Advent - Waiting for Christmas

 This week at Doug and Susie's house, I noticed their Nativity set on the dining room table.  Grace had set it up, all by herself.  At first I wondered about the placement of the figures.  But when I asked her why they were like this she said, "Well, they all want to see Jesus!  They are circled around him so that they can all get close to him! The angel wants to pray for him.  The kings want to be able to give him their gifts!"   I don't know if there is a better way to set up a Nativity!

Advent is such a wonderful time and it really is all about wanting to see Jesus and get closer to him.  Grace has the best idea.  I love that sometimes the kids understand the story better than we do.  

Grace had a really busy time last weekend.  First, Grace and I went to see "Elf, the Musical".  It was an extra special treat since Grace got to spend the night with me after the play.

Even though we got home way after Grace's bedtime, I had promised her an ice cream treat.  So, before bed she got her treat.

I got her home in the morning on Sunday.  Susie and Grace had tickets to another play that day!  Grace is one very blessed six year old that saw two live performances in one weekend.  Susie and Grace went to the Paramount Theater and saw Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  

Because Doug was out of town, I stayed with Jimmy.  It is always fun to see exactly what Jimmy will decide to play with.  On this day I took out the play dough.  He had extra fun when he discovered the scissors.

After that, he decided he wanted to play with his "computer" which is (wisely) kept on top of the refrigerator.  

At two and half he is still a bit rough with these electronic toys.  But he is getting the hang of using the pen that comes with this.  He mostly just wants to turn it off and on and put the pen in and out of the holder.  But to him, its great fun.  We ended the day, celebrating Susie's birthday (which is really in a week).  We had her favorite, Olive Garden, which is also a special treat for me!

I have had two different Christmas gatherings yesterday.  The first was with my prayer group.  I have been meeting with some of these ladies since 2013.  We have picked up a few new gals in the last years.  We don't live in the same town or go to the same church, but these friends represent so much prayer power! We are all different ages, single, married and widowed.  Kid's at home or grown and married.  Some of us have no grandchildren, some have several and one of us has 20 grandkids!  We are not the same in many ways, but we all love Jesus and know that prayer works.

We have supported each other through some very difficult times of sickness and death.  We have rejoiced with weddings of children, new grandbabies and new opportunities.  Our text prayer chain is long and detailed.  But we have seen some marvelous answers to prayer as well as powerful testimonies of God's provision.  Our times together, face to face have become less frequent than in the past.  But we have kept the strong connection that comes when you join together in prayer.  It was a wonderful time of catching up, hearing some amazing stories of family miracles and testimonies and also praying for each other.  

After this great breakfast with friends, I went immediately to an afternoon gathering of another amazing group of prayer loving friends.  I didn't think to snap a photo at this gathering, sadly.  On my way home I was singing along (loudly) to some radio Christmas carols and feeling so happy and so blessed.  I actually got stuck in a really long traffic jam caused by an accident and had a quite significant delay in getting home.  But it just didn't matter to me yesterday.  I  was drawing up close to Jesus, just like the figures in Grace's nativity, while singing about that very story.  Like so many things, it is all about your perspective.  

If you don't already, I would greatly encourage you to find an Advent devotional that will help you to see Jesus and get closer to him.  The carols and songs of Christmas are a great way to do this also.  Don't worry about whether or not your voice is "good".  Just turn that music up and sing your heart out.  You will be blessed!

Jesus, thank you for the messages we get from children.  Thank you for their pure hearts that "tell it like it is".  Give us all the courage to set aside time to focus on you, Jesus.  Thank you for time spent with our families and friends during this season.  Holy Spirit, remind us that our prayers matter.  Amen

My trip to the store today.....

So I followed through on my blog from yesterday.  Here is the Nativity set I got today for $9.00.  The box had been opened and the stable has a bit of a "ding" in the roof.  But I thought it looked just fine.  The figures are actually some kind of breakable material.....not sure what.  But they look very nice.  As an added bonus, something that you don't often see in "inexpensive" sets, the baby Jesus comes out of the manger!  I was very surprised when I saw that.  Now this set doesn't have an angel, a star or a camel, but all things considered, it is a pretty nice set!  I am quite pleased with it.  Sometimes you get the nicest things at the last minute.

I actually picked up this set at the Walmart.  I was there to do my regular grocery shopping and decided to check their Christmas aisle before I went anywhere else.  After adding this set to my cart, I continued on with the remainder of my shopping.  Something interesting that I have discovered in the last couple of months, Monday is not the best day to shop.  At least not at Walmart.  Many of their shelves are very picked over.  Even the cereal aisle looked like a pack of hungry wolves had descended on it.  Thankfully, I was able to complete my list and head to the check out lanes.  I stopped to look in the book section, and then this happened......  There was a young gal with a beautiful little baby boy in a car seat, nestled in a cart right next to my cart.  I couldn't help but stop and admire him.  He was clearly very "newborn".  When the mom noticed me looking at the baby, she smiled at me.  I guess it is the "grandma" thing.  I don't look very threatening and she must have noticed how seeing that baby sort of stopped me in my tracks.  When I could finally breathe, I smiled back and told her what a beautiful baby she had.  And then I walked away as quickly as I could.

Yes, this was one of those unexpected "waves" that just seems to catch me when I least expected it.  I know that when you go to Walmart you can expect to see anything.  And that includes babies.  That cute little baby just brought a flood of sorrow and missing into my heart.  But I was able to take some deep breathes and pull it together.  I went to the check out and completed my shopping trip.   When I got to the car, I realized how surprised I was at the emotion that hit me.  But, I am working on being gentle on myself.... not expecting things to just be okay.  And this was a time that I needed to remember that.

I blasted the Christmas Carols in the car on the way home.  And remembered that I had that new Nativity Set in my trunk.  Yes, changing the focus of my thoughts to Jesus, was certainly helpful. I was able to regain a large measure of peace before I pulled into my driveway.  If I have found out one thing since Lucas died, it is that there is no playbook for grief.  It is a personal and very difficult journey.  It is just a path that each person has to walk on their own.  I have been thinking about Psalm 23 lately...... "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.  He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters, he refreshes my soul.  He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake.  Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.  Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows.  Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."  Yes. this has been a really dark valley.  And I am so thankful that I can rest in the assurance that Jesus is with me.  And I love that he is guiding me along this path that I am on right now.  Just that assurance helps me remember that he is guiding my path....... even during this difficult time.

Jesus, thank you for this season and the time to celebrate your birth.  Holy Spirit, thank you for the reminder to focus on Psalm 23 and the truth that it contains.  Thank you for walking me THROUGH this dark valley and the reminder that I am not staying there.....I am walking through it.  Jesus, thank you for your great love and care that provides all that I need.  Thank you for the provision of this new Nativity set.  Amen

The powerful memory of a Nativity Set....

I have been feeling very scattered in the last weeks.  It is just another part of the grief process that has filled my life right now.  As you know, I decided to put up our Christmas tree, but it was a long and hard decision.  It was just a couple of days ago that I realized that when I told Ken that all I wanted from the attic was the tree and the ornament boxes, I would NOT have any of my many Nativity sets down from the attic!  I have not been able to get that out of my mind since that realization hit me.  

As a matter of fact (Ken doesn't know this yet....) I have planned to run out to Hobby Lobby tomorrow and purchase another Nativity set!  If you are wondering why we don't just go into the attic and retrieve one of the sets, well.... it is a really big deal to go into our attic!  Right now we have a car stored in the garage.  And that car would need to be moved out in order to access the attic.  It is not easy.  So, I just might have a NEW Nativity set this year!  Yes, that will make five I think!

All of this has reminded me of this Nativity set.  When we first purchased our house, several years before Gwen was born, we started collecting this set.  Our first purchase was Mary, Joseph and Jesus in the manger.  Over the next years we gradually added Shepherds and sheep, cows and donkey, and the wise men and camels.  Eventually Ken built a stable that could collapse and fit along the wall of the garage for storage.  We added an angel in the tree one year.  We also added a very large star.  Ken managed to fix that star onto a long pole which we suspended in our tree, over the manger. It was a very large display for our very small yard.  We didn't have to give our address to the pizza delivery people.  We just told them to find the house with the big nativity set on our street.  It was always a big deal to set this up and get everything to light up properly.  The kids were always a part of this set up.  We tried to find a warmer day in late November to put this up.  There was more than one year that the set got covered with snow and/or frozen to the ground.  When the kids got to be high school aged, and no longer interested in helping with this, we stopped putting it out.  After a couple of years, we donated the set, hoping it would be used once again.  By the time we did this,it was pretty beat up from going in and out of our attic. Just seeing this picture brings a smile to my face.  These are precious and good memories.

We actually had a small plastic set that had been Ken's when he was little.  I carefully preserved this set and made a stable from a box covered with fabric.  It was precious but not something that the kids could touch.  The figures were falling apart.  One of the best purchases I ever made was the year that I bought the rubber nativity sets.  The figures were designed to be used by children.  Each piece was less than twenty five cents each.  I got two full sets that included all the animals.  Gwen and Doug each had their own set and we used a shoe box for the stable.  Both of these sets ended up in their beds more than once.  It was so good to have a set that they could really play with.  I was never able to put these sets away.  They stayed out year around.

Yes, I needed this tonight.  There is some powerful healing in these memories. This memory has brought me peace.  There is something about this remembering exactly what Christmas is all about that calms all that is scattered in me.  I am glad that I didn't miss this.  I do need to get a new nativity set for my house.  It will keep my focus right where it needs to be.  On the amazing birth of Jesus so long ago.  I will be remembering the whole story and in that, I will be able to celebrate this Christmas.

Jesus, thank you for this special touch tonight and the reminder that your story is cause for great celebration.  Holy Spirit, thank you for peace that passes understanding.  Thank you for helping me find joy during this season that seems so filled with sorrow.  Thank you for the fact that I can just run out and get another Nativity set, not something everyone can do.  Jesus, break through the storm of commercialism that bombards us during these weeks.  And thank you for Christmas Carols that touch our hearts.  Amen