Skip to main content

Thankful Thursday ~ Christmas Past



A Thankful Thursday post on Christmas Day? Yes, indeed! Log onto to Grace Alone and be inspired as we celebrate the birthday of Jesus today! The theme is thanking God for a special Christmas memory of the past.

A past Christmas memory for me that is meaningful was the Christmas I got engaged to my husband. It was hard to focus on the true meaning of Christmas that year. Family traditions surrounded us, but all I wanted to do was be with my man and dream about our future wedding day and talk about the life we would build together. Christmas morning came and my fiance knocked on the front door very early and whisked me off to the first church service so we could spend the whole day together. It was snowing when he picked me up and still snowing when he took me home that night. So we planned a summer wedding! Today, our daughters are grown, and we became grandparents this year. It's been a wonderful life of career challenges, raising children and working at keeping our love alive through the years. I thank God for these dreams of the past and especially for all His help through the years. This year marks our 37th year together celebrating Christmas!

I can't end this post without mentioning that I now look forward to another wedding day. Jesus promised to come back for His bride, the Body of Christ, and whisk us off to our new home where we'll be together for all eternity. It's going to be fabulous. It could happen at any time, even today!

Jesus tells a story of how the Kingdom of Heaven is compared to ten virgins who awaited the Bridegroom's coming for them. He was delayed, but when they heard the shout, only five of them had the sufficient oil to keep their lanterns lit. The other five had to go to the seller of oil to buy more and they missed the Bridegroom and the wedding! This great story is in Matthew 25.

As we celebrate the Christmas season, Jesus is my hope. He's coming again!
Merry Christmas, everyone.

Comments

  1. Debbie PetrasDecember 25, 2008 at 8:51 AM

    You have special memories and thank you for sharing. I used to wear my hair in a flip too. Too funny! May you and your family have a blessed Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
  2. BonnieDecember 25, 2008 at 10:37 AM

    What an awesome post and amazing tie-together!!! Thank you for that picture. What a happy, happy memory. Thank you for sharing today! Have a blessed Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
  3. DeniseDecember 25, 2008 at 2:46 PM

    Such nice memories sweetie.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Rita T.December 25, 2008 at 6:51 PM

    37 years - that's terrific! Merry Christmas and God bless.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousDecember 25, 2008 at 6:56 PM

    Great post and special memory! Thanks for visiting my blog.

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownDecember 25, 2008 at 7:43 PM

    Amen. what a neat, neat post. Your life is a tribute to the Lord. thank you for sharing this special day with me.. Hugs. ... and His name shall be called Immanuel...

    ReplyDelete
  7. CarrieDecember 26, 2008 at 1:30 PM

    I love this picture of you and dad. Thank you for showing my sister and I what love is all about.

    ReplyDelete
  8. KayDecember 27, 2008 at 6:29 PM

    Okay, that picture is absolutely hysterically precious! 37 years and here ya are blogging about your sweetheart - betcha didn't see that one coming?! And AMEN from this choir member - Jesus IS coming again! Thanks for a beautiful post, Mary.

    So, get ready to be more jealous ... when I was in Florida with Keaton, John Travola lives there and his new dog movie, Bolt,opened and HE CAME TO THE THEATER and we saw him! Hey, next time I see him, I'll ask him to land his plane in your yard -- you know, just cuz I like ya and all.

    Signed: Kay the cool shopper with the VB hipster, and yes, your refurbished laptop counts as new!

    Hugs!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Daisy House

I work at my desktop with the children at my feet.  A makeshift area rug made of white butcher paper lines the floor where the baby, crayon in hand, imitates her big sister.  Sister focuses on the finishing touches of the house she designed.  The catchy children’s song, Wheels of the Bus, blasts from the Toddler Station on Pandora Radio. Six year old Sookie unveils her masterpiece and I ooh and awe at the sketch.  “It’s a daisy house!”  I exclaim.  “I love the colors.  I wonder what the inside looks like.”  Without hesitating, Sookie describes each room.  “There are five rooms and they are all different colors.  One is Mint Chip, another Strawberry.  There is a Vanilla room, and a Cookies & Cream room and the last room is Rocky Road.  You have to wear a sweater inside because it is very cold.” “A house made of ice cream,” I reply.  “It sounds heavenly!” I dug into my Bible readings that morning ...
37 comments
Read more

Marriage Tip #44: Do What He Wants

I thought about our upcoming anniversary.   I prayed one morning for the marriages in my family, and a sentence about my own dropped in my spirit:  “ Do What He Wants .”  I paused, “Really?”  He’s his own man.  What if I end up in the wilderness camping by night and target shooting by day?  What if a coyote decides to have me as a late night snack? We celebrated our anniversary early this year, Before the kids come next week.   And we did it his way . This is how it happened. I never asked him about a plan or even mentioned our day.  I remember how it all unfolded at the roundabout just as we drove into Sedona.  He asked me if I would like to go to a baseball game.  I responded excitedly, “Yeah!”  Before the day was over, he purchased tickets for a Diamondbacks home game. He printed them out.  He booked a hotel room so we wouldn’t have to drive home from the city after the late evening game. ...
44 comments
Read more

A Memorial Day Reflection

  Memorial Day is always noteworthy for me and my girls.  Next Thursday marks the third year of missing their father, my husband. So many thoughts  run through my mind.  The journey of loss takes on various emotions.  The strongest feeling, at first, was emptiness.  In a split second, I would forget he departed forever.  I imagined things I needed to talk to him about when he got back home.  My mind is realistic now.  He's not coming back.  There will be no more times of sitting on the porch swing together on the front deck staring at the moon and the stars.  He would tell me all he knew about the majestic night sky. I have so much I wish I could tell him, like the excitement of seeing our oldest grandchild make a decision to follow Jesus and get baptized on Mother's Day!  And our little Amy, 11 years old, I wish he could have seen her on stage receiving her induction to the National Honor Society. Our daughters have their own ...
23 comments
Read more