- Merry Christmas 2009
- Enjoying ice inside while it’s 75 degrees outside
I pray that you had a blessed Christmas celebration as well.
May Christ Be All,
Kim
Archive for the ‘Christmas’ Category
The Avery’s Christmas in Pictures
Friday, December 25th, 2009Christmas Present
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
John 1:1-2
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows. When His mother Mary
had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together
she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 1:18
“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a Son,
and they shall call His name Immanuel,”
which translated means, “God with us.”
Matthew 1:23
“… and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. ”
Matthew 28:20
I can think of no greater gift to give you this year than the word “with.” It’s a common word. We use it unsparingly, every day, with hardly a thought to its rich spiritual implication. Read the verses above again, pausing to consider each “with.”
For those of us who have been pregnant, the term “with child” holds special meaning. We understand a completely different depth of “with” than those who have not shared that experience. We know the awareness of a separate life inside of us, growing, moving. We are filled with an incredible wonder at the creation of life, and of being chosen to share in it. We become very sensitive to every little change, every indication that there really is another life deep within us. And we become very intimately attached to it and identified with it – “with child” is different than “with” anything or anybody else.
Before time began, from the farthest recesses of eternity past, before anything or anyone had been created, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit shared the wonder and completeness of fellowship, being at once One and with and within each other. While we can never fully comprehend what that means, we do know it was (and is) by far the most intimate, most complete, most satisfying relationship possible.
In God’s astounding plan of redemption, He has chosen to include us in this “with” relationship. First, He chose to be with Mary, indwelling her in a very physical way, and through her to become “Immanuel, God with us.” He understood and identified with His creation in the most intimate way possible – God became man.
Because He chose to be “with us” in the flesh, we can be “with Him” in the Spirit. While we certainly do not become deity, in some mysterious fashion we are included now in the circle of fellowship He shares within Himself. We are in Him and He is in us.
This Christmas, whether you are with friends and family or not, know this: Immanuel, God with us, is the greatest gift of all. His present to you is His presence – with you for all time and eternity. May being with Him be your richest blessing. Merry Christmas!
Breathe of Heaven
Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009“Behold, a virgin shall be with a child, and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” (Isaiah 7:14)
During this Christmas season, I can only sit and worship as I consider the wonder of a God willing to become a man.
I hope this beautiful Amy Grant song combined with pictures from The Nativity will lead you into hushed worship as well.
Merry Christmas!
Christmas in the Midst of a Very Hard Year
Monday, December 21st, 2009It’s Been a Hard Year
It’s been a hard year at the Avery house. Amidst a myriad of blessings, sorrow has also crept in. Family members are unemployed, loved ones are ill, my migraines increase, and relief seems far away. And then as 2009 suddenly draws to a close, I look up and discover that unexpectedly Christmas is here.
So, I ponder as I am faced with a choice. Will I sit and rehearse the lingering pain? Like the grinch, will I stubbornly let it pass me all by?
Christmas, Already?
Typically, I love the holidays. The golden turkey rightly enthroned, vacuum-clogging tinsel covering the floor, gifts scattered artfully under the tree - I love it all. In fact, if you listen closely you can catch me humming, “Hark, the Herald…” twelve months out of twelve. Normally, Christmas is my favorite time of year.
But this year, life’s hardships put that all in doubt. Could it be that pastries and parties, tinsel and toys, Scripture and carols are only enjoyed in the sunshine of life?
So, as I pause and consider the questions I’ve asked, I am transported back to where it all began. Journal in hand, I decide to carve out a sacred space to consider the Christmas that began all Christmases, that very first one.
To Kim, With Love
That year, in a humble stable, there were a myriad of gifts artfully scattered under God’s tree. Incredibly, some even bore my name.
To: Kim, with love, From God.
Over the years, I’ve eagerly torn open many, discarded the manger-brown wrapping, and treasured each one.
God gives the best gifts, doesn’t He? They are the kind of gifts that keep on giving and giving. I’m reminded that in sorrow and in joy He always knows just what to do.
Suddenly, I realize Christmas is exactly what I need at the end of this 2009. So, the particular present I’ve decided to hug to myself through the rest of this shadowy year is that supreme gift, the gift of God, Emmanuel. God with us. God with Kim. Nothing could minister to me more.
God With Us
- When I wake up at 3:00 am, worries racing though my mind – He’s there.
- When I wake again, give in, and get up at 4:00 a.m. His smile lights my day.
- I read His Word; He speaks. It is good.
- As I work, His words of wisdom ring in my ear.
- As I persistently parent, He lights the way.
- As I seek to love, He flows through me.
- Then once again it’s dark, and I collapse in sleep. God joyously sings songs over me in the night.
- Time limps by until the clock once again reads 3:00 a.m. I hold my breath and discover that God is still there.
- Today, I will do it all again, but I am blissfully reminded that the “With-Us” God is always by my side.
Emmanuel – God with Kim. It’s the perfect gift.
Thank you, Jesus.
Merry Christmas to each and every one of you. May God’s presence be the joy of your life.
- FREE
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