Christmas 2015

CELEBRATE

“He who dwells in the secret place for the Most High, shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty! I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress. My God, in Him I will trust.” Ps. 91:1-2

I am hearing all around that folks are having trouble getting into the spirit of Christmas. There seems to be no inspiration for a letter or other creativity. That’s exactly how I feel and I wonder why. Is it because we are too busy? Is there extra stress in our lives? Are we afraid our world as we know it is changing? Do we hear of and sense danger creeping closer? Or could it be more? Could it possibly be oppression from Satan to keep us from celebrating the season when our Savior left His home and was born a helpless babe in a dirty barn? Is something or someone stealing our joy? Oh, but there is hope!

If your life is full of darkness, Jesus is your Light. If your life is full of confusion, Jesus will show you the right path. If your life is full of stress, Jesus will give you rest. If your life is too busy, Jesus will give you peace.

If your heart is full of fear, Jesus is your Defender. If you fear you will be overcome, Jesus is your Deliverer. If you are in a storm, Jesus is your Shelter.

If you feel weak, Jesus is your strength. If you feel oppression, Jesus is your shield. If you feel you are sinking Jesus is your Rock. If you feel lost, Jesus is your salvation. If you feel down, Jesus is your joy.

Jesus is our strong tower, our refuge, our hiding place, our defense, our fortress, our deliverer, our very present help in trouble.

Satan, however, is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Our enemy comes to steal our joy, stomp on our peace and destroy our lives. He comes to steal, kill and destroy. We must be sober and vigilant, we must resist him and stand firm. We must fight! We must not let Satan have victory! (1 Peter 5:8, John 10:10)

Let us, the followers of the one true God, take the belt of truth and buckle it securely around our waists. Let us wrap the truth around ourselves and taking up our sword, be surrounded by God’s Word.

Let us, who are the children of the Almighty King stand up and stand firm. Let us, who are members of a royal family, turn our eyes to our Lord, looking at His glorious face and not our circumstances. Let us, who are soldiers in the King’s army, march, waving the banner of our Commander in Chief. Let us, His Beloved, take refuge in the secret place, close to His side, under His Mighty wings. Let us, sons and daughters of the King of Kings, stand on the Rock that is higher than I, that is stronger than the evil one, that never will be moved. Let us, His Bride, having no spot, no blemish, washed white with the blood of the Lamb, be ready with full lamps and longing for our Groom.

Let us celebrate the birth of our glorious Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. For without entrance of the helpless babe to earth, there would be no cross, no sacrifice for our sins, no salvation, and no life eternal in the shinning land of our Father God.

So raise your voices in praise to the King of Kings who gave up His throne. Give thanks to the Lover of your souls who was born, who lived and who died in a dark world. Worship the one and only Son of God who carried our sins on His perfect shoulders and who died in our place for the ultimate sacrifice.

Shout Hallelujah to the Prince of Heaven who burst forth from the grave with glorious light shinning from His face!

Jesus is the Light of the world! Jesus is the Lover of your soul, your Protector, the Lifter of your head. He will keep you in perfect peace if your mind is on Him. So forget your to-do list, forget those presents and preparations and parties and let’s Celebrate!

Celebrate Jesus our King! Celebrate the Light that burst upon a dark world!

“From the end of the earth I will cry to you. When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the Rock that is higher than I. For You have been a shelter to me, a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in Your tabernacle forever. I will trust in the shelter of Your wings.” Ps. 61:2-4

Last year, March 10th marked the 3rd year that our son, Stephen, has been in God’s presence in Gloryland. Life marches on, we live and love and wait for the coming of our King. We had many blessings and adventures during the year. The grandkids, Maci and Jacob, came for a weeks visit the end of March and we celebrated Christmas one day and Easter the next. We also had much fun riding, hiking and watching the wild horses.

In May John and I found the perfect boat in our price range, a bigger, newer, safer boat than our old one. For us, boating and exploring the huge, remote Fort Peck reservoir in Montana takes the place of horse packing into the high country. We love the peace and tranquility of being on the water and exploring those nooks and crannies on the lake, where very few people venture. And catching the big Pike isn’t bad either.

    Also in May I took the train to Whitefish Montana for a visit with my good friends in Trego and Fortine, where we used to live. I was reminded of the beauty of the mountains, the clarity of the rushing mountain streams, and the amount of people there. It was a fun time visiting very good friends and stomping around in old stomping grounds, but I was glad to be back to my wide open and unpopulated prairies!

The kids came the first of June and the time flew until the first of August. Oh my the fun we had, riding horses, breakfast rides, hiking on buttes, in badlands and in the petrified forest, visiting Theodore Roosevelt park and watching the wild horses, going to church and the Sentinel Butte potluck.

All of us, with friends Saren, Jenna and Jared, went tubing on a lake east of here. The kids had a ball on the tubes and in the boat all day. Actually I’m not sure who had more fun, John or the kids.  We camped, fished and boated at Ft. Peck for four days and had a ball. As the final finale, we went to the Monster Truck show in Bismarck and it was great!

Before we knew it the time with the kids was gone and we took them to Billings. The rest of the summer was taken up with gardening, canning, mowing, fishing, camping, church and community activities.  And catching the big one!

We’ve been bird hunting since September and Doti is doing very well in her 9th season. Fall was gorgeous, warm and wonderfully long. We are just now beginning to get winter in western North Dakota. So far we’ve had mild weather, with warm temps and very little snow, which is unusual. That could all change in a twinkling of an eye. (which it has)

Speaking of which I am waiting for that twinkling of an eye when we, who follow the one true King, will be snatched up to Heaven. When we will leave the confines of this dark earth and fly over the moon! I am so ready to fly! Our King is coming soon!

In the mean time we wish you a very Merry Christmas! Let us Celebrate our Savior’s birth!

Love John and Wendy