The website and blog have been under construction

I'm sorry it is taking so long....but we have a lot of surprises for you. The target date for announcing winners of the contest is Friday, January 4th. We hope to have everything up and ready by then.

Keep checking back for daily upgrades.

God loves you,

Debbie

Jesus Christ is born !

Beautiful angels surrounded the birth of Jesus. My angel tree is just inside the front door to my home.

In Luke 1:26 an angel appears to Mary. "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

But the angel said to her, "Do Not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

An angel also appeared to Joseph in a dream in Matthew 1:20. "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 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."

In Luke 2:8 an angel appeared again: And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them , and they were terrified.

But the angel said to them, "Do Not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you; You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."



When our children were young Ron and I made this nativity set. It's all white ceramic trimmed in gold.

Luke 2:4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Our Savior is born. I often stare at this scene and wonder what Mary and Joseph were thinking. Angels were everywhere. Prophecy abounded. Yet, when it was time for Mary to deliver all was quiet. The Savior of the world slipped into our world as a tiny baby, in the quiet night, in an obscure stable. Were Mary and Joseph expecting more? Were they scared? Perhaps they simply settled into the "simple" miracle of the child they held.

My wish for you this Christmas morning is that you see Angels and Miracles in every aspect of your life. Cherish the smiles of your children. Hug your spouse and feel the love that surrounds you. Be thankful not only for the little things but even for the twinkling lights on your tree. We live in a marvelous world. Even when life hasn't given us everything we want - we are blessed. Just as Mary and Joseph were blessed in that stable all alone in the quiet - we too can be blessed today.

Look forward to all the things God has planned for you. Even though Mary and Joseph were alone at the birth of Jesus - angels were preparing to greet the shepherds. You may feel a little stressed about your life right now but be encouraged. Angels may be in your future!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

God loves you,

Debbie

A great example of the power of Traditions

You must go to the following story. It's a beautiful story of how a family was inspired by a 70 year old tradition.

I'm sorry I'm not more Internet savvy. You will have to copy and paste this URL. If you have AOL, it's one of today's top stories entitled "His Christmas Tree Survived Hiroshima".

http://news.aol.com/story/_a/the-christmas-tree-survived-hiroshima/20071222182409990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001

Our Christian Christmas Tree

Our Christian Christmas tree lights up my living room. It's our most prized possession.

Twenty years ago our church in Georgia began a Christmas service called, "The lighting of the tree." We had a 12 foot artificial tree decorated with thousands of tiny white lights. For over an hour families would take their turn to stand in the pulpit, read a scripture and place their ornament on the tree. Between readings we sang Christmas Carols. Every thing about the tree had to relate to scripture or to some Christian revelation. Every thing about the tree had a meaning.

The tree was green as in Evergreen and symbolized God's everlasting love for us.

The tiny white lights represented that "He is the light of the world."

The garland was made of white pearls and stood for "He is the pearl of great price."

Every ornament had be white to represent the purity of God and his desire for us to be pure. "We are to be his bride without stain or blemish."

There are lots of angels and plenty of musical instruments. We also included large snowflakes to represent that "He washes our sins whiter than snow."

Every year I watched as people publicly opened up about their spiritual struggles. It was a moving service that brought us all together and let us know that no matter what happens in life, God will be there.

When we moved to Ohio I purchased an artificial tree for our living room. We have carried on the tradition for 18 years now. It's my favorite tradition and my favorite decoration.

This picture shows Memaw getting ready to place her ornament on the tree.

Amie had the brilliant idea to place tags on the ornaments so we won't forget the beautiful sentiments and scriptures. I have almost all of them memorized. To me, this tree is a living journal of our pain, sorrow, journeys, victories, God's mercy and our love for him and each other.

For a while we kept the tree to ourselves. Every Christmas eve after a special supper, one by one we stood in front of the tree and explained our ornament. As more friends heard about the tree, more people wanted to participate. Before long "The Tree" party was changed to a date where others could participate. It became a special event.

This year Ken is directing three Christmas Eve services and won't be home until Christmas day. Once again the tree will be celebrated with just the family. I'm anxious to hear all the stories behind the ornaments this year. So much has happened and God has been so merciful.

Here's a few of my favorite ornaments.

The tree has 18 glass bulbs. Each bulb is engraved with a "J" and the year. The glass bulb represents the "Breath of God" as it entered Adam and each of us.

There are many icicles. The icicles stand for the "Sword of truth or the two-edged sword."

The angel in this picture was made by my sister-in-law and always reminds me how family can be angels in our times of need.

To the far left you can see part of the first ornament my children put on the tree in Georgia. I can still hear them say in unison, "Jesus asempted into the clouds." What they meant to say was ascended. We strung cotton balls on wire and shaped it into a cloud.

I love this ornament. It's not a reindeer, it's a deer. My Dad found it and quoted the scripture, "As the deer pants for streams of water so my soul pants for you, Oh Lord." Psalms 42:1

On the right just below the deer you can see one of the icicles. And to the right of that a beautiful glass fish that stands for being "fishers of men." To the left is a huge rose that represents He is the "Rose of Sharon."



This ornament confused us. Scott Walt held up a pair of baby jogging shoes. We all wondered how he could possibly relate something so modern to scripture. Then he quoted, Hebrews 12:1 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." With a twinkle in his eye Scott remarked, "If you've got to run you better have good shoes."

When Jamie was a junior in High school he was in a car accident. He took a matchbox car and beat it with a hammer. Then he painted it white. He talked about God's mercy and protection. I'm wondering if he will do the same with a motorcycle this year.

Below the car is one of the few items that isn't all white. It's a child sliding down a snowy hill on a sled. It represented the fact that sometimes, God just wants us to have some fun. There's also an ornament with a cow in a tub of bubbles. Since Ron grew up on the farm he laughed and said that he never washed a cow but the ornament made him laugh. He was glad that after God washed all our sins away - there was a reason to laugh and enjoy life again.

Ron's Dad is a Godly man. He loved working on his 360 acre farm in Iowa. Christmas morning Of 1993, Wayne Jansen passed away. That was an extremely difficult year. I have placed memorabilia of him all through our Christmas decorations.

Here is a tractor and an ear of corn. There are many scriptures relating our faith to the farmer, the seed and the sower. Wayne will receive a huge harvest of souls for the way he lived his life.



There have been many times the prayers of my parents have made my life better. Here is a handmade ornament of the two of them holding hands in prayer. My life is better because my parents were praying people. My family is stronger because Ron's parents and my parents are praying people.




There are three airplanes on the tree. Several times we talked about missionary work and how we need to go into all the world.

We also placed them on the tree because Dad was a missionary pilot to Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. God preformed miracles on those trips. I love the story about him flying a dying woman out of a remote village. His plane was overweight and had to take off on a short ridge that dropped off the mountain. God not only helped him make the flight, he saved the woman's life.


This year when I put the compass ornament on the tree, I cried. I am asking God for direction in several areas of my life.

When Ken graduated from Evangel he made the compass to represent how he felt about the changes in his life. He wondered where God was leading him. This year I placed the baton (far left) close by. Not only is he working for a loving congregation, God is stretching and leading him into exciting territory.

The glass ornament above the compass is a well. Ron placed it on the tree to represent the woman at the well and the living water we all need. I hope each of you will receive the living water you need for the coming year.

The pictures and stories could go on for a long time, but let's just say that each ornament represents an event or insightful time in our lives. It stands as a tribute to the love of God and his tender mercy to all of us.

I'm looking forward to seeing the ornaments this year. We have such fun singing, talking and praying about each one. This tree is also the tree we gather around to read the Christmas story on Christmas morning.

During the season I try to find time to sit in the living room and ponder this tree. So many struggles and blessings are represented on this tree. It's a moving account of our lives. It never fails to bring me back to the reason for the season and to give me hope for the coming new year. I hope you will choose to have a tree of your own next year. One that will bless you and give you spiritual renewal.

Merry Christmas,

God loves you,


Debbie

My traditions

I'm feeling better today. The floors are vacuumed and the dishes washed. I lit several candles and I have Christmas music playing. Come with me as I point out some of my traditional decorations.

This little tree is one of the first items I set out. It belonged to my grandmother Craft. My mother's mom was a dynamic lady. She became an evangelist and traveled all over the south. She built five churches and helped mother with her ministry. I remember visiting her one Christmas before she passed. She was staying in a broken down apartment complex. This tree and the following Santa was her only decoration. I sat beside her expecting a sad story about her circumstances. Instead she tried to comfort me and tell me how wonderful the Christmas story was. She told me not to feel sorry for her that Christmas was in her heart not in her needs. I learned a lot from her and my life is better because of the things she taught me.

It's important that I decorate with items that cause me to ponder life and all the wonderful people I've met. It helps me to remember the good memories that can bring that person back for the holidays - even if it's only with a smile. Our local hospital sends out a monthly magazine. One of it's articles was entitled, "Heavy Hearts during the Holidays." It talked about people who have lost loved ones and how they cope. "A helpful, healing way to celebrate the holiday season is to find a way to memorialize your loved one. Start a new tradition such as buying a Christmas tree ornament each year in memory of that special person." I agree. Decorating with items that remind you of the good in the past or the love for someone dear can heal and inspire.

The next item I put up is an angel. She sits on our mantel and reminds us of all the innocent love that surrounds us. It's ceramic and was made by my Aunt Delaine. She sent it to me the year before her grand-daughter Ashley passed away with leukemia. She was a beautiful young lady and was loved by everyone. Ron and I prayed for her and hoped that healing would be God's will. I don't understand his purpose, but every year I look at our "Ashley Angel" and I pray for the family. I thank God that because he came to earth, we will see her again.

Next I begin putting out all my little houses, ceramics and music boxes. I love putting this one by itself. It's a little Santa house. If you look closely you will see that all the windows are missing. When Ken was about two and walking, he spent many hours staring at the few houses I had at that time. More than once I caught him reaching out hoping to touch. "No, no Kenny. We just look. We don't touch." Just to be sure his curiosity was explored once or twice I sat him in my lap and let him finger each house. I was sure he had been a very good boy that year. When it was time to put the Christmas houses away I noticed each window (made of tissue paper) had been popped by some one's little finger. I never replaced the windows. I decided that it should stand as a monument to a child's irresistible curiosity.

This is most of the rest of my houses. I love making a different scene every year. I think about all the wonderful snowy Christmases I've enjoyed.


What decorations do you set out? Tomorrow I'll show you our most prized Christmas decoration - Our Christian Christmas tree.

Merry Christmas,
God loves you

Debbie

Traditions or treason

I love words. I like the sound of some words and the meaning of others. I like the way certain phrases flow off the tongue. Good thing I'm a writer huh! Because I like words I am curious about their full meanings and I often wonder what was going through some one's mind when they came up with that word.

Traditions are like comfort food to me. I like having certain times of the year when I observe a tradition or bake a certain food. Even when times are hard or things don't go just like I wish they would - I can light a candle, start a fire or bake a cake and memories flood in connecting me with love. I feel better.

Imagine my surprise when I looked up the word "traditions." The first definition startled me. I checked to be sure I had spelled traditions properly. "A surrender or betrayal - see Treason. The rest of the definitions were as I expected. But again "Surrender or betrayal" puzzled me.

What were they thinking? I quickly looked for treason to see if it offered any reason for such a contradiction in thoughts. The first definition was an "Oh, I see moment." Treason: (Now rare) a betrayal of trust or faith, treachery. I wondered, have I committed treason?

Have you ever noticed how God likes to challenge us? He will leave an area of our life alone for many years. With a blink of his eye he chooses to challenge that area and suddenly we are required to grow. We never like the process, but once we get on the other side we look back with pride and amazement as we see God's hand of guidance and protection.

I love Christmas. It's my favorite time of the year. I knew things were going to be different this year with Amie and Ken in different states and Jamie in his own home. But Mom and Dad were here and I have all my readers. I planned to write everyday and have a wonderful party with all of you. My plans didn't include feeling sad.

There's been sickness, moving trips, problems around the house and issues in scheduling. All my plans lay around me like wet noodles. The little fun I had just didn't seem to compare. Sadness was making a home in my heart.

I miss my children. I miss our traditions. I thought about a 30 year tradition that was not observed this year. Every Friday after Thanksgiving the five of us would go to a local farm and cut down our live tree. How excited the children were. After a big breakfast we piled into the van, sang songs, chatted and laughed all the way to the farm. We walked around and around making sure we had just the right tree.

One year when my foot was in a cast I suggested that we just get something - anything close to the edge and be done with it. Jamie laughed and said, "Mom, we can't do that. Part of the process is to look the farm over before we decide on the one nearest the cashier!" We all laughed and they found a wagon to drag me around the lot. Of course that wasn't near as funny as the year Jamie was dragging a sled to put the tree on. Amie decided to step on it thinking it would startle Jamie. Instead she slid and did a back flip into gushy mud. Once we knew she was okay it took us ten minutes to stop laughing. Getting the tree was always followed by hot chocolate and fresh cookies.

This year everyone had to be back to their jobs. There just wasn't time to go as a family. Ken's car broke down and he had to borrow Jamie's to get back to Illinois. Two weeks later we had to meet Ken half way to switch cars. Every week-end had been filled and Ron and I hadn't had time to get a tree. Christmas is less than a week away and I don't have my live tree. The dashboard on the truck beamed "Check engine". We took it for repairs but the shop said it might be several days. I asked if they weren't ready to work on it, could I run get a tree - "real quick." Ron and I raced to Home Depot. "That one." I pointed as we ran. "That will be okay." Ron began dragging it to the truck as I ran inside to pay. We rushed to the house and Ron raised it out of the truck and tossed it against the house. Rushing back to the repair shop my heart sank. Instead of a wonderful tradition, we dumped a tree we hardly knew against our house.

Treason: betrayal of trust or faith. Yep, that's how I felt. Betrayed. Lost. Alone. Sad.

Good news. This is where the growth comes in. It seems everyone I've met this year is dealing with a difficult issue. Rather than a lot of cheery "Merry Christmases", I'm hearing about a lot of let downs, frustrations and true trauma's. Could it be that God wants me to feel the let downs so I can be honestly helpful? Perhaps God is showing me that this is the year my blog needs to deal with holiday letdown. Have I been so comforted by our family traditions that I didn't understand the need for compassion for others. Maybe I need to practice my viewpoint and see if it's right. Maybe I need to know how it feels to say a cheery "Merry Christmas" when your heart needs a band-aid.

Do we all need to band together via this blog and connect our hearts? Maybe we need to reach beyond our own families to find comfort in a constantly changing world.

Dealing with heartache during the holidays is extremely difficult. I understand if you need to be sad and cry those tears. I've let several slip down my cheek. Perhaps the solution is not in changing our circumstances. Perhaps the solution is in rejecting the treason.

Psychologically we all need "traditions" - comfort food for the soul to lighten our way and give us the umph we need to carry the load. A comforting tradition has the power to help us see the real beauty of the season. The real reason for the season. Don't center on what you don't have, let your mind dwell on the "beauty" of the tradition.

We all need this zero calorie comfort food. We need to light those candles and bake those cookies - whether we feel like it or not. We need to deck the halls and fa la la la la. Like Auntie Mame announced in the movie that bears her name, "WE NEED a little Christmas now more than ever!"

I received this beautiful e-mail from Gloria. It's a practical application of the power of traditions.

She writes: I lost my father in 1990 on the 13th of December. We were so close, I was devastated. In September of that year I received a wonderful blessing in the form of my first grandchild, Ryan. When I was told on the phone by my brother that our dad had passed in California, I just collapsed in grief. I questioned God- over and over, "why??" I sank into a depression and decided I would not have Christmas that year. Both of my daughters went along with my decision.

Somewhere in those 12 days until Christmas God spoke to my heart and told me I would have Christmas and the family gathering should be at my house. He assured me that He may have taken my father but I had a 'new man' in my life now- my 10 week old grandson. Christmas must be celebrated. Our family traditions were needed to show Ryan that he was in a warm, loving family. I wondered how I would answer my grandson when he was older and asked me 'how did you celebrate my first Christmas at your house Gramma?' I thought about it and made my decision. I decorated my house, my tree and baked cookies. We took lots of pictures of Ryan during his first Christmas. I am smiling in those pictures even tho my heart is broken from the loss of my father. The old saying of "the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away" comes to mind. I know Ryan cannot take the place of my father but Ryan's birth that same year of my fathers' death told me life goes on.

I am truly thankful for my family and for my loving Savior who helps soothe the broken heart. I know my father 'earned his wings' and someday we will be reunited in Glory!

Ryan is now 17 and a wonderful handsome young man. He loves the Lord and he knows he is loved. We talk about our ancestors a lot since I am working on our family genealogy. Ryan never knew his grandfather. My husband died when Ryan's mother was 8 years old. But we look at pictures and talk about them both.

I am truly blessed. I have a loving family and we celebrate wonderful traditions. My family is my best gift at Christmas time.

Wow! Thank you Gloria.

Traditions give us balance and hold our world together. They remind us of our faith and our love. With one smell or a twinkle of a light we are instantly transported back to love. Don't betray your traditions. Don't commit treason with your faith. Hold tightly to the smallest occasion that highlights love.

Pass the cookies and hot chocolate please... Why don't we look at pictures of my traditions? Send me yours as well.

God loves you,
Merry Christmas

Debbie

Christmas Miracle!

Pam is a dear friend. She submitted the recipe from her Aunt Ruth for her 24 hour salad (Dec. 5th posting) I received the following e-mail and decided it must be posted. What a Christmas miracle!


December 12, 2007 - CHRISTMAS FIRE

For a few years now, I have attended a Bible Study with a group of gals I met when I visited Holy Cross Lutheran by our home. We originally met each other by meeting as a small study group, which started with Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life series. Since then, every other week we meet for Bible Study at one of the gal’s houses - not far from my home.

My wonderful husband knew that our Bible Study group was planning a Christmas celebration. We were supposed to meet this morning and enjoy a nice breakfast, cookie and gift exchange. So, last night Michael offered to bake some Monkey Bread for me to take.

After the bread had been baking for awhile, we noticed smoke coming from the oven; then flames. The flames continued to grow bigger and bigger! The smoke alarms started to go off everywhere! Thankfully, the fire was contained inside the oven. Michael grabbed the fire extinguisher and proceeded to put out the flames, as I dialed 911. Isaac was sitting on the couch, quiet. We were all in shock of what was happening. It all happened so fast! The smoke was so bad, I could not see Michael standing 8-10 feet in front of me. I threw open the sliding glass doors all the way and then opened several of our windows. The firemen came and said they could smell smoke clear out in the front yard.

It all could have been much worse. Today, I’m thinking of what could have happened and thanking God for protecting me and my family. As I sit back and think of different things that have happened over the last few weeks, I realize that the Lord put special people in my path BEFORE this fire even came about. I like to have plenty of homemade items for Christmas day. This year I have received gifts of cookies and breads from several different people, which I placed in our freezer to save for Christmas day. I even commented to Michael about how many wonderful edible goodies we were receiving this year!

I realized that we CAN survive without Christmas cookies. We CAN survive without Christmas breads. And, we CAN survive without an oven to cook our Christmas dinner. My realization continued……I CAN replace the oven (with the help of a little plastic thing called a Credit Card!), and I CAN replace the few items damaged by the Fire Extinguisher.
However, I CANNOT replace my husband, my son, or my special beloved pets. And, we CANNOT survive without our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

That’s what Christmas is all about. The other stuff is fun, but what really matters is………..we have Jesus in our hearts, and nothing - not even a fire, can destroy that!

What we DO have this holiday season and are grateful for is our lives……..our home………..our clothes……..our belongings……..our pets, and most importantly we have Jesus in our hearts! We are truly blessed!
Happy Holidays everyone!

Pam Ruflin

PS - Just arrived home from my Bible Study Christmas party. My friend, Jane (the gal’s house where we all meet every other Thursday for Study), GAVE me an electric oven. She said she was just keeping it “in case someone ever needed one. The only thing is….”, she said, “it’s black! I hope you’re okay with the color?”
I looked at her with tears in my eyes and replied, “Jane......., my fire-burned oven WAS black!” Can you believe it? God just keeps blessing me and my family. Don’t we have an AWESOME God? He fills our needs, before we even know we need something!

Yes Pam, we do have a wonderful God. We can trust him...ALWAYS!

Thank you for sharing your Christmas Miracle with all of us!

Merry Christmas !

God Loves you,

Debbie