A Dove Visits Church Sunday Morning

 Sunday  morning as we were sitting waiting for the pastor to arrive with the bus,

we noticed a dove arriving on a branch outside the church window.

With doves being symbols of peace, I couldn't help taking a picture.

It was a beautiful service, with Christmas carols, testimonies of answers to prayer, 

special singing and a good message by Pastor Christian.

The day before, the children and I had gone to practice several Christmas songs at Rose's mountain dulcimer teacher's house. Her teacher is planning to join us Wednesday afternoon to play some Christmas songs for an assisted living home where our friend Bonnie Lacy lives.

Then when the pastor's wife texted later that evening, asking if the children could bring a song, we had practiced all over again, putting a couple short songs together in a medley called

"The Sounds of Christmas."

The children tuning up at church.

Playing "Angels We Have Heard on High" together with "Do You See What I See?"

The children have been coming along with their instruments.

Christmas morning service was a time of peace--leaving behind the week days full of work--

school, taking care of animals, cleaning up the garage, sorting tools and nails and screws.

(Danny below is sorting all sorts of nuts and washers and screws.

A day just to come into the presence of the Christ of Christmas and feast on Him,

just like the geese just down the road from the church were feasting on leftover corn in the field on the far side of the road.

On that side was a corn field.

On the other side was the city suburb of Federal Heights.

A suburb where, just last week, Pastor Christian himself heard the shots after a criminal led the police on a chase through the church's neighborhood, ending up just a couple blocks away.

The man's car caused a crash with two other vehicles, and when the man pulled a knife on the police, they had to shoot.

Pastor heard the shots. 

Just down the street from church.

But this was Sunday now, and the Dove of Peace was finding a resting place in our hearts.

Sam's Birthday

This December, Sam turned 22 years old.

Usually we have a hard time figuring out gifts, but this year he actually had a list to help us out!

One gift was dog treats for his dog!

Siblings gather to admire.

The rest of us watching the gift opening ceremony.

I think this is him opening gifts from Grandma Morley--books!

A new Bible

Christmas Angels Watching Over Us!

This year we chose to go to the mountains for a Christmas tree on Thursday instead of on Saturday, to try to avoid the hundreds of people that were up there last year on Saturday.

It was a good choice!

Jonathan had purchased permits for two trees, one for a Christmas tree, and one for a long tree for a project. The tree may be no more than six inches across. 

Sunrise that morning.

Starting off on the search for the best tree possible.

I love the hiking through the mountain woods and the family time that is so fun. 

In a world of stress and work and struggle, taking time for family fun pays rich dividends.

Decorating the axe handle!

 Each one has a different idea about what kind of tree, and we fan out all over the place, but after a while (we couldn't possibly cut down the first tree we find because that would ruin most of the fun)

we settle on a tree. Jonathan wants a big, tall one, I wanted a smaller one. Rose wanted a "fluffier" one. We ended up with a tree we just loved, plus a tall one whose purpose I am not allowed to know. 

It's a Christmas surprise!

 The trees were loaded on top of the truck.

On the way down the mountain as we were rounding a hairpin curve where there were no guard rails,

the truck lost traction. We could feel it fishtailing and sliding closer and closer to the edge.

I was so scared I was just groaning, "Jesus! Jesus!" and somehow, the truck stopped, just in time,

as if an angel stopped it.

 As if that were not enough, a minute or two later, heading around another hairpin curve, we met another vehicle headon! I don't know how we managed to pass by each other without crashing or scraping, but again, it seemed an angel helped us by, and we went on without incident. I was almost in tears of gratitude to the Lord.  

It was a blessing to once again return home safely.

 The children decorated the tree so nicely. 

They also helped me clean up the mess in the livingroom later!

We had to reorganize in order to put the tree in front of the livingroom window.

 The wreath above our piano.

The Thanksgiving wheel turned into a Christmas one!

This is still one of my favorite decorations, made by Timmy from pallet slats, and I painted the lettering on.

Under the living room lamp

Our Thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving cactus from last year survived this year and bloomed right at Thanksgiving

on top of the fridge.

I had gotten a huge turkey at 49 cents a pound. We baked it a couple hours and then Carrie helped me drain the yucky juices out of it, after saving the better juices from around it. 

Then I stuffed it with homemade stuffing.

Everyone helped all morning long. The guys worked on some drywall repairs,

 and the girls helped me in the kitchen and with cleaning.

Jonathan's parents had wanted to have Thanksgiving with us, and we had already invited several other guests.

After Thanksgiving dinner, we had a Count Your Blessing activity. Hannah had slips of paper in a basket with all sorts of numbers written on them. Each person picked two numbers and used those numbers to help us count our blessings.

For example, Carrie got the numbers 3 and 1000. She was thankful for her three brothers and three sisters and for 1000 green beans! Sam got the numbers 5 and 1. He was thankful for five of our dogs, and for his one girlfriend, because he said, if he had two girlfriends, that would be difficult! :-) A guest got the number 5 and was thankful for four tires plus one spare! Grandma, who got number 10 was thankful for her 10 fingers. Rose was thankful for 18 years of life. Jonathan was thankful for one warm house and the eight people who live in there with him. Danny was thankful for the one snowblower that actually started this morning. Some were thankful for one horse and thousands of snowflakes, for a million billion stars and for 56 cousins! So you can see we had a lot of fun with numbers to help us count the blessings God has given us.

 Some thing else special that happened was when Jonathan sat down by the fire with his feet all splatted with drywall texture.

And as I came by, he looked at me, and he wondered, "Would you wash my feet?"

I don't think he had ever asked such a thing before, and I wasn't sure if he meant it, or if he was just teasing. But all I could think about was Jesus reminding his disciples, "Wash one another's feet."

And here was a very real opportunity to do just that!

With a full heart, albeit a bit awkwardly, I got to wash my own hubby's feet on Thanksgiving Day!

And I couldn't help wondering, if doing a small act of love like this as unto the Lord may have meant

more to Him than eating turkey or counting our blessings or offering the Doxology?

Just wondering.

Cradled at Christmas--A Pastor's Father Rests in Peace

Today we attended the simple memorial service for an acquaintance of ours whose son pastors a fellowship that meets in a local high school gymnasium. 

There's something about worshiping in such an out-of-the-box style.

Christ left heaven to come to earth, and was born in a manger, and we too often think we must have comfortable, elaborate, or cathedral-like churches before we can worship the humble Savior.

But shepherds knelt at a manger; wise men worshiped Jesus at home in His mother's lap.

We first came across this fellowship when the folk were meeting in a barn--

a barn remodeled into a simple but lovely sanctuary, granted,

but nevertheless, a barn, on a property that boasted some of the few trees on this area of prairie.

And now the fellowship meets in a gym.  

The underside of bleachers is the backdrop to the musicians, who today happened to be the pastor's children. 

And hanging above the preacher, quite unlike stained glass windows in most churches, 

are multi-colored banners saying, "Hoops for Heart."

On Sundays, in the minds of the worshipers, that changes to "Hope for the Heart."

The prelude to Frank Holst's memorial service was played by his granddaughter, who chose, to my surprise and delight, "Away in a Manger."

I sat listening in rapt attention to the sweet arrangement of the different tunes to this children's Christmas hymn by Martin Luther. 

And I couldn't help but think how appropriate it was for this children's song to be chosen to be played for a grandfather's memorial service.

For in light of eternity, we are all children--no matter how old we are. 

And in light of Christmas, and in light of the sorrows of death happening at the holiday season,

not only Pastor Holst's father, but also the death of Jacinda Edwards Stetler whom so many of you know,

we all need the words that are shared in this song:

"Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay

Close by me forever, and love me I pray.

Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care,

And take us to heaven to live with Thee there."

In light of the fact that today not only included a memorial service but was also the first Sunday of Advent, Pastor Holst shared thoughts about why we had to have Christmas, 

based on Genesis 3, and titled "East of Eden."

He shared how God planted a garden eastward in Eden, how the gate of the former Temple opened to the east; how Adam, the first type of Christ failed, and how Christ, the fulfillment of God's plan and of Scripture, overcame and became our Redeemer.

Because of Him, Pastor Holst and this fellowship has hope, and we sorrow not as those who have no hope for Frank Holst. 

Instead, the memorial service began with Frank's grandson reading a Scripture,

"Worthy is the Lamb."

We aren't worthy, but He is. 

And because of Him, we can gather simply, a small group of mourners, to grieve,

but also to have hope.

Among Frank's papers when he died was found the hymn, "Rock of Ages," with Frank's words about his deceased wife written on it, "She is with the Rock of Ages."

And that is the song we sang this morning, along with "The Old Rugged Cross," which Frank used to play on the piano while his wife sang.

The pastor shared how some years back, after Frank's wife died, Frank found it very hard to attend church.

He just couldn't do it much for a long time. The same church where he used to go with his wife just wasn't the same without her.

But then about a year and a half ago, he began to come to this fellowship.

And he kept coming.

And he kept coming.

He had finally found a simple place to worship, to be comforted, and to belong.

 "Because of the manger, Frank lays down his head,

And sleeps in the arms of the Savior instead.

And the stars in the bright sky remind us to say,

"Because of the manger, Frank is with Him today."