Tuesday With Teri

Each year I continue to be reminded of God’s grace as I see her oddly perched atop our tree.  This year her placement on the tree was a bit precarious.

Traditionally our daughter, with the help of her dad, had the task of placing her on top the tree.  This has become a much more complex endeavor as our trees have gotten taller and so has she, but not matter what, they always pulled it off.  This year we celebrate Christmas with new family members.  Our son now has a wonderful wife and two precious kids.  Our daughter is now married as well.  So dad decided THIS year her husband would have the task of getting her, and the tiny/fragile angel, to the top of the tree.  Let’s just say hilarity ensued as she sat on his shoulders and they wobbled toward the tree.  After a few failed attempts, and a little more repair work, she finally sits in her place of honor.

She is more worn this year, she lists even more and it does look as if at any moment she will topple over….it has been quite a year for her.  It’s been quite a year for all of us…but there she is still.  She continues to remind me of the gift of grace, the gift of not being perfect, yet being loved.

May you find it easy to grant grace to others as you bask in the grace of our God.  I hope you have enjoyed the advent posts this year as much as I have enjoyed writing them. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and new beginnings!

           The Christmas Tree Angel

  I’m not sure where she came from.  I’m not even certain of her age.   I do know that she sat atop the Christmas tree for many of my growing up years, quietly presiding over each holiday season.  I acquired her from my mother many years ago.

Her gold foil, cardboard wings, once ended in perfect points extending her stature to seven inches.  Now her wing span is slightly reduced, as the tips went from being slightly bent, to folded, until they eventually tore off.  Her dark red velvet dress, trimmed with gold brick brack, fits snuggly to her waist before flowing over her cardboard form.  Her once silky, radiant white hair, now hangs in brittle coils around her shoulders.  A little gold foil halo covers a place on her head where some of her hair has given way to the passage of time.

Her head and hands are made of wax, as is the candle she holds in one hand.  I remember her as a beautiful lady, her face perfect and delicate.  Those qualities are now faded.  Her head, once held high and straight, has melted somewhat.  It now bows lovingly downward and a bit to the right.  Two years ago a significant amount of time and effort was put into re-attaching her long held candle to her now miss shaped hand.  Yep, she’s a bit of mess you might say.  I like that about her.

She doesn’t light up or sparkle, and quite often she is too small for the tree, making her look even more out of place.  But I look forward to her presence in my living room each Christmas.  Late at night, when the tree is lit and others have gone on to bed, I find myself thinking of her and all we have in common.

I too, know what it’s like to have my wings bent and torn.  I know what it feels like when your body gives itself over to the challenges of time.  My hair is no longer silky or radiant, and I only wish had a halo to hide the places where it has become thin.  I understand the sagging of her shoulders and the bowing of her head.  I have felt the

weight every mother bears for her family.  I know the need to bow my head in constant prayer.   I love her imperfection.  She’s a holiday reminder that God loves us in our imperfection.

A love full of grace, a savior born to take on the sin of the world, a reason to celebrate, reflected in the melted features and unraveled edges of our Christmas tree Angel.

God’s love was revealed among us in this way. God sent His son into the world so we might live through Him. 1 John 4:9

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

This is the fourth week of Advent.  Each week four prior to Christmas, we pause in remembrance of the birth of our Savior.  In some households a candle is lit in recognition of each of the Advent themes.  This week, we light the candle of LOVE.

I am addicted to holiday smells.  I stop in my tracks when I smell peppermint mocha steam rising from a hot mug, evergreen and balsam wafting from trees and wreaths or glorious cinnamon floating forth from everything from scented décor arrangements to baked goods.  No matter where I am, a friend’s home, bakery or store, I will stop, close my eyes and take a long breath.  Knowing my weakness, I try to avoid entering a store with a candle display this time of year…I have been known to over sniff.

These seasonal aromas can lift my spirits on the worst of days.  They remind me of family, friends, special times and tasty treats. Every sniff fills my heart with warmth, comfort and calmness.  You see, I get it.  I GET the impact of a fragrant aroma like the one mentioned in Ephesians  4:32- 5:1 & 2

“…be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has also  forgiven you.  Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ has loved you, and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”

God loved us so much He sent His Son so that we would have a way to Him.   Christ’s love was on full display as He gave up His life so we may know forgivness  for our sin.  This sacrificial love was a fragrant aroma to our God.

As we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ…”For God so LOVED the world, that He gave his only Son”, let us also be mindful of the example of LOVE He showed us.  Let us strive to be a FRAGRANT AROMA.

“Lord, help me to walk in love, to love others as I have been loved by You.  Lord may my life be a fragrant aroma to you, help me not to stink!”  Amen

This is the third week of Advent.  Each week four prior to Christmas, we pause in remembrance of the birth of our Savior.  In some households a candle is lit in recognition of each of the Advent themes.  This week, we light the candle of PEACE.

At the birth of John the Baptist, in Luke 1:76-80, it was told of the message he would share with the world.

“And you child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will go before The Lord to prepare His ways; To give to His people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins.  Because of the tender mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

As I read this, I could not help but hear the song “You are My Sunshine” playing in my head.  Never really thought of it as a Christmas carol, but maybe it should be?  The birth of Jesus WAS God sending His SONshine to light our way to peace.  Peace with man, peace with God.  We celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ because His peace is all about finding light in the darkness, the reconciling our sin filled heart with our Holy God.

This time of year, I find myself mindful that God’s peace does not mean the world is without troubles.  It does not promise us a lack of darkness.  God’s peace is the light to navigate the darkness and redemption from the eternal consequences of a dark/sin filled life.

Next time you get a chance to sing some Christmas songs, be sure to include a boisterous rendition of “You are My Sunshine”!

This is the second week of Advent.  Each week, four prior to Christmas, we pause in remembrance of the birth of our Savior.  In some households a candle will be lit for each of the advent themes.  This week we consider JOY.

I know “joy” is something in our souls that fills us even when our circumstances are challenging.   I have felt joy overflowing when life was favorable, but I have also known joy when things just were not going as I had planned or desired.  I think of Joy as being able to expect good things even in bad times.

Joy is that thing that buoys you up when something drags you down.  When things are hard, I take joy in knowing God will bring me through.  When I don’t understand why someone is hurting, I take joy in the knowledge that God is able to comfort when I can’t and He will be glorified.  When deep loss darkens my life, I rest in a quiet joy that God is still in control and He can and will ease the hurt.

I have also known what its like to misplace my joy.  I have felt heartache so deep I could not imagine joy.  I have battled anger with God, frustrated with His ways not aligning with my way.  I have allowed myself to dwell on the hard stuff and stubbornly ignore the things God was trying to show me.

If I am being honest, and I will be, I know exactly how I misplace my joy.   Sometimes I tuck God away and fail to spend time seeking Him.  It is all too easy to get distracted and miss out on all the evidence of Him in His creation.  When I stop reading His Word, my soul looses its thirst for Him. I depend on God for my joy.  It is not something I can make myself be, it is something God places in me. 

We are currently visiting the historic city of St. Augustine Fl.   While reading about the man for whom the city is named, I found a very interesting quotes from St. Augustine, a Christian Bishop and theologian.

He said, “Indeed, man wishes to be happy even when he so lives as to make happiness impossible”.

When I read it, for some reason my mind replaced “happy” with “joy” and in the first person

“Indeed, I wish to know joy, even when I live my life as to make joy impossible”   

I laughed out loud.  I had spent the day praying and thinking about this blog post, and there in a random snippet of local lore, I found myself humbled and challenged.  Am I making it possible to know joy?  I want to always have the joy of the Lord in my heart, the same joy the angels proclaimed when they announced the birth of Jesus.  Jesus is good news of great joy because even in our sin, God was providing a way for us to be free and forgiven. This is the joy that fills us even when life is hard.

On a different note…I think this is a good time to consider another one of St. Augustine’ quotes:

“Learn to dance, so when you get to heaven the angels will know what to do with you!”

Yep, time to untuck my God, chase after His Word and learn how to DANCE with His Joy in my heart.