Christmas Blessings

Tonight's Music from the Heart: Josh Groban - I'll Be Home For Christmas

It's Christmas Eve, and I'm at my brother's house, awaiting the arrival of my nephew, Tyler, who has just been released from the hospital. He was admitted last week with a staph infection. The details aren't important at the moment, but it all stems from a foot injury he incurred this past summer. We were initially told he would not be home for Christmas, but today we were surprised to learn that he will be.

We'll be starting soon, so I'll keep this post short. I'll write more soon about our Christmas. In the meantime, I'm wishing a Merry Christmas to one and all, and a very blessed time with those you hold dear. May the Lord abundantly bless you and yours, and may He wrap his love and protection around those who are spending Christmas in the hospital with loved ones who are ill or injured, those who are working away from home, and those who are serving our country in foreign lands defending our freedom.

Merry Christmas.

Love,
Rachael

Seasonal Craziness

What a week! I found myself several times wishing I had a few moments to sit down and gather my thoughts in such a way as to present them here, but it simply did not happen. Here's the condensed version of my week:

At the Office
In addition to diligently plowing through a huge mound of insurance applications that found their way to my desk in recent weeks, I spent a good deal of time assisting a co-worker prepare enrollment materials for a new client she recently acquired. Scheduling and prepping the monthly enrollment for a large client of ours and brainstorming with my coworkers on what to get the boss for Christmas rounded out the week.

Church Life
Tuesday night was our women's ministry's annual Christmas Ornament and Cookie Exchange. We had a great time, enjoyed lots of yummy holiday goodies, shared tons of cookies, and laughed a lot. If you can imagine 45 women in a white elephant-style ornament exchange, you can get a little glimpse of the antics that ensued. I had three ornaments "stolen" from me and ended up with a cute little painted metal Santa who feels right at home on my country themed tree. I brought home lots of yummy cookies, many of which have disappeared already, mostly into the belly of my chocolate-loving hubby.

After church yesterday, the Tribe of Judah (small vocal ensemble I lead) sang carols in the foyer as people were leaving. Caroling is one of my favorite things about this season.

Last night was the church Christmas Banquet, the theme of which was "I'll Be Home For Christmas." A pickup truck pulling a trailer greeted us in the parking lot and carried us around the block to the "barn" (other side of the building) where the party was being held. The fellowship hall was decked out like the inside of a barn, complete with a huge wooden frame from which were hung lanterns. On the stage, a country Christmas tree with popcorn garland, hay bales and baskets of apples. The catered dinner was yummy, and was served by the youth, who worked as waiters and waitresses for tips that will be used to help send them to the annual Desperation Conference in Colorado. The "entertainment" (designed to be nice and simple) was Mr. Bill Spilman (our resident Santa-favoring story-teller) reading the Christmas story from Luke 2. The children, who sat on the stage while Mr. Bill read the story, tried their best to be still and quiet, but sitting through the entire passage proved to be a little too much for some of the little angels, and they turned to entertaining themselves (and the rest of us) by carefully disassembling the apple baskets, distributing the fare to their friends, and picking apart the hay, tossing it into the air, and watching it land in the hair of the unsuspecting kids sitting in front of them. They ended the evening by singing "Silent Night". No grand holiday production could have been more memorable.

The River
We had two events this week to prepare for, the first of which was the blanket giveaway at Boardwalk apartments. We had been collecting fleece blankets to distribute to the residents of a local apartment complex that we have been working with. The Tribe of Judah caroled around the complex, and we handed out cookies and punch (we nixed the hot cocoa and cider when the day turned out to be unseasonably warm). Thanks to the generosity of those who gave, we had more than enough to give blankets to every child and baby, every single and every couple in the complex. We even had some left over, which will be given to residents of another apartment building (elderly disabled residents) where we hold a weekly Bible study. God is SO good!

Tonight is our River Christmas banquet. This will be a formal sit-down dinner, something our precious people don't get to experience very often, and we take great pleasure in serving them start to finish. The Tribe of Judah will be caroling table-to-table and providing some special music after dinner. Can't wait!

At Home
Most of my time at home was spent relaxing, wrapping gifts and being thankful for my husband, who has helped me with cooking, cleaning and shopping while me ankle continues to heal. He keeps making me sit down so he can take care of things. Yes, I know what a blessing I have in him, and yes, I am thankful beyond words.

So this was my week, having fun, working, and getting ready for a couple of River events. Believe it or not, in spite of the full schedule, there actually have been some precious moments when the Lord has spoke some very deep things to me this past week, one of the most powerful of which came from an unexpected source yesterday during the outreach at Boardwalk. God has a way of capturing our attention in ways unique if we are watching and listening.

Now and always, may we be like the wise men,
seeking Him with hearts filled with worship and wonder,
like the shepherds, whose fear was replaced with hope,
and like Mary, who pondered all these things in her heart.

A New Perspective

In the last few days since my last post, I have traded in the ace bandage for an ankle brace, which is providing much more stability. I am in hopes that this will speed up the healing process, as I am already getting a little stir crazy while I am temporarily unable to move about as freely as I am accustomed to.

With that said, I must share with you my experience in church this morning. I was sitting in the back row with my foot propped up on a chair that had been turned around in front of me. Someone said to me that I should be sitting in front, because with everyone standing, I would not be able to see anything (meaning the worship team and any other doings that took place on the stage). Well, she walked off before I could reply, but my immediate answer was that I was not there to see anyone or anything that was happening in the front. I was here to meet God, and I could do that right where I was sitting.

And sure enough, as I sat there with very little of significance to look at during the worship time, the Lord spoke to me. He told me that part of the reason I have been temporarily grounded with this ankle injury was that He wants to show me some things. He began immediately by increasing my awareness of the worship that was taking place around me, something I rarely notice, since I am usually so closed off myself during times of corporate worship that I don't see much that goes on around me.

I'm not quite ready to discuss what He has begun to show me, but I am excitedly and actively embracing this season of inactivity, however long or short it may turn out to be, because I know that there is a purpose for it all. He is allowing me see some things from a different perspective right now, and I am to record what I see and observe for a future time.

So until then,

my eyes, ears and heart are open, Lord.
Speak, Lord, Your servant is listening,
watching and waiting ...

Blessings in Disguise

Tonight's Music from the Heart: Kenny G - White Christmas

It's early December, and to celebrate the colder temperatures we are now experiencing, I played around a little with the camera this morning, donning woolly hat, gloves and scarf, all in an attempt to dress for the season.This evening I uploaded the pictures and played around a little more with various colors, soft edges and a host of other wonders of modern photo-editing software, and have selected a few "self-images" to share with you, dear friends and family. You can find the link, entitled "Just Messin' Around" in the photo gallery section on the left of the page.

The flip side of why I had so much time today to play around with this stuff is that I seriously sprained my ankle and foot Monday and am operating with limited mobility for at least a week. Ugh.

Ace bandages & crutches aren't exactly my idea of a festive holiday season, but I have chosen to accept this temporary slow-down as a blessing in disguise, as it has necessitated a slow-down of my busy-ness for a little while. This slow-down,while not on my calendar, is a welcome reprieve from the craziness that I tend to surround myself with if I'm not careful. Truth be told, I have actually enjoyed the opportunity to delve a little into a creative project, something I don't make enough time for these days.

So, no deep profound thoughts this evening. Only a gentle reminder to take a few moments each day to savor the season, especially the moments that kinda sneak up on you unexpectedly, and look for the little blessings nestled inside those unplanned interruptions.

Happy December!

Rachael