Tag Archives: christmas

Awake!!!

The past couple of Christmases I have been saying that I want to write a series on the Carols of Christmas. Some of the the lines I had never paid attention to, sung without the least bit of attention to their meaning, have become immeasurably powerful to me. After doing some research (meaning I googledContinueContinue reading “Awake!!!”

“Fa la la la-ing” Christmas

I have been listening to Christmas carols with a blog mindset this year. I actually can’t wait to share with you how my favorite lines from what I have heard with new ears this year comes from “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” But for today’s purposes, I want to take you to aContinueContinue reading ““Fa la la la-ing” Christmas”

P.O.P.D. (Perfect Ornament Placement Disorder)

P.O.P.D. In case you missed my social media post, these initials represent a very serious, potentially debilitating, often contagious, disease that effects thousands annually: Perfect Ornament Placement Disorder. Over the years, much of the extreme cases have been lessened due to an inordinate amount of people turning to pre-lit and permanently decorated (fake) trees. CouldContinueContinue reading “P.O.P.D. (Perfect Ornament Placement Disorder)”

A Thrill of Hope

Last month I did a book signing at Stepping Stones Bookstore in Iowa. The owner, my lovely new friend Mindy, let me take over the front of the store for the whole day and gave a lavish and gushingly grand testimony about my books to each and every customer (You can order from her storeContinueContinue reading “A Thrill of Hope”

Waiting for Christmas (to be over?)

We are in the Advent season. In this case, Advent is a religious term meaning “expectant waiting”, in case you have heard that term your whole life and are embarrassed to admit that you don’t know what that actually means. Specifically, it refers to the days of December leading up to Christmas. I love howContinueContinue reading “Waiting for Christmas (to be over?)”

Jesus’ “birthday month”

I have a dear friend whose husband celebrates (and semi-requires his family to celebrate) his birthday, not just on his special day, but all month long. “His birthday month starts today,” my friend will inform me. It’s a busy time for everyone involved. Even though other activities occur out of necessity during that month, thereContinueContinue reading “Jesus’ “birthday month””

“Goals”

At first glance, how I spent my day yesterday (bleeding over into today) might might appear like laziness or procrastination. And trust me, my skills are stellar in those two areas. In the past, I would have been all over this opportunity to get things in order and get back to regular life. Kill offContinueContinue reading ““Goals””

Let your light so shine

It’s that time of year again. Time to pull out my Thomas Kinkade, Painter of Light, Christmas Devotional (read my blog “Painter of light” from December 2015 to refresh your memory on his story). I have been reading this every year for about 25 years. Sometimes I lose steam after Christmas, and even though theContinueContinue reading “Let your light so shine”

Trash Talk

Our city has a pre-Christmas tradition. Since 1989 an event called the “Festival of Trees” takes place at the fairgrounds. Various local companies decorate (or hire someone to decorate) an artificial tree, and other companies purchase it for an exorbitant amounts of money which is then donated to a local hospital. There is always aContinueContinue reading “Trash Talk”

Painter of Light

I’ve been thinking about this for a couple of days now. Even now I am not sure what my take away will be by the time I finish. Maybe that will be up to you… I have a long history with Thomas Kincaid-“Painter of Light.” Remember him? At one point 1 in 20 American HomesContinueContinue reading “Painter of Light”