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3 Ways to Have Less Stress at Christmas This Year
We walk to the hill where the fir and spruce mingle in a dozen shades of emerald. Within milliseconds, the youngest falls into the thorny branches of a hawthorn crabapple, and the oldest is tangled in a knot of burdock. I take a deep breath, remind myself to give thanks in this moment, and say a prayer for God to help me push back against stress at Christmas this year. We’re living in stressful times, and I don’t have to start listing the circumstances that make this year tough. You have your own circumstances. They aren’t identical to mine, but they carry their own challenges, and if nothing else, wouldn’t…
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3 Practical Ways to Encounter Christ at Christmas
We recently pulled out the Christmas boxes again—a hodgepodge of fake pine, glitter, and the faint aroma of cinnamon spice. As we unpacked the boxes, I reminded myself to remain focused on Christ at Christmas this year. I thought about Jesus’ presence with us as we stung the colored bulbs on the tree and wrapped the branches with a long burgundy ribbon. The spirit in the room was nothing short of celebratory. Amid the celebration, something within me seemed to stir to life, as if the celebration, itself, was ushering me into Jesus’ presence. I soon realized that the simple act of celebrating was pushing out worries and cares. I…
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4 Practical Ways to Transform Christmas Stress into Christmas Worship
December has arrived, and I’m not sure I’m ready. I’ve been staring down my to-do list and feeling anxious. I don’t want to acknowledge that this Christmas stress is stealing my joy. Nevertheless, I must admit that the demands of this season feel more like an invitation to stress than an invitation to worship. Advent is the season for fixing our eyes on the coming Christ, the One who came in the flesh two thousand years ago and will come again to reign forever in glory. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised there is an enemy out to distract me throughout this season of anticipation. After we cut down the…
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7 Ways to Show Hospitality This Winter
Backyard bonfire days and barefoot swimming parties are a distant memory as we prepare for the long winter months ahead in these parts. Nevertheless, I am reminded that the call to open my heart and home to others has not changed. There are plenty of ways to show hospitality, even in the coldest winter months. While it’s refreshing to invite the neighbors to the backyard for a picnic, it sometimes feels overwhelming to open the doors of our inside worlds and welcome the noise and the mess. If you’re longing for socialization but not sure you want to open wide your front door, remember that hospitality can happen anywhere. 7…
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6 Creative Ideas to Help You Show Hospitality This Fall
It’s a clear evening overlooking Granite Creek. The sun has slipped behind the canyon walls, and alpenglow paints the West Ridge salmon. I’m not thinking about how to show hospitality this evening – not in the least. The year is 2001, and I’ve just entered the identity-searching decade of my twenties. This will be the decade when I stumble blindly in the relentless search for the woman I want to become. I’ll begin my teaching career in the public high school. I have no way of knowing these things now, of course. For now, I’m content with my three-month job of washing dishes in the lodge where the teachers come…
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6 Meaningful Christmas Traditions That Put Others First
In a season saturated with commercialism and consumerism, it’s easy to lose the meaning of Christmas. Meanwhile, some of the most meaningful Christmas traditions are the ones that put others first. Meaningful Christmas Traditions One way to add a layer of richness to the Christmas season is by implementing meaningful Christmas traditions that focus on making a difference in the lives of others. This list of ideas offers practical ways to involve everyone in the family in making someone else’s holiday brighter. 1. Color a smile for a soldier. Holiday seasons tend to be bleak for those who are away from loved ones. Show a member of our military just…
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5 Family Traditions for a Christ-Centered Christmas
The world is aglow in colorful lights as we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Light of the World. Sadly, it’s easy to become so engrossed in the hustle and bustle of the season that we forget why we are celebrating. Perhaps you’d like to help your family celebrate a more Christ-centered Christmas this year. Let’s look at five family traditions that can help us keep Christ at the center of our Christmas celebrations this year. 5 Family Traditions for a Christ-Centered Christmas If we want to be more attuned to the wonder of the incarnation, we begin by slowing down. We stand in awe that the God of…
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How to Choose a New Thanksgiving Tradition for Your Family
November is here with the grey branches of maple trees reaching heavenward and once-vibrant fields of wildflowers wielding frost-burned tufts in unison. We pull the Thanksgiving decorations from the basement shelves and start thinking about instituting a new and meaningful Thanksgiving tradition for our family. It seems appropriate that this month of transition is also culturally known as the month for giving thanks. We are often most desperately in need of reminders to practice gratitude when the tides are shifting in our lives. November has always felt like a changing of the tides for me. November is the time when the kids bound from the bus wearing feathers in their…
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5 Ways to Celebrate Autumn Without the Spookiness
It’s a pristine October day that feels more like early September than mid-autumn with all its color and brilliance and the scent of freshly fallen leaves blanketing the earth. We go to the woods in search of fall decorations to help us celebrate autumn and come home with plastic bags overflowing with sticky pine cones, acorns, leaves, ferns, and rocks. The pine cones find new homes in baskets throughout the house, the leaves are scattered across the dining room table while crayons make leaf imprints on construction paper, and the acorns and stones find their way to vases. We have been on a quest to celebrate autumn without embracing spookiness,…
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10 Bible Verses About Celebrating Life
God is pleased when we cultivate joy and celebrate his goodness. Even in difficult times, focusing on God’s blessings can lift our heads. Today, we’ll look at 10 Bible verses about celebrating life. Then, we will examine practical ways to celebrate in even the most mundane seasons. Let’s start by soaking in God’s words about celebrating life. 10 Bible Verses About Celebrating Life As you read these Scriptures, I encourage you to soak in God’s invitation to praise and worship him. Thank him for the gifts in your life. He is pleased when you focus on what is true, good, right, and pure. Encouraging Bible Verses About Celebrating Life and…
