Christmas Time is Here

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. I love the food, presents, time spent with family, music, movies, and so much more. Christmas music is all around. It’s on the radio, playing in the stores, and sung by carolers. What I love about this, besides the festive feeling that it brings, is that Christmas music is about Christ! Seriously, when else can you go to Walmart and hear praises to God being played over the loud speaker? It’s true that some of these songs are not very realistic. Do you really think that Baby Jesus didn’t cry, like it says in Away in a Manger? Or, with all of those people that were in Bethlehem, do you think that it was quiet and still, as it says in O Little Town of Bethlehem? Probably not. However there are some great truths that can be found in these songs.
Two songs that I have found a new love for this Christmas simply share not only about Christ’s birth, but also what it means to us.
The first song is Good Christian Men Rejoice. The first verse speaks of Christ’s birth, but I love the last verse.

Good Christian men, rejoice
With heart and soul and voice;
Now ye need not fear the grave;
Jesus Christ was born to save!
Calls you one and calls you all
To gain his everlasting hall.
Christ was born to save!
Christ was born to save!

Praise the Lord, that we don’t need to fear the grave and death anymore, for Christ was born to save!

The other Christmas song that I love is God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. For some reason, I don’t hear this song very often, but as an instrumental version of it was playing in the car the other day, I was singing along in my head. This is when I actually realized what the song said.

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy,Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

Since Jesus came into the world, we are rescued from Satan’s power. He cannot beat us when Christ is on our side. What comfort and joy this should bring to us! So, as you are out and about this Christmas, listen to the music around you. Listen to the words of many of those great Christmas carols. Praise God, for He came as a baby, not to stay a baby, but to die for you and me. He came that we might be saved. That’s what Christmas is about.

Just a Note

Seeing as I have had two different missions sites, I have combined my Romania and El Salvador posts at

http://girl4god.wordpress.com/

I'll still be posting here, but this makes it easier for me to combine information about my two trips.

A Truth

Life is hard, that's true. It's just as true that God is still God no matter what. In that truth, rejoice!

Love

I hurt. Yep, today I hurt, because I love. I mean I don't only love today, but today is a day that I hurt more than usual.

I hurt for the people sitting beside me that don't love my Jesus. I just want them to know Him, and to love Him.

I hurt for my Christian brothers and sisters who say they love Jesus, but refuse to completely surrender their lives to Him, to know Him more, and to love Him more.

I hurt, because I love.

Today's verse for the day - Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 1 John 4:8

Thank You, God, for the hurt, that comes from the love that I have, that comes from knowing You.

This is Me

On my gallivanting around the World Wide Web, one of my favorite stopping off points is the "NASA Photo of the Day" website. http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html





Today I clicked on one of the pictures, and this is what I saw.

It was an interesting picture of a lighthouse shining in the foggy night. When I saw it, these three words came to mind, "This is me."

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. - Matthew 5:14

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. - Matthew 5:16

I am a light to the world. Am I shining for Him?