The Lights of Christmas

In the dusk of a December evening, my car crunches down the icy roads. I look forward to this every year. I used to drive with two excited kids in the car. Munching cookies. Caroling our hearts out. A Christmas tradition long kept. Now my sons are grown and gone so I keep the faith by myself. Still excited. Still blessed by the lights of Christmas.

15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—16 the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.” 17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew 4:15-17

It’s like a treasure hunt.

Who still believes? Who still keeps the light of Christmas burning in their heart, twinkling on the eaves and door frames of their houses? Sparkling displays of an inner faith of the Immanuel King, born in a manger in the dark of a winter eve.

Dark streets offer no hope.

No lights. No love. No life. Where is Jesus in this darkness? Those who have no Christmas lights of their own can only see from afar the lights of their neighbors. Reflected glory. Borrowed joy. Maybe Christmas lights burning strong, true and beautiful will cause others to ask, wonder, reflect and accept.

Light your candles. Trim your trees. Maybe the people asking why the lights? will then ask why the cross?

“4 In him was life,and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” 1 John 1:4-5

Merry Cross-mas.

Merry Christmas.

The 5 Kings of Christmas

Christmas

Peace on earth and good will towards men. All creation waits for the coming Savior.

silent nights. holy nights. starry skies. heavenly peace.

Shadowy figures in a stable and one brings forth the Messiah. While shepherds worship and angels herald from the heavens, three kings seek the new born king. But are there only three kings of Christmas?

The 5 Kings of Christmas.

King Herod

“13 After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him” … 16 “Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. 17 Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah.” Matthew 2:13, 16-17

One wicked evil king of Christmas.

plotting

scheming

deceiving

The poster child for how not to use your god-given power and influence. Jealous and suspicious. Everything Jesus isn’t. Herod plots to take the life of the One who came to give His life as a ransom for many. Innocent children slaughtered for an earthly kingdom not kept. How different Herod’s legacy could have been if he had decided to worship God instead of himself.

The Three Kings

Three wise kings from the Orient are.

searching

watching

following

“behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” Matt 1b-2

That’s what wise men do—seek Jesus. They look for signs with eyes and hearts wide open. They spend their lives and fortunes striving, searching, looking. And when they find Him, they worship. Wise men and women still seek the One who came to seek and save the lost.

The King of Kings

Emmanuel; God is with us.

sacrificing

redeeming

restoring

“For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Galatians 4:4-5

And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 9:16

Our King has come! He rescues and redeems. He covers our sins, and heals our wounds. Greater than our darkness, His light shines like the star in the east and beckons all to come. Worship at the manger and find peace at the cross. The King of Kings.

Behold your King:

He rules over our sin.

He shreds our doubts.

He ransoms our debt.

He fulfills our every need.

He is stronger than our deepest fear.

He is greater than our guilt.

He is King over everything.

He wins. He rules. He reigns.

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Forever and ever ….

and ever

Jesus, the King of Kings, the King of Christmas

Merry Christmas.

Double Doppel

“It must have been her doppelganger,” Erik said as hammered down a bite of his Detroit-style pizza.

“Her what?”

“Her doppelganger.” The word seemed to hang in the air, frozen between us.

“Doppelganner?”

“ganger.”

“Spell it, please.”

“d-o-p-p-e-l-g-a-n-g-e-r.”

“Wow. I’ve never heard that word before, ” I replied as I munched my slice.

I am a word-a-holic.

I like word games, crossword puzzles and magazine vocab quizzes. Etymology is fascinating. I want to know everything about a new word, such as where it originated, who coined it, and when it was first used. As we weaved through traffic en route from Buddy’s Pizza to the Henry Ford Museum, I asked Erik to repeat the word several times in hopes of making it mine. Doppelganger. Doppelgranger. Doppelganner. I struggled with the syllabification.

At the museum, I took off for the American Style and Spirit exhibit and Erik bee-lined to a collection of boring machine parts. As I stood gazing at the beautiful gowns (circa 1920’s), a woman approached and asked me if my name was Carrie. I told her no, my name is Mary. Her response:

“Wow! You have a doppelganger named Carrie.”

Not kidding. What were the odds?

Doppelganger. Doppelganger.

Doppelgänger: [dop–uh l-gang-er; German daw-puh l-geng-er] Noun, a ghostly double or counterpart of a living person.

God wants us to have a doppelganger—Jesus. Think I’m kidding? Read the following verse.

“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:29

Jesus is our doppelganger. Our twin. Double. Doppelganger. We are to be conformed to His image. Thankfully we are not responsible for the transformation—God is. He uses every circumstance, good and evil, to sculpt our character. A piece here. A rough edge there. Constant hammering and chiseling until finally, boom bam, we look like, sound like, act like, think like Jesus.

Do people accuse you of looking like Jesus? Do strangers walk away from an encounter with you asking who does she/he remind me of? Oh, yeah, Jesus! If you are like me, the answer is often a big NO. Let’s take a few Action Steps!

Action Steps:

Pray and ask God to conform you heart and soul into the image of Christ.
Hide God’s Word in your heart. It is the main tool God uses to transform us. His word is a “hammer that breaks rock into pieces.” Jeremiah 23:29
Watch what you allow into your mind. Sinful things shape the heart as well.
Ask the Holy Spirit to help you think before you act or speak. Ask yourself, Is this what Jesus would say or do?
Thank God for how He is working to change you from the inside out to be like Jesus.

Jesus is our doppelganger.

Have a blessed day!

Today Bible Journal 4

Spend time with Jesus Today!

Today is a new kinda quirky Bible journal for busy people who want to jump-start their day with Scripture. Begin the day with a look verse and short assignment. Then, revisit your work in the evening to add notes, make changes and apply what you’ve learned. Only By Prayer recommends you focus on one journal entry a day.

Today is a good time to be with Jesus!

Click to open the Today Bible Journal pdf !

Today Bible Journal Part 3

Today Bible Journal Part 1

Today Bible Journal Part 2

By Mary Kane

bits and pieces or feasting?

They were at the Feast.

12 men and 1 Savior. Bound together by bread and wine. A covenant. A last supper. The Last Passover that ever needed to be kept because finally, the Lamb of God was to be slain. It would be finished. And Judas sits satisfied with a bit of bread. It was Judas’ last supper too.

21 After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. 23 One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus’ side, 24 so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25 So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the piece, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.

27 Then after he had taken the piece, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” 28 Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. 29 Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. 30 So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. John 13:21-30

Crumbs and scraps.

Judas settles for a morsel from The Bread of Life, the Manna which comes down from heaven. Mincing and tasting the crumbs instead of consuming the Feast, eaten by faith in the One who saves us.

We consume the bread and wine as He consumes our guilt and sin.

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And Judas sells his soul to the lowest bidder.

Bits and crumbs in place of a feast.

30 pieces of silver in exchange for streets of gold. He seals the unholy deal and Judas settles for bits and pieces. Judas could have had a kingdom.

What have I settled for?

What morsels have I chosen instead of the feast? My hungry soul tries to dine upon the crumbs of the world. But the world never satisfies and my soul-hunger turns into famine of the heart. My 30 pieces of silver rob me of the streets of gold. God’s hands remain full while my heart remains empty. Gifts given but not received.

Unopened. Unused. Unsatisfying bits and pieces.

Jesus came so we can have life and have it abundantly. But abundance requires sacrifice, receiving, waiting, enduring, abiding and praying.

This Thanksgiving season Jesus calls us to come, buy, eat and feast. Without money, without price. Taste and see that the Lord is good!

Leave your bits and pieces and come to the Feast.

How will you feast on the goodness of God this Thanksgiving? Leave me a comment below. I’d love to chat with you!

Have a blessed Thanksgiving.

4 Reasons for Hope: Election

“He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” Daniel 2:21

In case you’ve been shipwrecked on a desert island for the past 8 months and didn’t know it, there’s an election coming up. What an election. In all my fifty some years, I cannot recall an election with more drama, animosity and twists and turns than this one. (Please, no more ranting on Facebook. Our country will not survive.) The media reports there has never been two less-popular candidates. Ever. It’s kind of like that game kids play, Would you rather get attacked by a lion or a grizzly bear?

Neither.

Would you rather vote for Donald or Hilary?

Neither. IKR?

But we must.

Sorry. The #I’mjustnotgoingtovote attitude doesn’t help. It is our duty, right and privilege to vote. Remember, it’s not just the president who’s on the ballot. There other important issues and proposals at stake. Also, the next president will appoint the next two, possibly three, Supreme Court Justices to the bench and people mean policy. NOTE: the decisions of the Supreme Court greatly affect the course of this nation.

All the drama aside, regardless of who wins, there are four reasons we can have hope about this election.

We see the real issues. People have had to stop and thoroughly examine their beliefs and worldview. What is truly important? What is a deal breaker for me? What does the Bible say about the issues at hand?
We see the real Savior. This election, more than any other, we clearly see the Democrats can’t save us. We clearly see the Republicans can’t save us. All we are left with is Jesus. Just Jesus. And this is a very good place to be.
We see opportunity. There is no clear-cut Christian candidate in 2016. Both candidates present serious moral and ethical challenges. Therefore, Christian influence is dispersed of being anchored to one party.
We see real promises. Political promises have been made and broken. Government policies are initiated and forgotten. Laws are ratified and the overturned. Where can we place our trust? In the God who says He will never leave us or forsake us. In the God who promises to use all things for our good and His glory. In the God who states the government rests upon His shoulders and He is the one who establishes and deposes kings according to His will.

So what should we do?

Research. Checkout the following links to learn about the issues and the candidates:

Christian Voters Guide

Wall Builders

Pray. Cick on the link to signup for 5 Days to Fast and Pray for the Election

5 Days to Fast and Pray

Get involved. Vote.

Simply type in “Where do I vote?” as a Google search and you will see a search box to enter your address.

How do you feel about this election?

Please leave a comment below. I’d love to chat with you.God Bless America.