Christmas

This Little Light of Mine: How to Shine

Christmas. The season of lights and a season where my light easily dims. My workload for December is proving intense, and that’s just work. The pressures of the season are enough to snuff out the brightest of lights. My friend Pam quipped that men believe in Santa because they woke up Christmas morning and everything…
Read More

3 Ways to Make Room for Joy

“When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.” Matthew 2:10 NIV I love Matthew’s account of the Magi (please note they were not at the stable), but I’ve always found joy rather elusive.  It plays hide and seek with me. Ever feel that way? Could it be that joy was right there and I hadn’t…
Read More

The Secret to a Joy-Filled Christmas While Juggling Pinterest-Perfect Holiday Expectations

My friend, Pam, always said that men believed in Santa Claus because when they woke up Christmas morning, everything had already been done. They neglected to see the behind-the-scenes work: baking, cleaning, shopping, etc. Know the feeling? Joy bursts from the Christmas story like fireworks on the Fourth of July. When we still had kids…
Read More

A Christmas Quiz for You

It’s finals time. As my college student takes his finals, here’s a quiz to test your biblical Christmas knowledge: How did Mary and Joseph get to Bethlehem?a. Chariotb. Covered wagonc. Donkeyd. No one knows. Jesus was born in:a. The Bethlehem Innb. A stablec. A caved. A manger The angels told the shepherds to look for:a.…
Read More

I Believe

Something in the human heart desperately wants to believe.  We started watching Christmas movies as soon as the Thanksgiving leftovers hit the fridge. Miracle on 34th Street has long been one of our favorites.  I don’t analyze every movie we watch, but this year, things just jumped out at me. Miracle on 34th Street centers on the tension…
Read More

The Family Business

Son of David. A loaded phrase in Scripture. It came with ties to royalty, future promises of the Messiah, and an eternal kingdom. Consequently, genealogical records were carefully recorded. Genealogies typically read from father to son as seen in Matthew 1:1-17. However, in Matthew 1:20, when the angel appeared to Joseph in a dream, the…
Read More

What’s in a Name?

I’m big on names.  In biblical culture, name often represented character. Think of how many times you speak a child’s name over them. How could that not influence a child? With that in mind, I chose the names of our children carefully:  Benjamin (son of the right hand) Russell (his father’s name)  Richard (ruler, leader,…
Read More

The In-Between Days

It’s Advent time. Christmas trees primp and preen as they don their seasonal finery. Mistletoe dangles from the ceiling. Candles and poinsettias elbow one another for the most prominent display spot. Our homes glitter, glow, and gleam as we celebrate the Light of the world.  I love to spend time reflecting over the Christmas accounts…
Read More

Away in a Manger

Merry Christmas! Instead of the normal blog post, I wrote a Christmas story for your reading pleasure. Biblical scholars believe that, at the time of Jesus’ birth, caves or the lower level of a house often served as stables. I wrote this story from the innkeeper’s perspective of Luke 2. I hope you enjoy it!…
Read More

God’s Chessboard

“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.  (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  And everyone went to their own town to register.” (Luke 23:1-3 NIV) Rome. One of the world empires mentioned in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2:31-45.  Caesar…
Read More
Join Gayle

Subscribe to get my latest content by email.

We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at any time.

Something went wrong. Please check your entries and try again.

Recent Posts