Bethlehem Project- Afton VA
Happy Thursday Friends!
I have a recommendation for all my local blog pals. Go to the Bethlehem Project in Afton, VA. We go every year… it’s beyond words! Jesus is born every hour on the hour! No charge, donations accepted. Check out the website and make it a family date!
I have just a simple thought for all you guys today… slow down and smell your Christmas tree! For me, things have been spinning out of control over the past few weeks. I have so much going on, I cant seem to catch my breath. And I know that if I am not careful… Christmas will come and go without me. Oh yes, my body will be there consuming all the festive foods… but my mind will be a million miles away missing all the real beauties of the moment!
Christmas is the “most wonderful time of the year!” At least it should be.
The holiday season kicks off with Thanksgiving where we thank God for all the blessings in our lives. Thanksgiving calls upon us to stop the complaining and start appreciating. Truly, for every one thing going wrong, there are a hundred things going right in our lives! If we celebrated Thanksgiving properly, then the tone for a phenomenal December has been set! If not, then consider making TODAY your Thanksgiving MAKE UP DAY! Come on… break the curse of depression and take charge of your environment! Ti’s the season to be jolly… fallaaa laaalaaa laaa laaalaaa laaa laaa!
From Thanksgiving we head towards the celebration of our Saviors birth! Wow… all the JOY in the Christmas message! The excitement of decorations and gift exchanging… and Christmas parties… and quality time with the people we love the most! Don’t be a scrooge or a Grinch… love this season… and take in every last ounce of it! Sing Christmas songs… do random acts of kindness for hurting people. Get out your Bibles and read the Christmas story a hundred times… go to church with your family! Give a gigantic special Christmas offering! Spend more time praying to God, asking him to work in your life like never before! Let your friends and family know how much they mean to you! Call up your Grandparents… or go visit if you can! And just maybe, after you do some of this… your own problems will fade away into nothingness! 
Then… after celebrating a great Thanksgiving and Christmas, we will all be ready for a HAPPY NEW YEAR! Let’s not let the horrors of our economy get into our minds and ruin our holidays. For us who trust our future to God, we have nothing to fear. So celebrate like there is no tomorrow… trust me you need it more than you know! Slow down… and smell your Christmas tree before its gone.
Love you guys… have a super day!!
Hey Pastor Chuck! We love that place too. It feels so real there. We will be joining you there too. Our first experience there was when Nikki was about 4 years old and Shi was about 2 and Nikki being the adventurous spirit that she is decided to wander off so my child got lost in bethlehem !!! It was a night when it was very crowded and very cold but no worries the gates of the city was well guarded and angels were present in every sense of the way.
Thank you so much for this blog! I know for a FACT your time in this is very well spent for the impact and the connection you have made in someone’s life that otherwise may have never crossed your path directly.
I also feel this is just the beginning for you and what God is bringing into your path. I am so grateful and blessed to be a part of this unfolding. Thank you. I’m praying for you too.
This may sound strange, but you know the lower branches that you cut off when you plop the tree into its holder? I stuck them in the back seat of my car because I like the smell of pine so much. I'm going to leave them in there as long as they put out scent. Nature's air freshener.
I can’t stop and smell the tree. I don’t have one. LOL. But, you’re right it is so important to slow down and take time for what this life is really about!!! This year I have grown so much out of being so self-centered and it has been amazing. God is awesome. Each day I slow down and just bask in what He has to say when I read His Word.
hahaaa!!! That's awesome Des! I'm loving the creativity… and I bet your life is a FUN one! Thanks for commenting… hope you have a super weekend!
"The lower branches that you cut off when you plop the tree into its holder" This gave me a vision of Jesus cutting off our lower selves so we can fit into Him. He is our holder. Wow, it is amazing what one person's words can lead you to see, thanks Des. I am humbled.