I love the beat of this song…it’s a great song to do a fast walk to! This is “Love Song for a Savior” by Jars of Clay

Here’s a rocky and fun song to listen to – “Lift Up Your Face” by Third day. I absolutely love the lead singer’s voice and the band writes some great songs. Enjoy!

Here is “What if” by Nicole Nordeman…a song about the reminder of hope in a world of doubt.

A favorite song of mine and a reminder of God’s strength in our lives. Here is “More Than Conquerors” by Rend Collective.

A fitting song for this time of year. This is “Love Crucified Arose” by Michael Card.

 

Absolutely love the beautiful message of this song. I hope your day is blessed by it. Here is “Better than a Hallelujah” by Amy Grant.

May God bless you in 2016!

Here is a link to the song “Blessings” by Laura Story. Enjoy!

Merry Christmas to all!

For the next few posts I’m planning to share some links to songs. I hope you enjoy the music! I hope you enjoy this incredible version of “Mary, Did You Know?” by Pentatonix.

Christmas Tree Tradition

In my last post I wrote about where the Christmas tradition of presents came from. Today’s post focuses on…

A very popular Christmas tradition is the Christmas tree. We set it up each year, decorating it with ornaments that bring memories and smiles, and lights to add beauty to the tree. Then we top it off with a star or an angel. It is a perfect spot to place our gifts with their colorful wrappings. It adds to the festivity of our living room or foyer. But it comes from so much more, and it can teach so much more.

Martin Luther used the shape of the Christmas tree to teach about the idea of the Trinity. People in his day didn’t have copies of their own Bibles in their own language, so one of his contributions to our world was to translate the Bible into the language of the people he lived near…so that they could begin to read the Bible on their own rather than simply rely on priests to read it to them. Martin Luther, who had been educated as a monk, knew the Bible and could teach it as well. When he taught people about the Trinity, he used the evergreen tree.

The Trinity is God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and those three are one. Confusing, right? How can three be one? Well, Martin Luther explained that when you look at an evergreen tree (like the traditional Christmas tree) you see three points (two sides and one point at the top). The shape of the tree has three points, yet it is still only one tree. He explained that the Trinity has three within in it: God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All three are one, yet all three have different ways of connecting with us. Doesn’t that bring more meaning into the tree you bring into your home each Christmas season?

The last two posts have information on just two of the traditions that connect back many years, but there are certainly more. My hope for you is that this Christmas season, you see the connection to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and His miraculous birth rather than just baubles and toys, stockings and snow. Celebrating Christmas is a wonderful experience, and there is nothing wrong with gifts and trees. The hope I have, however, is that you will see Jesus’s light within it all.

Presents Tradition

Have you ever heard about where some of our Christmas traditions come from? So many have grown up celebrating Christmas as a day of presents but haven’t really understood where certain traditions come from. In the next two posts I’ll share two Christmas traditions and where they come from.

Where did the whole “presents” idea come from? Tradition says it came from the wise men. Three of them visited Jesus sometime in his first year or two of life. And when they brought their presents, they didn’t mess around. They didn’t look for Black Friday sales or wait for a good deal. They were coming to honor a king, and they brought gifts for a king: Gold, frankincense, and myrrh, which were all incredibly valuable.

This child they came to honor was in a family that was as poor as could be, and yet these wise men traveled for months to bring expensive gifts to the child. Why would they do that? In their time most people lived day by day simply trying to survive. Jesus was born into a country that was dominated by the Romans, and the people Jesus lived with were dominated by the Roman laws and taxes. He was as poor as possible, living with parents who had absolutely no political or influential power; yet, these wise men braved the dangers of travel and gave valuable gifts to honor him. Only God could be behind such strange and generous behavior for a tiny, poor Jewish baby who had nothing.