Showing posts with label Tree decoration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tree decoration. Show all posts

Wednesday

A New Christmas Decoration - A Dose of Encouragement


I really shouldn't have!

We have so many already!

I'm supposed to be decluttering, not bringing more things into the house!

But I just couldn't resist buying that new decoration for the Christmas tree.







I was out buying special Christmas Cards and looking for ideas for gifts in the Faith Mission Book Shop when I noticed it and the temptation grabbed me.

Fred just smiled when I showed it to him and didn't say the obvious


"not another decoration"  


 he can be so nice to me sometimes ( ok I admit it's not just sometimes but most of the time ).


It's not the only one I've bought this year, but ssssshhh that's a secret until closer to Christmas.




I have to admit I really like tree decorations that bring back memories like our 3 sleighs and the fan that get hung up each year.


But there is something special about bible themed tree decorations and the one I got was definitely bible themed with Mary and Joseph holding the baby Jesus.







Yes I admit is is rather similar to the the one I wrote about in The True Christmas blog post last year.  

But I think perhaps I was drawn to this new one because we have been doing a lot of holding and cuddling of our baby grandson since he was born at the start of last month.

It is amazing how one small child can change the structure of a marriage relationship - it is not just a couple any more it is now a family with another person there forever making a 3 Sided relationship.  This is a life-altering event in any marriage and as was mentioned in a recent post Congratulations;  it can be the best day of the lives of the couple.


Jesus obviously changed the structure of his family not only in the obvious special way as a new life born into that relationship but also because of exactly Who He was - the Son of God.  His birth was not only the best day of the lives of Mary and Joseph but also the best day in the life of the world thus far - God had come down to earth.

Look at the wording on the decoration







Jesus came to be the hope of all the world,

                                                          of everyone,

                                                                           of you ,

                                                                                      of me.


This was definitely a life-altering event for the whole world.


Our new decoration reminds us of the new Hope we have in Jesus when we acknowledge He is Lord and accept His gift of salvation.



Born as a baby but born to be the Saviour of all.






Jesus is all this
and
our true hope, 

regardless of us 

or anything else that is going on in the world.


I am thankful that I have a Saviour and that I have the Hope of all.

If you would like to know more about how you can personally experience this life-altering event please take a few minutes to watch the video 3 2 1 on the sidebar.



The True Christmas - A Dose of Encouragement


Today I'm going to tell you about another decoration I love putting on my tree every year because this one tells us about The True Christmas.




Previously I have been writing about some of our Christmas Tree Decorations.

We had  3 Sleighs for Christmas  and   A Fan for Christmas

These two along with this post will be hopefully be a good dose of encouragement for us all at this special Christmas time. 






All around us at this time of the year we see everything being used to represent Christmas.

We see Santas.

We see Turkeys.

We see Trees.

We see Gifts.

We see Pictures of Snow.

We see Everything becoming Red.




But we see less and less 

of 

The True Christmas.







This decoration was bought in America when we lived in Delaware so it has been on our tree for over 20 years just like the other ones in the last two posts in this series.

Yet I still remember the day I bought it.

I was with my friend Suzanne in a Christmas Shop she had taken me to.  While we were paying for our purchases I noticed something else and as I moved away to get it I said to Suzanne


"I must lift one of those"


and I was so surprised by her reaction


"you can't say that Sandra"


I couldn't understand why she jumped in with this so quickly.

So I asked her why?

Suzanne explained that to use the word  "lift"  was implying shoplifting.

Suzanne knew what I had really meant but she was concerned that the shopkeeper would have heard me and not known my proper intention.


I had simply meant

I must pick up one of these to add it to my items to buy 


but the way I had said it meant something else in that part of the world.



Now when I look at this Tree Decoration of Mary and Joseph with Jesus I remember three things.


Firstly I remember the Original True Christmas when Jesus came into the world.

Secondly I remember those 3 years we spent in America where we made new friends and shared in new Christmas time experiences.

Thirdly I remember the True Meaning of Christmas which is just the same today as it was all those years ago.



Why should it change?  

Jesus doesn't change.


God sent His Son Jesus into the world to be our 


Saviour

Redeemer

Ransom


to be

 Immanuel
"God with Us"



But what do others think of at Christmas?

They think of the things I listed at the start of this blog post.

They think of all the busy days and activities at this time of the year.

They think of the money that will be spent.

They think of the holiday from work.

They think of Seasons Greetings and Happy Holidays to just mean exactly what the words say.

But when they hear

Merry Christmas


they don't think that it means exactly what it says.


They don't consider how it is the commemoration of the miracle of God coming to dwell on earth to live as a human like us so that He can do for us what no-one else could possibly do.

No, they hear the words that are intended for them to hear 
but they think of completely the wrong meaning of the phrase just as that shop keeper could have thought of the completely wrong meaning of my words all those years ago.

I love the fact that when I went to take the picture of this decoration there were two lights right above it as if to highlight it particularly because really that is precisely what we should be doing.






To so many people Christmas is no longer based on Christ.


So let's try to help others to actually think of


The True Meaning of Christmas


in every opportunity we have so that they may come to know









The True Blessing 

of 

The True Christmas.




I pray you will know the The True Christmas this year and every year to come.