I took the chariot in for some maintenance. It is a pain to be without my vehicle. It contains all of my stuff and the radio is tuned to my favorite stations. But, yesterday dropping off the Explorer was a joy!!

First, the dealership offered me a loaner car at no expense. SCORE!

Then, I went into the waiting room and there was a great friend, also waiting for service to be completed on her car. We hugged and chatted and caught up. YAY!

A little while later, I was taken to the rental car place and told that I would need to wait for a car to be ready. Before I could begin to whine, I looked up and there was another friend. We laughed and talked; soon he was on his way and I sat thinking about his amazing family. FANTASTIC!

It is amazing how God puts people into our paths. “What people?” some will ask.

• Well, I have gotten to know the nice, Salvation Army bell ringer who is working at my favorite Wal-Mart. She seems to enjoy recognizing me and I like having someone smile at me when I walk up to the door. She is such a blessing.
• The folks at the Goodwill drop off center and I have gotten to be quite chummy. They never seem to mind that some of the clothes I drop off are YEARS out of date. They smile and chat and offer a receipt to me. I am always encouraged as I wonder how far each of them have come.
• That sweet gal at Tom Thumb and I know each other well enough that she automatically gives me a bag for my “banana trash” when I buy a banana (or two). She is delightful and has made the Tom Thumb seem warmer and more fun than ever before.
• Today, I got to know my latest friend better. She is two. We “chatted” and smiled at each other. She is pure joy!

As the days until Christmas get shorter, may our smiles be wider.

As the New Year approaches, may the time we spend encouraging others be longer than the time we spend worrying about our problems.

As each hour passes, may we not be able to count the number of people who are blessed by our presence.

Last, like the prayer of Jabez of the Old Testament, may our territories, our impact on this world, be increased.

“Jabez prayed to the God of Israel: “Bless me, O bless me! Give me land, large tracts of land. And provide your personal protection—don’t let evil hurt me.” God gave him what he asked.”  (I Chronicles 4:10)

Love,

Jill (just one of God’s kids)

IT is not always my friend. Actually, we have had a like/hate relationship for years. So, it should astound you that I put together the visual displays for our church’s choir Christmas program. We have moving words, video clips, and dramatic graphics. It’s all pretty cool, that is, if it works!

(Shameless plug: We are doing amazing music this Sunday, December 13^th, 10:30am, Pensacola First Church of the Nazarene, 3475 Pine Forest Drive, Pensacola, FL. Come and you will see fantastic visual displays – assuming the IT system works. And, other than one song during which I have a solo, the music will be fantastic!! Come, join us and remind me of my promise and you will get a free shameless plug on a subject of your choice in a future “gather together” blog.)

What I did was pretty easy. The sound folks, the director, the guy who has to make my mish-mash of videos and picture work: they are all doing the hard jobs.

Will you be attending a Christmas event this year? Have you thought about who might be “behind the scenes?” How about:

• The flowers that look amazing. I’ll bet that a florist somewhere is looking forward to soaking achy feet.
• The live animals at the nativity play. Somebody had the fun job of “donkey wrangler.”
• The candles at the candle light service. Who put all of those paper rings around the candles? And, who will be picking wax out of the carpet after the service is over?
• The sound system. It isn’t easy to get four-year olds to sound good.
• The cookies at the hotel desk. Such a welcome treat.
• The paper plates and napkins at the potluck. Run short and everyone notices how well that job was done.
• The streamers and noise makers at the party. How do they appear at just the right time?

Get the picture? While enjoying the sparkle and beautiful music, look for the folks with the not so perfect hair and the sensible shoes. Tell them “Merry Christmas” from me. And, tell them that what they did made your Christmas season sweeter.

“I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus.” (I Corinthians 1:4)

At church this morning we sang the wonderful Christmas carol, “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing.” What a great song!!

(I know! There are many kids wondering why God would name any angel “Hark.” But, that’s not what I want to talk about tonight.)

The poem was written by Charles Wesley. And, he got the song totally wrong.

Remember the lyrics? The song is about the angels announcing the arrival of the Messiah. And, the lyrics include amazing lines: “Joyful all ye nations rise,” and “Christ by highest heaven adored,” and “Jesus our Immanuel,” and “Glory to the newborn King.”

Inspiring words. Beautiful words of praise.

To accompany those memorable lyrics, Charles selected a tune that was slow in tempo and somber in tone. The happy and joyful tune that we know (written by Felix Mendelssohn) wasn’t linked to the lyrics until nearly 100 years later.  Charles’ tune just didn’t work and 100 years later someone fixed his error.

Just like Charles: sometimes we know exactly what we want to communicate, but our delivery method is poor. And, our message gets lost in the middle.

For instance:

• Telling a friend that we care for her and then questioning her choice of a lunch entre negates the compliment.
• Saying that we want to spend more time together as a family is hard to believe because we “zoned out” the rest of the evening reading email.
• Sharing that we are cutting back on Christmas expenses to save money as we type out the message on our new cell phone makes others question our sincerity.

On the other hand, Charles Wesley didn’t intend to have his joyful song slow and sober; he just made a bad choice.  Like him, perhaps our good and loving messages get lost because we don’t do well communicating them.

This is when relationships matter.

We are so forgiving when a child cannot say the right words in the right order. When she was little, one of our dear granddaughters would pray, “Thank you, Lord, for all of the things You give us and for all of the things You do to us.” We would smile to each other as we thought about what God might really do to us if He did as we deserved! She was so sincere and we loved her; we never said a word because we knew her heart.

Maybe we can believe that those who love us will hear our hearts instead of just our words.

And, maybe we will be better listeners this year, too.

Love,

Jill (just one of God’s kids)

“Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans.” (Romans 8:26, The Message)

Last night John and I enjoyed a wonderful concert of Christmas music performed by students from Pensacola Christian Academy. We have a friend who was playing in the concert and we enjoyed seeing her. It was a fun evening.

We just happened to get seats right next to the side stage that was filled with harps. Other than a life-long love of music, I know nothing about how students play the harp. Before last night, I would have told you that most harp music is “strumming” of the strings. You know what I mean, “heavenly music” kind of sounds. But, the songs played by the harps last night had very little “strumming”; instead, most of the playing involved “plucking” the strings.

The music was beautiful and the students were fun to watch. They worked hard. Beginning students played parts with much less complexity than did the students who seemed to have more experience. I enjoyed it all!

It got me to thinking about why we connect harps with angels. I have seen many Hallmark Christmas cards with beautiful angels in the heavens, announcing the arrival of the Messiah to the shepherds. A few of those cards show both singing angels (making the official announcement) and harp-playing angels (keeping the singers on key). But, perhaps even Hallmark doesn’t have it exactly right.

It is true that the harp is mentioned many times in the Bible. David, the mighty warrior who killed wild beasts, played the harp. So, harp playing isn’t just for girls wearing flowing gowns. Most lists of musical instruments in the Bible include the harp. In the book of The Revelation (the last book in the Bible), the writer tells us that the harp will be played (with other instruments) when all of heaven celebrates the complete destruction of evil.

Maybe the kids who are studying the harp have a leg up on the rest of us.

On the other hand, there have to be other tasks involved in planning and conducting the greatest heavenly celebration of all. Assuming I continue on my path of following God and getting to heaven, I’ll be happy with any job.  Maybe I can set up the chairs for the harp players or hand out programs or work in the concession stand selling “angel food” cake.  (sorry!)

At the arrival of the Messiah, the heralding angels (playing harps or not) had a pretty glorious job. It looks pretty good.  But, to be honest, I think I would have preferred to be a shepherd who got to join Mary and Joseph at the stable.  They got closer to the Messiah.  Sometimes the “glamor” jobs aren’t the best ones.

• Perhaps this Christmas I’ll get to do the dishes and hear the funny kitchen conversations.
• Or, maybe I will be blessed to take out the trash and see the cold and clear winter night sky.
• Or, perhaps every piece of pie will be gone by the time I get to the table and I can save those calories for Christmas cookies the next day.
• Or, maybe I will refuse to be interested in the jobs assigned to me.  Instead, I will purpose in my heart to be content with doing whatever job God puts in front of me.  I’ll just watch for His presence and blessings.

Love,

Jill (just one of God’s kids)

^“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 that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, 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 heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” (Luke 2:8-15)

It has gotten chilly in northwest Florida. I know, our worst winter days are so much warmer than those of the more northern sections of our nation. We don’t get the winds that cross the plains of Kansas, the snow that Illinois sees, or the ice that our friends in Maryland find on their windshields. But, we do get chilly.

When the temperatures drops, we find ourselves pulling out sweaters and boots and blankets that have been pushed to the back of the closet. We wrap scarfs around our necks and put on heavier socks.

And, I rediscover hot tea. I love to brew a cup of tea and hold it in my hands, warming up each finger.  As I drink the hot liquid, I begin to warm up from the inside.

Being warm is a wonderful gift.

But, staying warm is tough. Finish the cup of tea. Step out of the warm house. Take off the gloves. And, suddenly, the warmth begins to be replaced with cold. It can happen quickly. We humans have little in ourselves to stave off cold. When we are unable to restore warmth, cold overwhelms us. And, cold results in stiffness in our joints and lessens our ability to focus mentally. Allow it to grow unchecked and cold causes pain, our hands and feet lose feeling.

That happens in relationships too. Remove the warmth of contact and communication and our relationships with others grow cold and stiff and stilted and painful. Allow the cold to grow unchecked and we lose touch entirely.

This holiday season is a perfect excuse to rewarm relationships.

• Start a new conversation.
• Engage others.
• Replace the chill of “acquaintance” with the warmth of “friend.”
• Make a phone date with that Facebook friend.
• Drink hot cocoa with a coworker.
• Eat the cookies right out of the oven with the kids.

Take the time to rekindle warmth in your relationships.  It feels so good!!

Don’t wait.  Do it now.  Send the email.  Make the call.  Set the date.

“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:16)

I will never forget that December night many years ago when we celebrated the first birthday of a friend’s daughter. The child’s Dad had to work that night and Mom found herself with no family nearby to share cake and joy. And so, several Mullins family members gathered at my house and we had dinner and a cake with candles. It was sweet and dear and fun.

The others had left and the dishes were done when my girlfriend and I saw down to watch her daughter enjoy the presents. We had just gotten our mugs of tea when there was a loud bang and the lights went out.

We weren’t in total darkness, there were stars outside lighting the snow on the yard. And, we weren’t cold. The gas heater was still working fine. I pulled out some flashlights and we got comfortable on the couch, not knowing how long we would be in the dark.

The child was immediately drawn to the flashlights and we gave her one to use as a toy. Mom was a little worried when her little one would hold the flashlight against her face, shining the light directly into her eyes. It wasn’t long before we were able to distract her by using our flashlights to make the tinsel on the Christmas tree shine. The tree looked different now. No colored lights. No blinking strings of bulbs. Only the light from our flashlights danced and lighted the tree.

Soon the power came back on and my friend and her daughter bundled up and headed home. I put our tea mugs into the sink and headed back into the living room. And, then I did the silliest thing, I turned off the lamps and unplugged the tree. I grabbed my flashlight and settled back on the couch. That night, that single light was so beautiful, it touched my heart.

• We may not have blood relatives nearby, but God provides family.
• We may not have exciting and expensive entertainment, but God gives us joy in the simple.
• We may not have colored bulbs that blink and shine, but God provides light.

Look around you. God is near.

Love,

Jill (just one of God’s kids)

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’” (Matthew 2:1-2)

I saw an ad for an updated movie of “The Jungle Book.” I have never read the book nor seen any of the movies. But, I had an album (that’s a little like a CD for those of you born in the modern era!) of the 1967 movie.

It’s a little odd to have a recording of songs from a movie that you have never seen. But, the album was a Christmas gift from my older brother. And, I really only listened to one song from the track. Can you guess what that song was?

I’m not sure how it started. I must have heard the chorus and started singing it around the house. However it started, it resulted in me opening the album on Christmas morning. Since then, I have smiled whenever I have heard the song. But, I never learned the lyrics of the song and I don’t even know what the song is about. It wasn’t until today that I learned the entire name of the song – “I Wan’na Be Like You – The Monkey Song.”

Do you remember the chorus?

“Ooh-bi-doo, I wan’na be like you. I want to walk like you, talk like you, too. You see it’s true, an ape like me. Can learn to be like you, too.”

Here’s the crazy thing. Until just a few minutes ago, I would have told you that the words of the chorus were: “Ooh, I wan’na be like you. Walk like you, talk like you. I wan’na be like you.”

Are you surprised? You shouldn’t be. I have always admired (and copied) my four siblings. While growing up, I wanted to be like my older brother, my older sister, my younger sister and my younger brother. And, that song captured my attention because I did (and still do!) “wan’na be like” them. They are amazing people.

I doubt that my older brother (or anyone else) understood how much those silly words described what was in my heart.

The morale of today’s little story? Someone wants to be like you!! You might be surprised the impact you are having on the lives of others. Stand up straight. Watch your words. Keep the faith. There are little eyes watching and adoring you!

“…let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16b)

When I was working for pay (compared to now when I work more hours than ever and don’t get paid), the Friday after Thanksgiving was my “clean the office” day. I know that those who worked closely with me hated the Monday that followed. There were so many projects that I had finally completed or documents with questions that my out-box was insufficient; several cardboard boxes were required to contain all of the outgoing items.

So on this Friday after Thanksgiving, when I have no office, I found myself going to the various files of my email and purging items that were no longer necessary. Often, the subject line did not provide enough information for me to push the “delete” key and I ended up reading the email trail. As I read email after email, I was reminded how much had been done this year, how many blessings had been received and how many challenges had been completed. It was an astounding year.

• Prayer requests made one week had been answered the week following.
• He lived his first year here on earth; something that we were not sure would happen last year at this time.
• She is committed to church in spite of pressures for her to give up.
• He is employed.
• She is on a new medication that is helping her with those roller coaster emotions.
• They are still together.
• He is alone and making it.
• Her heart surgery was a success.
• They are doing OK in spite of under employment and financial hardships.
• He got his license to go into a new career.
• We lost her, but the family is making it day by day.
• Bills were paid.

Before New Year’s Eve, take a minute and consider what 2015 brought your way. If you are like me, you will find yourself writing some emails of encouragement and notes of condolence.  And you may even find yourself singing songs of praise.

We are not promised tomorrow, but we have today, this moment.  Last year at this time, I would never have imagined being where I am today.  And, my emails tell a tale that makes me marvel.

Clean out your old files, you may find a pattern of blessings that you have not yet noticed.

Love,

Jill (just one of God’s kids)

“As for you, my brothers, never tire of doing what is right.”  I Thessalonians 3:13

It struck me that we had never had the “Elf on the Shelf” when we were kids. Here’s why – the “tradition” comes from a 2005 book written by written and self-published by Carol Aebersold and her daughter Chanda Bell and illustrated by Coë Steinwart.  In 2011, an animated television special spread the story even more.  This “tradition” is only 10 years old – a little past my “little kid” years.

Here’s how it works:  parents hide the little elf doll in different places in the house (usually in plain sight) between Thanksgiving and Christmas so that the elf can gather information for Santa to use in making gift decisions. Some “experts” have denounced the tradition, claiming that it might harm children emotionally if they are concerned that the elf is a “spy” or feel threatened by the elf’s presence. I think that most parents and kids find the elf fun.

For many of us, the elf on the shelf has been the subject of humorous and silly pictures. (I’ll not address those that are inappropriate!) My favorite such picture this year was the elf having a sack race with stuffed animals and cartoon characters. How fun! How cute!!

I’m not sure that when I was young I would have believed that the elf on the shelf had any influence on my Christmas gifts. I have an older brother and sister who could have convinced me that it was the truth or could have told me that the stuffed toy was a sham. Kids believe the funniest things.

I loved the Facebook post from my friend, Hayley Gurney. Here’s what she wrote: “Tonight we’re going to be eating elk burgers and I just pinched off a little piece to let Hoyt try. He said, ‘yum that’s good, but I do feel bad we’re eating an elf.’”  Absolutely hilarious!!  I would feel bad eating an elf too. But, if it was the Elf on the Shelf who had ratted me out…well, that’s something different.

The story from Hayley reminded me of the story of my sister and mincemeat pie. A typical mincemeat pie includes apples, raisins, and meat. (No surprise that pumpkin and apple pies are favored over mincemeat during the holidays!!) Anyway, my sister explained to my Mom one year that she didn’t care for any of that kind of pie this year; she just didn’t like the idea of eating mouse meat! In her mind, mincemeat had become mouse meat.

Eating an elf. Your grandma serve you a piece of pie made of mice. Believing that a stuffed doll is going to report on your behavior to Santa.

Worried about having a boring holiday? No problem – Just hang out with some kids – your life will get more interesting in just a little while!!

Don’t you see that children are God’s best gift? (Psalm 127:3a)