Sticker Stylist

Last night we had the little granddaughters over for the evening.  I had some mosaic craft for them that involved putting on little stickers on ponies.

Anyway, there were leftover stickers.

Cordelia decided she would be a sticker stylist, her term, and Grandpa was a good sport. 

She made him into something quite fancy.

The best part is, he wore the stickers for most of the evening. I think when a young woman is considering a husband, she should ask herself if he would make a good grandpa.  Just saying...

Elise was next.

She told me her sister was making her beautiful.

Then me.

I know, I look lovely.

Thanks to our sticker stylist!

A Word From Pastor Mike - Beginnings

The following was Mike's Christmas Eve Sermon this year but it is an important year round.  I think as you read, especially the last part of the sermon, you'll see that this is a great sermon for a New Year as well.

"In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered."  Luke 2:1

This is the beginning of the Christmas Story.  It is one of the world's great stories, Luke 2:1-20.  It's a great piece of writing.  It's got a little bit of everything:

a) Historical Figures - Augustus, Quirinius

b) Travel - Nazareth to Bethlehem, small town to small town

c) Humble Couple - Mary and Joseph - teenagers?

d) A Birth in Trying Circumstances - birth in a cow barn

e) The Natural and the Supernatural - shephers/sheep, angels

f) Announcement/A Sign - good news

g) Music - Glory to God in the Highest

h) Going in Haste - running shepherds (funny?)

i) Mary Pondering - Why am I a part of this great thing God is      doing?

j) Shepherds Praising God!

The Christmas story is short and compact.  It gets a lot of information out in just a few sentences.  This is the beginning of the Jesus story, of the Christian Faith.  "In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered."

Author Stephen King wrost, "A first line of a story should say: Listen. Come in here.  You want to know about this."  God works through stories to call us to faith.  God wants to draw us in with the first line.  Listen.  You'll want to know more about this.

Consider how the Bible starts, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."  Wow!  You talk about jumping in with both feet!  Does that get your attention?

Here is some more of the world's great writing, Psalm 23.  "The Lord is my shepherd.  I shall not want."  This is telling us that God is guiding our lives, providing our needs.  God is closely involved in your existence, like a shepherd with his sheep.  Does that get your attention?

1 Corinthians 13 is an ode to love.  It begins, "If I speak in the tongues of mean and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging symbol."  Every beginning needs a good ending.  This is how 1 Corinthians ends, "So now faith, hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love."  Does that get your attention?

The gospel, the good news about Jesus, has a surprising beginning, a humble couple, travel, birth, angels, shepherds.  What is not said here is said in John's gospel, "The Word (Jesus/God) became flesh and dwelt among us" or the paraphrase, "God took on human flesh and pitched his tent with us."

God is one of us.  In the life of Jesus, God experienced life as we know it, life with its joys and disappointments, with friends and enemies, eating, sleeping, working, birth and death.  God as one of us, that's a strange beginning.  It gets your attention.

The Christmas Story is a beginning.  It's a start.  There is something special about a new beginning, a new year, a new job, a new opportunity, a new season.  All these things give a sense of excitement.

Here is a story of new beginnings...  

In 1973 Ed Ryder was sentenced to life in prison for a murder he didn't commit.  (Does that first sentence get your attention?)  Ed Ryder was a 22 year old petty thief and sometimes heroin user.  He was in jail, in a holding cell, when three other men in the cell decided to get revenge on another man who had insulted them.  Ed Ryder was lumped in with the other men who had committed the murder.  Two of the other men later admitted that Ed Ryder had nothing to do with it.  How long did it take then for Ed Ryder to be set free?  5 years?  10 years?  Try 20 years!

When Ed was in prison he dreamed of playing trumpet in his own jazz band.  He never let go of hope.  He always believed he would get a new beginning.  In September of 1993 Ed Ryder was set free from his prison.  He started his own jazz band!  He was able to begin again.

The Jesus story has a beginning but it is also about beginnings for others.  When Jesus grew up, he started his ministry by reading from the book of Isaiah.  "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me... to bring good news to the poor, proclaim release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind and letting the oppressed go free to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

The good news of the gospel is that you and I get a new beginning with God.  Jesus lets people start over.

Jesus didn't give up on people.  He said to the woman caught in adultery, "Neither do I condemn you.  Go and sin no more in this way."  You get a new beginning.

He said to the leper kicked out of society, "Be made clean."  You have a new beginning.

There was a paralyzed man let down through a roof.  Jesus said, "Your sins are forgiven.  Take up your mat and walk."  You have a new beginning.

Jesus didn't give up on Peter, poor impetuous Peter.  Peter wanted to straighten Jesus out of his ministry.  He wanted to walk on water.  He wanted to take on the Romans.  He denied Jesus.  After the resurrection Jesus came to Peter and told him he could start again.  He gave him a new beginning.

The Christian faith is all about new beginnings.  We are sinful.  We fall short of God's glory.  We miss the mark.  We make bad choices.  We need new beginnings.  We need to know that God doesn't give up on us.  He doesn't!

Every day is a new day.  It's a chance to begin again with God.  No one is too far away from God.  He gets our attention with a story, a story about a beginning.

Every beginning needs an ending.  Here's the end of the Christmas Story... "And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen as it had been told them."

What is this story about for us?

There was a beginning to the life of Jesus on earth.

A savior and Lord was born for us.  That means Jesus saves us from our sins and teaches us through his Spirit and Word how to live a life that pleases God.

Jesus had a beginning.  He is the King of New Beginnings.  God has not given up on you.  You are not too far away from God.  God knows all about your life.  He loves you and he wants you to begin again with him.

This story, this day, this faith is God's gift to you.  Be a shepherd.  Glorify and praise God.  Let that be the beginning and the end of your faith story with God.

Just a Quick Pose

Last week I asked the little girls to go into our living room and pose in front of the Christmas tree for a photo.

Here is what I got...  

 g

Really? Please just stand in front of the tree.

Then Cordelia spotted the stool and they decided to sit there. Easy enough-NOT! 

Then, finally!  

Grinch Party

We have a great group of adults at our church who give of their time and talents to provide fun activities for the kids. I have come to really enjoy these events. I love that they always have a Christian lesson. I love that they are multi-generational.

The most recent event was a Grinch Christmas Party.  The party started with a prayer, given by a young man named Bailey. He used to be one of our Sunday School students but now he is migrating into some informal leadership positions in our church. It is exciting to watch him as he continues to grow in his faith and to seek our God's will for his life.  Children  just love him and respond well to his sense of fun.

After the prayer, there was, of course, the reading of the Grinch story and then the crazy joy really exploded! 

There were fun activities such as  "decorate your own tree".  There was a place to make your own green slime, and to make Christmas ornaments. 

Adults were helping kids and sometimes it was hard to tell who was having the most fun.

( Decorate a little, eat a little)

There was"Who Hair" everywhere! 

There were Grandmas who had been run over by reindeer, 

complete with hoofprints in their backs.

The Grinch tried trio steal the Christmas Tree.

But, as the story goes, there is more to Christmas than the trees with presents.

Christmas is a time of love and caring.  BUT, that is where the Grinch story stops. At this party, the children were reminded of the source of all that love and joy and peace!. I Loved Dr. Suess but he didn't quite finish the story. 

The love, the peace.... 

The story is really about Jesus, the baby in the manger. 

This painting was done by a group effort, including two beautiful sisters, Natalie and Gabbie. I got to better know those sweet girls when I was teaching Sunday School as well. They are always ready and willing to do what is needed at church, often working quietly behind the scenes. 

There was also a chance for the kids to fashion clothing for some of the helpers. What do you think of their efforts? 

Mike arranged a little skit for the kids, using Bailey and David, another person I got to know better when I taught Sunday School. He is another kid always participating, always adding to the fun. They did a great job with their skit! 

We have some really great kids with active and engaged parents who bring them faithfully to church. Their parents work hard to teach them of God's love by their own examples. It shows!. There were kids there early, setting up, as well as kids cleaning up afterward. There were older kids helping younger kids throughout the evening. 

It was a fun night and I wanted to end by thanking the adults who set it all up. Thank you for making this a fun night for the children and we adults as well! 

Caroling 2015

Do you go Christmas Caroling? We have gone caroling a variety of places.  It is an old fashioned tradition but I am glad it still happens today.

We have caroled in the back of a truck while sitting on hay bales in Montana. Often this occurred in VERY cold weather.

We have caroled in New Mexico in weather that seemed almost balmy compared to Montana.

Wyoming caroling can be really cold, especially if the wind is doing its Wyoming thing.  

No matter when or where we have gone caroling, it is a nice tradition. It is one of those Christmas things that spreads cheer without involving shopping. We generally focus on singing to people who are sick or shut in. It is a feel good activity.

Last night was our annual caroling with our church group.  Mike and I took our granddaughters along, making it even more of an adventure. Buckling and unbuckling them from their carseats, plopping on hats and slipping on four mittens at each stop got a bit hectic. It is possible I got a little careless with it. I would like to tell you that Elise put her own hat on here, but sadly, it was me.

Cordelia is absolutely darling when we carol. I have explained to her that a lot of older people in nursing homes don't get to see kids much and that it makes them happy to see them. She also knew they sometimes want to hold their hands or touch their faces. Cordelia takes her "job" quite seriously! 

At one such stop a lady came up and wanted to hug Cordelia, holding her arms open as invitation. Cordelia went right to her!. The hug went on rather long and the lady just kept holding on to her. I took Cordelia's hand and extracted her from the situation and walked her over to greet a few other people but when the first lady wanted more hugging, Cordy willingly went right back to her embrace. I was so proud of her! 

At a few of the nursing homes Cordelia didn't even wait for an invitation. After our songs she just walked among the people and told them, "Merry Christmas." 

Elise was a lot more reserved but she joined in on the songs she knew, rang her little bells and made people smile. She got pretty tired and sometimes laid down on the floor or buried her face in my hair as I held her, but it didn't matter. She was adorable. She was NOT reserved in the vehicle between stops. She shared her opinions freely and sang "Go Tell it on the Mountain", her favorite song, many times over.

It was a good night.

These photos were at our last stop. Don't they look like they've had fun? 

Yep, a good night.