: Life is hard. God is good. We need each other.
“Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.” -Benjamin Franklin
Not a bad goal, I’d say.
The turning of a new year is a prime time for looking both backwards and forwards. I spent some time reflecting on 2017 at The Sparrow’s Home, specifically on which posts were the most popular over the year. Enjoy perusing them! And as we look forward, let me know what you’d like to see more of.
Happy New Year!
Clearly Mary and Joseph had qualities that God valued, since He chose them to raise His son, Jesus. Enjoy using this free printable Bible study lesson perfect for Christmas!
![Clearly Mary and Joseph had qualities that God valued, since He chose them to raise His son, Jesus. [Free Printable Bible Study Lesson]](https://thesparrowshome.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Mary-Joseph-square.jpg)
Let me ask you this: If you were unable to raise your children, what characteristics would you look for in the people you chose to take care of them?
The passages of Scripture that tell of Christ’s birth have become so over-familiar to us, haven’t they?
I’m teaching our adult Sunday school class this week, and as I was looking for a lesson that wasn’t the same old same old, all I could find was….well, the same old same old. I went back to the beginning of Luke and began to read the familiar words again.
Then the question I asked above came into my head. I realized that out of all the people who have ever lived, God chose Mary and Joseph to raise his son, Jesus. Clearly they pleased Him. Wouldn’t it be interesting, I thought, to look into their character to hunt for qualities that we could apply to our own lives as we seek to be people who please God.
Family games for Christmas are a great idea! Links to lots of games your older kids and teens will love. Start a new tradition this Christmas!
Do you have a family gift tradition? Some families open new pajamas on Christmas eve. Some give a family movie or have a tradition of hot chocolate in new mugs.
We are a game playing family, and so we like to wrap up a new family game to open on Christmas. It started when the boys were quite young. Hungry Hungry Hippos was the first game made a family gift. Over the years our games have grown up with the boys.
If you’re looking for some unique ideas for a game for your family, I’ve compiled a round up here to give you some ideas. While many of these would be great for upper elementary aged kids and older, we got them because they’re games that both teens and adults enjoy playing.
Allie is a former neighbor and my boys’ favorite babysitter. She is the kind of young lady who would, every once in awhile, refuse payment, saying, “I just want to bless you.” Her ‘magic’ tricks kept the boys completely mesmerized. (I’m pretty sure this involved her hiding things behind her back and pulling them out with flourish, but what do I know?) My boys are teenagers now, older than Allie was when she babysat them.
And we owe her a debt of gratitude we can never repay. You see, my youngest son is here because of Allie.
Finding meaning and worship in the songs of the season. The lyrics of Christmas carols speak of Christ’s birth, but they also often describe his second coming.
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
The lyrics of this song are haunting. Of all the Christmas music that we hear this time of year this one touches me more than any.
These words tell of our Messiah Jesus’ birth, that we celebrate at Christmas. But whenever I hear them, I think, as well, that they speak to his second coming. The song is almost mournful in its longing for fulfillment and they well up that feeling within me.
Longing for my Savior to come.
We can pray for each other even if we see the world differently or live very different lives. Life is hard. God is good. We need each other.
Somewhere along the way, we bought into the lie that we have to do it all on our own. Self-sufficient and all that.
But inside we feel the loss, even without realizing it. We weren’t meant to carry it all..to walk alone.