Advent & Christmas Traditions Especially for Little Ones

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When I was a little girl, once in a while, my mama would read about some project in a magazine and then would try to make it for one of us. She did not sow, wasn’t handy with needles. Yet, I remember as a wee little girl, she hid in a little room at the back of our house for several nights. The end result was the Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls in the photo above. They have sat below our Christmas tree for as long as I can remember. And I mainly remember, “My mama must have loved me because she worked so hard on these fun dolls.” Some how I thought they were the guardians of our tree.

As a little girl, I would turn all the living room lights out and just sit in front of the tree marveling at the sparkle and beauty. My mama played a favorite Christmas album over and over again. How many hours I wiled away, I do not know, but it gave me scope and time be dream and imagine about fairy tales of my own making just from being there.

Truly one of the most wonderful parts of Christmas is that everything is magnified through the eyes of our children. Coming up with ideas of things that would delight them and then continuing those traditions every year brings much joy to all, and it is so wondrous to me now to be able to watch Sarah celebrate with Lilian and Samuel in her own home!

A friend asked me to write about the traditions we practiced when our children were little. There are so many that I would have to write pages to adequately describe them all. We did different things at different stages. However, the goal of Christmas traditions is not to do the most elaborate and difficult things, but to help my children love Jesus, revere Him, enjoy His story, to transport the beauty of Christmas deeply into their hearts.

Jesus was the creator of delight, food, celebration. When our children associate delight in our lives with a parallel love we celebrate for God, it naturally transfers that they learn to love the God of delight, beauty and fun. I tried to make things so familiar when they were quite young,  that when they would hear the familiar carols as adults, it would flood them with deep memories cherished even from the rocking chair of their mother.

Of course, it is the whole year that will make our children fall in love with Jesus if He is daily cherished in our home. "Look at the twinkling stars that Jesus put into the sky for our pleasure. Isn't He wonderful?"

"I am so glad that Jesus made grapes. I love to eat them."

"Isn't it wonderful that Jesus created us to love music so we could sing and dance?"

... and all in the midst of the other rhythms of life, When the Christmas season was at hand, we would always say, "Now we get to have the best birthday celebration of all! God came to earth as a little baby to help us, love us, and save us. And we get to celebrate His birthday and love Him more by telling His story and singing to Him."

We need to look at little children as Jesus did--they have innocent hearts, they freely love, they adore great stories, surprises, fun, and giggles--they want to be generous and give of themselves without self-consciousness. And so we approach the season with their sweet minds in consideration.

So many people are afraid to have “too much fun” or to be serious, yet, I found that the more we celebrated His wonder, adventurous creativity, love, the more my children were able to listen to the more serious parts of theology. The fuller picture of Christ was born in their hearts through all that was good, true, beautiful, pleasant to their little hungry hearts.

I started out by singing the carols each night to my babies as I nursed them, so they learned them from infancy. At two and a half, one night as I was singing "Away in the manger" to Joy (very verbal and articulate at an early age), she looked up and me and said, "Mama, isn't it amazing that the cows blew Jesus and he didn't even get mad?"

I said, "What do you mean?" She said, "The cattle were blowing the baby awake, but little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes."   She had engaged her little mind, seriously thinking about cattle blowing Jesus awake!

As the children multiplied and became a little older, we would put all in pajamas and have advent with them each night, singing a carol together, in the light of the candles of our advent wreath and then reading our advent verse before they climbed into bed. It is easy for others to hear of our traditions and imagine that somehow we had total cooperation, but of course our children wiggled or argued -- "You sat next to mama last night! It's my turn!" or "He keeps tickling my toe with his feet."

But somehow, it was the rhythm of keeping going and celebrating it the same way year by year that made it precious to the children. The expectation was that when the dark of night came, we would all cuddle up on the couch and sing and eat little snacks and read fun Christmas tales and have one more piece added to the adventure of the story of King Jesus.

One of my friends gave me this lovely idea. We would buy at least one new Christmas book a year. Her lovely idea was to wrap all of your Christmas books in tissue paper and put them into a basket, and after scripture reading for advent each night (or whenever you do it), the children take turns picking out one book to unwrap like a present and get to read that one together before going to bed. This also makes each book a treasure. If you want to make it easier, you can have an older children wrap up the book each night after it's been read so that it will be ready for the next year and then you won't have 24 books to wrap all at once!

What traditions do you enjoy with your little ones? (Big ones, too?)

Cherishing An Attitude of Christmas Joy

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Every year we come to the busy season of Christmas and wonder how to make it memorable and special to our children. We all feel the pressure to give the "perfect" gifts to our beloved ones, friends and family, becoming stressed and pushed and feeling a need to live up to expectations surrounding me in this materialistic culture. 

Covid has changed so much of our year that we don’t even know where to begin. With lockdown, stores are closed, Christmas fairs are cancelled, Christmas concerts will have to wait for another year. Yet, as I look back over our years with my now adult children, they don’t speak of all of the “sparkle” or the amazing presents. Instead they say, "We belonged to one another in our home. We celebrated life. We ate a lot of Christmas cookies and had endless movies, cups of tea and hikes. What a precious life we had together with all the love we needed.”



Long after each year's gifts have been forgotten, if we give to our loved ones a joyful, loving heart, we will have given them a gift that will be with them their whole lives. They will come to us again and again for the "Life" they need to feel, hear and be comforted by during every season.



First, we must have a heart that says, "I receive you into my life as a gift from God.” When we see our children as a gift, we will treat them with honor and grace and find a way to encourage every day--to intentionally give words of life and encouragement to those who so need to hear love.



Words like:

“I appreciate you. You are a gift of God's love to me; you are faithful, funny, fun, creative” (or whatever is the key need of the person God has strategically placed in your life!)

"I believe in you and know God is going to use you in a special way."

"I have made so many mistakes in my life, but God has forgiven me and given me grace. He has already forgiven you and wants you to know His love."

A joyful heart is one that plans surprises--lighting candles, putting on beautiful Christmas music, serving a cup of tea, hot chocolate or coffee even in the midst of a busy day, maybe even with a little treat--and says, "Let's make a memory together right now--you are special to me.”



It might lead you to bring a single rose to a friend or leave a love note on a pillow or in an email to a weary husband;  a call to a struggling friend; someone you appreciate; or a gift card to a far off child.



Perhaps your joyful heart might cause you to take time to play a game, giggle at stories, lie in bed with a toddler or teen late at night even when we are tempted to be weary and just want to go to sleep. We must still make a habit of stretching ourselves, to extend ourselves as purveyors of His joy and grace as He shows up and gives us strength.



A joyful heart says, “Where can I leave a spirit of Christ's fragrance today? Where can I dance the dance of life in the midst of darkness?”

May we cultivate joyful hearts this Christmas!

A Clarkson Christmas Movie (And A Giveaway!)

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Every Christmas season in the Clarkson house is filled with what seems like an endless amount of traditions. But one of the most memorable is one of the simplest. Christmas Movie Night, we have a list of our very favorites, everything from Miracle on 34th Street, to Muppet Christmas Carrol, to Prancer.

With tubs of popcorn and hot chocolate clasped in every hand, we gather in the basement, six (seven including Darcy our golden retriever) of us snuggled up on two couches, and press play. Even now with adult children there are as many giggles, funny remarks, and discussions as there ever were. These memories around favorite movies are treasures I hold so dearly. Which is why I’m so excited to announce Nathan (my out of the box, different, actor/filmmaker, third child) has made his own beautiful Christmas movie for you and your family to enjoy.

“Miracle on Highway 34” is a beautiful modern retelling of the nativity set in a small town diner and the characters that find themselves there on Christmas Eve during a snow storm. After such a chaotic and tumultuous year, Nathan is releasing a movie that offers a little bit of hope, love, warmth, and joy. Nathan wrote, produced, directed, and is acting opposite his wife Keelia in the film. He is hoping it will be a blessing to you and your family this year, something that perhaps you can make a memory around.

To celebrate the movie’s release we are doing a GIVEAWAY! We want to give your family a “movie night pack” complete with snacks, popcorn, and a free movie rental — on us! To enter simply take a picture of your family watching Miracle on Highway 34 (December 1-25) and tag Nathan Clarkson and Sally Clarkson on Instagram or Facebook!

You can watch Miracle on Highway 34 (starting December 1st) anywhere you rent or buy movies— Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, VUDU, TUBI, and more.

Watch the beautiful trailer for the film here!

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Thanksgiving Blessings to You!

Praise the Lord!

I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart, In the company of the upright and in the assembly.

Great are the works of the Lord; They are studied by all who delight in them.

Splendid and majestic is His work, And His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonders to be remembered; The Lord is gracious and compassionate.

He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever.

He has made known to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations.

The works of His hands are truth and justice;

All His precepts are sure. They are upheld forever and ever;

They are performed in truth and uprightness. He has sent redemption to His people;

He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;

A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever."

~Psalm 111

What a wonderful celebration Thanksgiving is! God is good and He is good to me. And He will always be good. As I turned my heart to praise Him in the dark hours of the early morning, my heart was deeply touched and so deeply grateful for His sustaining and loving presence.

Verse after verse flooded my heart.

He deserves all of our worship and thanksgiving.

He is working in and through all of us in this moment in history. He is bringing us closer to the time when He will cast satan away and rule as our righteous judge forever. He is preparing a place for us. He has promised never to leave us. He works all things together for His good to those who are called to Him. He loves us with an everlasting love. He hears our prayers and He even prays for us. He is with us, always, everywhere.

There are no details of my life that He is not above and in which He cannot help. Mine isn't to figure out all of the answers to my families' needs. Mine is to rest in Him; to adore Him as a child who cuddles against its mother. To sing to Him the songs and peace of my heart because I am in worthy hands.

As I ponder so many of these truths, I see His wonderful faithfulness through all the other busy years, so that I can say with David,

"I have been young and I have been old and I have never seen the righteous forsaken, or their seed begging for bread."

Even when I didn't know how things would turn out, He was at work, in faithfulness and love.

May we all bring a smile to God's face today, because of the appreciation in our hearts and on our lips and in our deeds for His faithfulness, righteousness, generosity and love. May God be praised in our land today and in our homes.

I pray you have the happiest of Thanksgivings!

Shaping Generations With Love and Beauty Matters! & Podcast

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"The joy-filled life is not found by diminishing my God-given responsibilities as a woman, wife, and mother, nor can I find joy merely by refusing to face the hard realities of life in a fallen world. There is a tension that God is asking me to acknowledge and accept ~ the tension between ideals and realities. True joy is found by living somewhere between the ideal life and daily realities. That is where Jesus meets me, where His Holy Spirit empowers, and where I learn how to live the Christian life with supernatural joy. To celebrate life is simply a choice." 

-Seasons of a Mother's Heart

As I reflect on past Thanksgivings, I remember the amazing corn dressing, the lovely table, pies galore, Jelled cranberry salad with cream cheese and pecans and everyone together. There were times it seemed so much work and I wondered, “Does any of this matter?”

I know now, that the grace of life art matters so much. We were made to be dimentional people. Our brains and souls long for color, beauty, the crafting of words and ideas, the discipline of conquering a classical piece of music on piano or a contemporary song on guitar. Our palate are made for deliciousness, our longings are for traditions, celebrations with our people in our place done in our way.

Stay fast, my friend. A legacy of pleasure and joy lived out in the sacred place of home is leaving a legacy that draws sweet ones to your ideals beyond your present comprehension.

Today, my friend, Jacqui and I wax strong about these areas and what our grown children have told us.

Cultivating Resilience: Going into our Days Strong & Podcast

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The afternoon sun sets early in Oxford this time of year. My little room where I work becomes totally dark just after 4 in the afternoon. I have taken to going on one last little walk about 3:45 just to get out of the house so that I am not too restless inside.

“Open, Please Come Inside” is a sign that caught my eye as I passed the church just down the street from where I live. St. Barnabas Church has been the place of worship for people in this parish neighborhood church since the 1869. Each day, the bell in the bell tower rings every quarter hour to remind us that we are welcome in its walls to find solace and beauty. When we arrived, a young man serving at the church, welcomed us into the neighborhood with a freshly baked loaf of bread and a bottle of wine. “I wanted you to know we welcome you into our neighborhood. Please feel free to come worship in our church any time you want.”

Quietly, I tiptoed inside the quietness, the golden ceiling shimmering in the light of the setting sun. No one else was in the sanctuary except me and God. Sitting a few minutes, breathing in the beauty and giving my heartfelt prayers to my Father, I found the quieting of my soul a comforting reality in the stillness and darkness of the closing of another day. Jesus sits above, reaching out. holding fast as he has through the decades when those in this neighborhood have needed Him. And that day, His love still reached out to me.

As I sat quietly, I wondered at the place that had been a refuge through wars, depression, destruction of the century and a half but had still retained its beauty, its solace, its promise to be there for the next decades of those who would seek God in the circumstances of their lives.

Resilience is the word that came to mind: Resilience:

The capacity to stay faithful, to recover, to restore quickly from difficulties, a quality of being tough.

And I realized that I wanted to be like this sacred home of faith, this sanctuary that held faith, to many throughout the years. Could my life and friendship become a home, a resting place for giving solace, strength, peace-filling assurance of His reality amidst the dark passages of life?

If we look at the combined stresses of the last few months, we are all having the choice to be valorous in resilience in rising above our circumstances or becoming victims to the dark season. Choosing to be resilient is an obedience, a work of a lifetime, a striving to move in the direction of faith and hope. But really, as a “moving toward my 70’s” woman, I have learned to cultivate this attribute over many years, many days where life required strength, to depend on God to carry me through by His Spirit. Practicing resilience means to pick up the pieces of my emotions and questions even more quickly than I used to as a result of growing stronger one step at a time for many years. Perspective and maturity are a whole life process, but the way we respond over and over again will build the legacy of our faith life. .

I have noticed that sometimes faith means choosing to be resilient, not living by feelings. Because I believe God is in my midst and above all the feelings of discouragement and distress, I want to please Him the most. So I get up, write encouragement, pray with my children and friends, seen to be of encouragement out of my love for Christ and my desire to please Him, not because I am some sort of extraverted optimist.

Many times, I have met so many who have lived through seasons of challenges from years gone by, have grown weary, they have not bounced back through the grace of God. What we practice, we grow stronger in, What we water will grow. Manyhave allowed the darkness of the world to wound them beyond repair. Cynicism, doubt, helplessness reflects their lives.

Yet, I do know of women I see holding fast to hope, choosing to model strength. Yet, a part of the integrity of our lives is that we can, by the Spirit’s strength, choose to walk in a manner worthy of Christ—to show in words, actions and choices that we indeed believe He is in still bringing His light, He is still manifesting His strength, He is still on target to redeem the world even when we do not know exactly what is going on, even when our expectations have been disappointed.

Today in the podcast, I have shared some of. my favorite verses that have spurred me on to being a woman who practices resilience as a way of faith. I hope it will encourage you.

Josh. 1:9

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

2 Tim. 1:7

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

Phil. 4:13 

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Isaiah 41:10

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Ephesians 6:10 

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

Romans 8: 37 

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Micah 7:8

Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.

Prov. 3: 5-6 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Though many of us cannot be with our families for Thanksgiving, and we are inside our homes with no where to go for reprieve, and we wish the tumult of the election would go away and that Covid would end, we pick up ourselves, we bring beauty to choose, light to darkness and we breath in the peace that He is with us.

May God grant you peace, encouragement, and hope and resilience today as you seek to be faithful in this time entrusted into our hands. I send my prayers and love for you all.

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Be Vigilant to Be A Keeper of Light, That Your Loved Ones May Believe in the Light

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I have the most wonderful wood windows with a tiny ledge in my small sitting room. The sun sets before 5 in the afternoon, and so I light candles to give people passing by a little “Hello, how are you. Here is some light to warm you.” The other day I met a neighbor and they said, “Are you the one who has candles burning for us? It makes me feel happy.”

They are lit during my quiet times in the morning as well, and while the darkness of night is still around. Each morning, my neighbor leaves his house and waves at me through my window.

As a little girl, I loved Christmas lights. I would walk out in the neighborhood with my little dachshund named “Happy” and breathe in the beautiful, colorful lights. We lived out in the country in a tiny little subdivision and everyone prided themselves in their lights. Some red, some blue, red and green, all colors, and all white. The lights left an impression in my little girl heart of magical-mystical possibilities, a world where fairy tales could come true, where hopes did not disappoint.

Created by God to be image driven human beings, since almost everything around us is perceived with our eyes, how important it is that we give our children images that live on in their hearts. When my children were small, we spoke of Jesus as the light coming into a dark world, but we also wanted them to have images that would live in their memory forever.

Each year at Shepherd’s meals, we turned off all the lights in the house and lit many candles. We told the story of the people who lived in darkness, have seen a great light. The magical effect We were made to be image keepers.

We can make a difference by creating images of beauty, purpose and life-giving. Children, especially, respond to these sacred common pictures left in the pathways of their minds and hearts. What could you do to create light-giving images in your home today?

Darkness seems to threaten so many sacred places in our times. Marriage is being attacked. Children are not valued. The battle rages. Yet, we have a conquerer, a warrior on our side, one who has already won victory. He is with us. We may champion alongside Him and sing His praises as we watch Him bring a rousing victory.

We are agents of His grace and light and have the privilege one time on this earth to sing and teach and tell of His ways and light until the victory dinner when we see Him face to face.

Just a prayer, a few verses and thoughts that spoke to me in my quiet time today:

Come swiftly, O Lord, to the dark moments when we are lost. Make us aware of Thy presence.

Strengthen us to resist the urges and pulls to deeper darkness. Stir us to move away from the dark moments of sinful selfishness, despair or worry toward the light of thy love, grace and forgiveness. Verses that my children discussed and memorized have spoken to them during their years so that the lights, the comfort has always spoken to their hearts when they needed it.

Come quickly, O Lord, as we call--or forget to call--and keep Thous close to us and keep us close to Thee this day and night and as far as the days and nights stretch before us, and we see you face to face, through Jesus Christ. Amen

James Kennedy, Holy Island

"If I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light will be night," Even the darkness is not dark to thee, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to thee." Psalm 139: 11-12

"I am the light of the world. In me is no darkness at all."

And the people who were living in darkness have seen a great light.

Let your light so shine amongst men that they may see my glory.

Jesus

May our lights show forth today and may we walk in the light of His counsel.

Peace and grace to you today.

A Personal Retreat for Our Wonderful Friends! Celebrate Advent With Sarah Clarkson

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Christmas has come at just the right time this year. What better time than now to think of the beautiful story of Mary, Joseph, the Angels, and Jesus. The angels singing, the shepherds in amazement and the humble precious life come to the world to bring a great light. The story always brings me a thrill when I enter into its splendor and grace. And even putting up greenery, candles and fairly lights, making time for celebration, even in a humble way, and sending loved ones gifts, takes us in the direction of remembering that life is more than this moment. There was another moment in time when the birth of a baby changed everything.

“Mama, do you like being sad or happy the best? I like it when you are happy!”

My dearest friend and daughter has such a perfectly timed surprise for all of us. I can’t wait to share about it today with all of you. Sarah has joined me to tell you all about what is ahead that I know itwill encourage your heart. Here is a message from her:

“Don’t we all yearn for life to be centered and beautiful, with space for peace every day? To find that peace and hush is a bit of a battle, especially these days. But Advent, with its light and calm is just around the corner, and friends, I am so glad.

If ever there was a dark year when we need the hope and yearning and in-breaking light of the Advent season, it's this one.

I've deeply wanted to do something special for Advent this year, so (drumroll please), I've decided to host a little Advent Retreat. Friends, I am so excited and you are so warmly invited!⠀

Join me for a space of poetry, reflection, quiet prayer and deep wonder as we enter the Advent season in this wild and wondrous pandemic year.
I'll be reflecting on four Advent themes; yearning, annunciation, preparation, and joy. Through poetry, story, and originally-composed Advent blessings, I'll consider how we can enter the hush and holiness of this season, allowing it to transform and renew even our most ordinary of moments.
In addition to the actual event, all participants will receive a booklet with Scripture, prayers, quotes, and guided questions for further reflection, a resource to bring beauty and calm when you have a moment of quiet.
It's been a dark year, friends, but join me in setting aside time to welcome the light that is always breaking into our darkness!”

You can find everything about the retreat on the event page HERE. I will also be doing my annual daily Instagram reading of an Advent poem, starting with the first day of Advent, so I would love for you to join me for that as well. You can find me on Instagram @sarahwanders, and always at my website (where you can sign up for my newsletter) at sarahclarkson.com.

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The Story of a Rose: Becoming Light in a Dark Time, Longing Satisfied

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Every morning, I have a time reading my Bible, or a spiritual book while sipping my tea and trying to wake up my sleepy self. Next, sometime while still morning, I have the habit of taking a walk to try to get in some of my 10,000 steps. Lately, I have tried to focus on praying for myself, my family, my friends, the world issues that are going crazy.

A couple of days ago, as I rounded the corner, I noticed that everything was sort of dying all around me—dry leaves, squished by the walkers and the rain have made for a dirty mess here and there. It actually symbolized to me the state of the world lately—the dark times, Covid, political argument and division. The trees in our area are barren as all the beauitiul leaves have fallen to the ground.

But there in the middle of everything was a bright pink rose blooming its heart out. I was thinking that this dark time is when this little rose was made to bloom, to remind that the creator is still at work, giving beauty in the midst of ugliness, light in the midst of darkness. It was such a picture (as you can see in my photo.) I thought this was a picture of what we might be created to be—the ones who bring beauty of His life and love to a dark world of confusion, hate and division. We might bring light to darkness through wisdom, patience, trust in such a way that others will look beyond the present circumstances to Him. Let us become light in a dark time.

But I also shared with you today a quote I have been pondering from Ernest Hemingway. I hope you will enjoy it, as it seemed to touch a deep place in my own heart. If you ever feel different than those around you, a misfit of sorts in this world, I have felt the same. And I loved this:

Ernest Hemingway: The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice. Ironically their virtues make them vulnerable: they are often wounded, sometimes destroyed.

Our idealism does make us vulnerable. May God give us grace to not be destroyed in the flow of darkness right now but help us to be light givers.

And then, I did speak of hunger today—spiritual hunger. The place deep inside where we long for more, want the holy, transcendent, infinite God for our God—not some ordinary, measurable doctrine about works. I was watching a particular episode in the Crown called Moon Dust and it hit this chord in me. Of course we all know the quote that C.S. Lewis said that hits on this very subject:

If we find in ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.

And finally we see it in the psalmist, that same hunger for more. This hunger will actually lead us to God himself.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. Psalm 42: 1a

So, you will have to listen to the podcast to see all of my thoughts. I hope you will be encouraged by my rose and by the podcast. God be with each of you precious ones this week.

God sends his love to you.

More Resources:

FOR MORE

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  • Leave an iTunes Review These are so important as they help our podcast reach more women with messages of encouragement.

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  • Share with others. My prayer is that this podcast brings encouragement to women and families, and I would be honored for you to tell others about it.

  • Join my friends and me in membership at Life with Sally, a place for me to share more teaching from the Bible and messages on education, motherhood, discipleship, and more!

One of the Family: A place to belong

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Clarksons belong to one another. Differing in personality, quirky, loud, opinionated, much more, but we are one another’s tribe and we know we have a people we belong to. Through the years, as we were living day to day, I didn’t know how much we were building close bonds, but now, I see that through all the years of intentional living, we were becoming each other’s community. (And yes, Clay, Sarah, Thomas and my grandkids are missing but they couldn’t come because of Covid.)

I remember one of the first times I realized how much we all meant to one another.

A crisp fall evening, with blazing sunset of reds, pinks, corals shouting for attention out our back deck found us taking a moment to admire. As we were sitting in peace, the front door opened and my 26 year old, Joel, strode in with weary face and exhausted body.

"I just decided to come home after working all last night and today, because I need "us" to give me some rest and peace.”

Dinner still a half-hour away, I quickly cut some savory cheese and mounted some crisp whole grain crackers on a plate and poured a bubbly drink in a glass and gave him my offering, "Just a little something to hold you over till dinner is ready."

The furrowed brow softened and he said, "This is why I came home--I knew you all would fill me back up and I wanted peace and quiet for at least one night."

One of the best powers of home is the life that comes from within that gives comfort, a "place to belong" and a place that soothes the soul, inspires the mind, and gives a moral compass through all the twists and turns of life.

I asked my boys last year why they both idealized the thought of coming home. Both said, "It was the hot meals we shared every night. The welcome of our dining table. The cups of tea and books read and all that went into making our home place the best place to be, the one place that always said, no matter what, you are welcome!"

Often when we think of having company over, we think of cleaning our home, cooking great meals, decorating, putting forth our best.

Yet, when I pondered Jesus, I realized, he prepared a garden for his children when they were first created--one of beauty, color, endless choices for food, a palette of delight to enjoy in all that His artist hand could create.

Before he would give his last heart-felt words to his disciples, he had chosen a home with an upper room, he had sent a servant to prepare it and to prepare food, so that his words given would fall in the atmosphere and beauty of a prepared place. And I have to think that the God who prepared a garden of such beauty at the beginning, had also put thought into preparing the place of the last supper with the eye of comfort, beauty, hospitality.

He, the one who is still going to prepare a place for us in eternity--that there will be many mansions where we will dwell with Him.

Home is one of the things that many in our world have not valued, and so there is no prepared place.

It is in giving rhythms of home, meals, tea times, convalescent food (soups, crackers, ginger-ale), birthday fare; favorite Sunday night snack dinners; Saturday night pizza and movie nights; Shepherd's meal on Christmas Eve; candle light evenings with soft music.

The giving of hospitality to our beloved children is an art that will truly reach their souls and give them a reason to believe in the God of love and holiness. When body needs and emotional needs and minds are filled with nobility and inspiration, then souls are predisposed to want to follow the God who is revered in all of these rituals.

It is not the indoctrination of theology forced down daily that crafts a soul that believes, it is the serving and loving and giving and celebration of God’s art and love, creation and truth, that surrounds the messages where souls are reached.

A truth, without love and grace, is a truth that is rejected,

because Jesus' words without Jesus becoming the servant king who washed feet and fed thousands and took children into His arms,

would not be God incarnated.