved just north of Seattle in 1988 and have enjoyed taking many car loads of visitors to see the Seattle sights. We never went on the Underground tour, though. Oops!
5. Besides home and work where do you spend the most time?
Both Dear and I are retired so we do not leave home for a workplace. I would say time wise we regularly spend most of our time away from home at our kids’ homes or at church.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
If you have Rhubarb you might want to try this recipe posted on my blog yesterday.
Common Cents Hodgepodge
Wednesday has popped up again so time for the Hodgepodge. Jo From This Side of the Pond asks the timely questions and we take a stab at answering them. Thank you Jo!
1. This week’s Hodgepodge lands on Ash Wednesday which signals the beginning of Lent. Do you mark this season in some way? If so tell us more.
We are aware of the season of Lent but we typically do not mark this season with ash on our foreheads or choosing something to give up for 40days. In the last few years I have used a few Lenten devotionals during the season but mostly stick to my daily Bible reading and meditation on what I’ve read in the Bible.
Did you grow up ‘celebrating’ Lent?
My first exposure to Lent was at the schools I attended in Southern California. There was a high population of Catholics and I was intrigued when I first saw some of my classmates come to school on Ash Wednesday with ash marks on their foreheads. Then to hear they couldn’t have gum or candy or cuss for 40 days gave me pause. The religion I grew up in distanced themselves from liturgical and Catholic traditions.
Is attending church part of your weekly routine?
Meeting together with fellow born again believers of Jesus Christ has been both my husbands and my practice since childhood which we have continued into our married life. The fellowship with other believers is an encouragement that we don’t want to miss. Worshipping God together corporately is a very important dimension of the Christian life.
Are churches open for in-person worship where you live?
Our church has been meeting since June of 2020. We still offer online services and we have a ‘mask only’ room at the church during services and we have a ‘social distancing’ room available, too. In our main sanctuary you will find those who wear masks and those who don’t.
We ceased meeting together from March until June of 2020 when the first mandates were instituted. When we returned to meeting again in June you could feel the corporate joy. It was overwhelming and good.
2. When is the last time you sat beside a ‘real’ fire?
In our son’s backyard sometime in the last year? Most of our fire experience since we moved to the country has been tending our burn piles in Spring and when the local fire danger is low and burning is permitted.
Do you have a fireplace in your home? Wood or gas logs?
Our country bungalow does not have a fireplace.
Favorite thing cooked over a fire?
I’m not a fan of smores so I’m going to say a hot dog.
3. Something that’s currently got you fired up?
All forms of wickedness. I’ll leave it at that because I don’t want to get anyone else fired up.
4. February 17th also happens to be National Cabbage Day. Who knew? Do you like cabbage?
Is cabbage on your menu Wednesday? Of the following cabbage dishes which is your favorite-coleslaw (mayo or vinegar?), sauerkraut, cabbage rolls, cabbage soup, kielbasa and cabbage, grilled cabbage, bubble and squeak, kimchi, or haluski?
Cabbage is not on the menu but if it was it would be Golupstzi (Russian Cabbage Rolls), or Borsch (Russian Cabbage Soup). I love these dishes now but growing up I’d pull the cabbage off the cabbage rolls and I hated the cabbage part of Borsch.
5. Do you hang on to pennies?
Not recently but back in Dear’s early years he started coin collections and we still have those.
He has pennies from 1918 to 1993 in this collection.
What do you do with them?
Nothing. Funny coincidence is that we just retrieved Dear’s coin folders from the filing cabinet in the garage on Monday before these hodgepodge questions were posted on Tuesday.
Last thing you purchased for $1.00?
A Valentine’s day card at the Dollar Store.
Last thing you purchased for $5.00?
A Costco rotisserie chicken for $4.99 last Thursday. One cent shy of the $5.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.
Even though we don’t observe Lent with ashes or fasting we do read and meditate on God’s Word and read sections of scripture that lead up to the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus to fix our minds on what Jesus did for us and why we celebrate Easter, Christ’s Resurrection Day. Our Easter celebration is one of our grandest along with Christmas.
My photograph of the sculpture above (Jesus washing Peter’s feet) was taken at the Gardens of the World in Thousand Oaks, California back in 2011.
Knowing You, Jesus ~ Hymn
All I Once Held Dear…
Merry Christmas 2020
From our family to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas!
С Рождеством Христовым (S Roždestvom Khristovym)
John 1:14 (ESV)
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
I’ll see you all after Christmas! Hope all will be merry and bright for you!
Comments are off today! Enjoy your day!
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 