Have yourself a Mary little Christmas! And find a man like Joseph.

Mary is blessed.  She is.  She was honored and chosen to be the Mother of Jesus.  She was a humble servant and, although she questioned, she said, “May it be unto me as you have said.”

When Mary visited Elizabeth, John leapt for joy in Elizabeth’s womb.  Elizabeth proclaimed the greatness of the child Mary was carrying.

And when the shepherds came to see all that they had heard, Mary pondered and hid their proclamations in her heart.

Mary is the mother of Jesus.  And, if you have a mother of your own, you know how important that role is.

Your mother may have been a good example for you.  Your mother may have not been the best example for you.  But, no matter what, you grew, as a child, feeling the weight of that role.  The role of your Mom.

And Mary was a mother with a BIG role!

But Joseph…

This is what I type to you today.

I hope that you find yourself a Joseph.

Let’s take a look at him for a moment.

Joseph is from the City of David.  And he was pledged to marry a young virgin Mary.

And then, one night, an angel appears to him and throws all of his beautiful plans into the air.

No longer is he only going to marry Mary, he is going to be a father to a baby boy that will eventually be wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger…

Oh, and this little boy is the Son of God.  The Messiah.  The one that prophets have spoke of forever. Literally like forever.

And he, Joseph, he was going to be the earthly father of the Most High.

No pressure, Joseph.  No pressure.

Joseph had the opportunity to not take Mary as his wife.  He had every right to refuse the rather large job set before him.  And he could have asked for someone else to come alongside of Mary and help her with this baby whose name means God Saves.

But he didn’t.  He accepted the job.  He humbly stood next to Mary.  He took care of her.  He blessed Jesus.  And he allowed the story of Jesus to be HisStory (Get it?  God’s story.  History).

Joseph, not a lot is said about him.

Ladies, it is because he was humble.

But more than that.

He was also strong.

There’s more.  Joseph willingly raised a child that was not his own.

And, most importantly, Joseph put God first.

Lastly, Joseph remained faithful to the Word of God, bringing Jesus to the Temple to be blessed.

Ladies, it’s a simple answer, I know.  But let’s take a look at it again.

Humble.  Strong.  Willing.

God first.

Protector and provider.

Do-er not just hear-er of the Word of God.

All characteristics of a great man.

And, so, to all the single ladies—I encourage you.  Hold on.  And ask yourself:  Is this man my Joseph?  Because, if he is, then you know he’s God’s best for you.

You deserve him.  Just wait and see.

Failure to Live Faith Results in Failure to Teach Faith

I have been the VERY unfortunate teacher of Genesis of recent.

Boy! What a way to start an article, eh?!

Very. Unfortunate. Teacher. Of the Bible.

I sound like an extremely swell Christian, don’t I?

But let me elaborate, and I hope that you will join me for this article and journey.

You see, we have been following the reading encouragement of Good Morning Girls to read through the Bible with a group of ladies.

And we have had an AWESOME semester to date.  The books have been fantastic, the conversations unbelievable, the ladies (from all over the world in our study:  Poland, United States, Russia, Turkmenistan, India to name a few) have been purely lovely, and the topics OOOOH Boy!  Tough.

But real women like TOUGH.  Right?

Well, when it comes to reading the Bible, I say, “Eat nails.”

I believe the common expression is, “Eat your Wheaties!”

Or, in general, just prepare for the difficult.  No wimpy women, please 😉  Okay, wimpy women still welcome.

We started by reading Esther.  Then we read 1 and 2nd Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Psalm 1 and 2, and now we have been reading through Genesis.

But, you see, we did not start with an easy book.  I mean, really?  Is Esther really a lovely story about a young girl becoming a queen?

I don’t personally think so.  I mean a queen was banished from her marriage and position because of her failure to satisfy the instruction of her husband.

And then women from all over the dynasty were chosen to come and present themselves to the king where he would get to decide upon a new queen.  And Esther was chosen to be one of the potential suitors but was instructed to NOT share her heritage.

And then there was a plot to kill a king but his life was spared; later an entire race for failure to honor one man in authority; a woman that did not want pretty much any job given to her; then boldness accompanied by a change of heart—despite if she should die; later a hanging;  and then the opportunity for the people scheduled to be slaughtered the right to defend themselves and their properties.

I mean.  Esther.  Did she really want to be queen?  Did she have a choice?  What fate did become of her later when one of Xerxes sons took over the throne?

And, yet, the conclusion is just as Esther states, (I’m paraphrasing), “Perhaps she was chosen and put in her position for ‘Such a time as this.'”

And currently, in Genesis, it has not gotten any easier.

Our conversations are honest and blunt.  And we question the people in the Bible and the scriptures we have read.

And there is one question we find ourselves asking over and over again after watching these people fail big time.  Not once.  But once more.  And then yet again.

We wonder—how can God use these people?  They are okay.  Pretty normal.  Not that courageous or strong.  Not too convicted at times or quick to make decisions that were not okay at others.

And why, sometimes, were such harsh punishments bestowed upon some?

And how could Abraham be considered a great man of faith?  Not just once but twice he claimed that his wife was his sister so that his life would be spared?  Wouldn’t it be better for him to defend his wife with his very life?

Oh, my, my friends.  I haven’t even begin to touch all of the scripture we have covered.

Sodom and Gomorrah?

Lot.

His daughters.

Tragic tragedy after tragic tragedy.

And we are not shying away from any scripture.  Not any verse.  Not any choice, decision, or consequence of action.

Lives altered.  Years numbered.  Families made.  Families destroyed.  Children had.  Children abandoned.

Where am I going with this?

This past week as we finished reading through the story of Sodom and Gomorrah with Lot, his wife, his daughters, his sons-in-law, and the death of his wife, sons-in-law and then what took place after with his daughters, my stomach was sick and my heart heavy.

But let me first say, If you want to read a pretty story without gory details and blunt honesty, find a different book.  The Bible has never shied away from sharing the ugly truth along with the redeeming truth.

And, if you only look at it in parts, you will miss the beauty.

Which also came by way of ugly.  Death by brutal crucifixion.

But let me stop rambling and get to the title of this blog post: Failure to Live Faith Results in Failure to Teach Faith.

You see, story after story in the Bible shows men and women taking life upon their own shoulders. They choose to be angry or self-indulgent.  They choose to live loosely or make choices based on fear of their future.  And they choose to go about their lives in ways that separate themselves from God.

Sin will always separate us from God.

And, believe it or not, when we fail to live in faith we have opened up a whoop-bottom (I did want to write the other word for emphasis) can of trouble.

Because when we fail to live in faith we fail to teach faith.

And that, my friends, is the moral of my rambling…

So many times through the scriptures we have read so far, people have taken it upon their own shoulders and lives to make decisions EVEN if God has directed them in a different path.

As I continue to teach through the scriptures, not shying away from any, I had a HUGE heart check!

Am I faithful to teach my children that despite an overwhelming task set before me; despite fear of the future of the unknown; or despite feeling as if better is deserved—I must teach faith!

As a Christian that believes wholly in God the father and the gift of salvation through his son, Jesus Christ, I struggle daily.  I struggle daily with doing things my own way.

I struggle with fear.  Fear that what I believe needs to take place and how it may not come to fruition.

I struggle with trust.  Trusting that if I remain faithful to God’s instructions, His way will be done.

And perhaps that is also why I struggle.  Because what if God’s will is not my will?  What if I desire a different outcome in my finite mind than he has planned in all of his omnipresent knowledge?

What if????

All of these questions and doubt and fear are probably EXACTLY why the scriptures in the Bible share the blunt honesty of the stories of the men and women in them.

Because these people were not perfect.  They were not all full of “God is awesome and I will never sway in my faith of him!’

They were human.  Human and fearful.  Human and fearful and real.

And real is sometimes very ugly.

Ugly and not understood.

We can all shake our heads in understanding.  What we need to do, however, is STOP.

Stop living in fear.  Stop living in half-hearted faith.  Stop living as examples of “I’ll take care of this on my own!”

You may not know the future.  Heck, you may not even know your current present.  But what you do need to know is that God is here in your present.  And God is there—in your future.

And I believe one of the main reasons the scriptures are so clear to show the good with the bad and the ugly is so that we can see that God has always had a plan, but sometimes we like to try to change it—instead screwing it all up.

And the greatest lesson I have learned along this reading journey is this.  God’s way will be done.  But how we go about fulfilling it or accepting it is up to us.

Do I want to live in fear of the unknown and make choices along the way that God had wished I wouldn’t.  Teaching my children and those around me that faith is only okay when I don’t have fear?

Or do I want to live in faith.  Making difficult decisions along the way despite the unknown, my faith remains?

In faith, I am choosing the latter.  And, I hope through my life, my children learn to trust and have faith.  That my children learn to overcome fear.  That my children learn that God has, is, and will be there.

And we are to live according to His Will in our lives-even if we are unsure what that is.

Because that is what it means to have faith.  And this is what I hope to teach.

After all, as FDR once stated, “…the only thing we have to fear is…fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”

And when you choose fear over faith, you, too, are paralyzing your efforts needed to convert retreat AWAY from God’s will in your life to ADVANCE for what plans he has for you.

Today, my friends, that is what I pray for me.  For my husband.  For my children.  And for you.

God bless.

My daughter asked about the first miracle of Jesus…How do you tell her it was wine?

My husband has taken to telling stories at the dinner table that encourage my daughter for school. This past week marked the end of the first month of Polish school that she has started and nearly completed.

Woot-woot. Victory.

She seems to have fared fairly well. We’re even doing okay keeping up with the homework. And she is even eating school lunches—which are vastly different than American school lunches (like couscous and meat sauce for day 1 or ham and other random meats soup for day 4). This is a big victory, too, as she has had to readjust her palette upon returning to Poland.

For example. They put fresh parsley on everything. Potatoes, Meats, Soup. Everything. Which is great—when you’re an adult. But when you are 8, it is like, “What is this green thing that they are putting on every piece of food I am eating?!” We’ve had to start telling the restaurants “Without parsley, please,'” as she readjusts to the Polish cuisine. But I also told her, “Ada girl, you better start eating it because soon school will start and you won’t have a choice.”

At home, parsley was a battle, but at school it seems to have been a non-subject. She just eats what they serve and likes it 😉

Life with kids, eh?!

It is cute, however, because she was playing “restaurant” at home the other day and made the menu. 3 of the items were Polish specialties: Zurek, Barszcz, and Pierogi. So we are making progress in the food arena…Especially if she includes barszcz on a menu (it’s beet soup).  Now when she makes a menu that includes mushrooms, you know we will have won!

School.  Oh, it is so difficult.  Everyone asks if we kept up with Polish while away.  The answer is a Big Fat No!

We originally intended to keep up with Polish, but, you have to understand, our daughter had never lived in the United States.  And so every experience was like Disneyland.  And every day was a big ball of bubbling joy.

She did things like swim team and dive team.  She did things like soccer teams for girls and softball.

She joined chorus for two years and the running club for one.  She even went to circus camp.  CIRCUS CAMP!

It was awesome.

School in America.  You can say whatever you want about school in America, but we loved school in America.

It taught character traits and exploration.  It taught teamwork and discovery.  It taught respect of authorities and looking out for others.

School in America was AWESOME!  So awesome, in fact, that my daughter continues to wear her school PRIDE shirts even while in Poland.

Our intentions were to continue her Polish while in the States—but, you know what, living in the States is an invaluable experience that I wanted her to soak up and enjoy.  I wanted her to live every minute and smile as much as possible.

I wanted her to play freely, read much, and learn about everything.

Now she is back in Poland.  And she sits.  And she does workbooks.  It’s okay.  Her teacher is precious and her friends are grand.  But we are so happy that while our daughter lived in America that she got to experience America.

Funny insert story.  The other day at PE the PE teacher said to the kids, “Okay, boys, follow me!  Girls go over there.”  The boys went and played football (soccer) and the girls were put in a small ball pit.  My daughter was not amused and did not find it fun, as it was a lot of girls crowded into a small pit of balls.  She said, “Mom, she didn’t even ask if any of the girls wanted to play football!”  Oh my precious daughter—hang in there!  And we told her, “Next time tell the teacher that you want to play football, too.”  But that is hard for an 8-year-old to do.  I understand.

Anyhow…Back to the blog posting.

All of the above brings us back to present day Poland.  She is in the 3rd class.  And she works really hard each and every day.  She receives two hours a week of Polish as a Second Language, and we send her for study hall twice a week.

It’s different and the language will largely be a barrier all year.  But she is trying hard and that’s exactly what we’ve asked of her—to try hard!

But that brings me to the first miracle of Jesus.

We were talking about firsts in the Bible.  And then we asked her what story she wanted to hear about in regards to the Bible.  She said, “What about the first miracle of Jesus?  What was that?!”

Rich and I glanced across the dinner table at each other and paused.

Well, hmmmm…How do we tell her it was wine?  Because, honestly, living in Europe, she would find that a bit fun.  And funny.  And the significance on the miracle might be lost on the fact that while it was not healing a leper, it was still a miracle of God takes on the elements and the disciples believed proportions!

And so we sat for a moment.  And we thought.

And this is what we said…

You know, Adelyne.  The first miracle of Jesus was turning water into wine at a wedding.

Giggle.  Yep.  We knew that would happen.

“Why?” followed.  Fair enough.

Well, you see, Adelyne.  Jesus and his mother and some disciples were at a wedding (See John 2:1-11).  And the wedding was a very special event, as all weddings are.  And Jesus was not yet known to many to be the Son of God.

Big eyes.  Listening.  Because, at 8, every story she has ever heard is about how Jesus is the Son of God.  I think sometimes we forget that there was Jesus, son of Joseph and Mary, before he revealed himself to the world as Jesus Son of God.

And they ran out of wine.  And so his mommy came and told him that there wasn’t any more wine (maybe in hopes that he would help somehow).

Look of confusion.

But, Adelyne.  This is where it gets really special.  Did you know that Jesus didn’t just run out and buy some more wine?  Or he didn’t just make any ol’ plain wine.  He made the BEST!  Out of water he made the BEST wine.

Eyes widen.

Let me tell you, honey…That is exactly how Jesus takes care of each and every one of us each and every day.  He doesn’t run out and look for other people to solve our problems.

He doesn’t just do a so-so job.

He doesn’t even wait until the very end to give us our gifts.

Jesus takes control of all of the elements and gives us the best!

He cares for us the best.  He loves us the best.  And he saves us the best.  Because that is who he is.

So Daddy and I want you to know that when you encounter something in your life, you go straight to Jesus because he has your best intentions in mind.

Nodding head.

What do you think about that Adelyne?

“Can I have some wine?”

Giggle, giggle.  Sigh…

And then we prayed, together, as a family,  “Dear Lord, thank you for this example.  How you took control of the elements.  How you blessed this family.   How you turned water into wine.  And not just any, old wine.  The best wine!  Because you care best of all about us.  Please help each and every one of us to remember who you are—almighty Son of God—as we enter each new day and to believe in you.  Amen!”

And my daughter said, “Amen.”

You know.  I thought that it would be much harder to tell that story to a child.  But, in the end, it wasn’t. Because each story told in the Bible has great significance.  And there is no reason that any of us should falter in sharing any or all of them.  The difficult stories of the Old Testament.  Tell them.  The miraculous stories of the New Testament.  Tell them.

Because, and this is a big B, because in each story of the Bible, God is revealed.  God is glorified.  And we should never shame in sharing what it is He has shared through His word.

Why?

Because everything he does he does because he loves us best of all.

Amen.

People are more important than buses.

The other day we were a bit early to pick up Adelyne from school.  So we were outside letting Maxwell run around.  One of her former teachers came out and stopped to visit with us.  After about 10 minutes of conversation, a big, white bus drives off.  The teacher looks at it and said, “Oh, that was my bus.”

Richard and I were so sorry and told her so profusely.  You see, in our village the bus only comes once or twice an hour.

She looked at us and said, “It doesn’t matter.  I believe people are more important than buses.”

And we continued our conversation.

On the day of our 13th anniversary since we stepped foot in Poland, I would like to say this is one of the greatest lessons I have learned while living in Poland:  People.

People are the most important.

Thank you, Poland, for teaching us such truths.

1 John 4:7  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

absolutely, without a doubt, the right perspective!

oh my dear friends. be prepared to laugh your way through this article i am about to share called give me gratitude or give me debt WHILE truly humbling your spirit and soul.

so many times since we have returned to poland i have GRUMBLED…GRUMBLED…GRUMBLED! believe me, i have just come from the land of mickey mouse—poland is a different life for me right now.

BUT this article brings up a hugely vivid conversation i had in our soup kitchen one day (our soup kitchen meaning our foundation’s soup kitchen: www.breadoflife.pl) with one of the volunteers.

setting: soup kitchen, basement of a church, around 2002 or 2003, poznan, poland.

we were preparing the food for the room full of homeless and elderly, very poor people (especially at that time in poland). it’s a very cold country, so not only was the warm food going to be a blessing but the warm atmosphere a godsend. and i was having a conversation with one of the brightest guys i know.  we’ll just call him mr. phd.  it was a time when poland was in the process of becoming an eu member (2004 they joined). and our conversation went like this:

“people in poland complain all of the time about how poor we are….but we are not poor. we have running water. we have electricity. so many around the world don’t even have those.  we are actually rich.”

now, the people we were serving were obviously not rich.

he wasn’t speaking of those.  he was speaking of the every day man or woman.  He was speaking of those that have but grumble about the “have nots“.

i have found myself being that grumbling person of late.  and it’s not a person that i like very much.

i would like to say that TODAY…today i am so thankful i read this post.  it’s brilliantly humorous with the perfect perspective attached to it.

and, today, after reading it, i hope that you, too, only worry about filling your kitchen with love.  love and dancing.  both simultaneously!

be prepared to laugh while humbling your spirit…

xoxo b

since glennon shared a peek into her kitchen, i will share a photo i took only two days ago (before i read this article) into my own kitchen.  hope you enjoy!

yes, my son, maxwell, in the diaper, was coloring in a book on the ground while eating a dry tortilla for lunch—which he also decided to decorate.  jojo sat in her chair for hours while i made pumpkin puree and apple sauce.  and adelyne…sweet adelyne made homemade play doh.  one recipe batch split into 6 colors.

so much fun in our kitchen!

now, here’s the article from Momastery just for you:

Give Me Gratitude or Give Me Debt!

also, for those of you that battle addictions, i think that you need encouragement from her about page.  Pretty awesome God:  About Glennon!

Are you a church CEO?

I saw it first on Facebook…Because, you know, it’s the place to go to get the news.

Someone wrote, “Tomorrow you’ll see a lot of CEOs at church.  Christmas and Easter Only”

Someone is funny.

Someone is right.

But the more I thought about it, I thought—if you are only a CEO, why go at all?

What?  You say…(imagine it being said like the Geiko commercial)

Wouldn’t you think twice a year is better than not at all?

Well, of course I think twice a year is better than not at all.  But let’s take a look at the two times that you go:

Christmas.

Easter.

What are those two days?

Why, major holidays.  You say.

And you’re right.  Two major holidays—both religiously and commercially.  And I do.  I do.  I do love them both! (Both religiously and commercially)

But, again, I ask you—Why do you go on those two days?

For which you’ll probably answer, TRADITION! (All Fiddler on the Roof style)

Or To see family…which is a great reason to go.

So, I don’t want you to think that I am bashing your trip to the kaplica (chapel)—but I am questioning why you choose to be a CEO.

Let me explain it this way…

Christmas.  It’s a foundational holiday to the Christian faith.  We believe with all that we are that, during this season, Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, Mary.  Mary was engaged to Joseph.  But Joseph is only the earthly father of Jesus.  The father of Jesus is God.  It’s a miracle.  There is no other way for us to explain it.  And we believe—by faith—that it is so.

And this is the day that you choose to go to church.

Then there is Easter.  It’s THE most important holiday—holy day—to be celebrated in the Christian faith.  Without the death and resurrection of Jesus the Christ, we would not have an opportunity to know him.  Personally.  To walk with him.  Daily.  Before Christ’s death and resurrection, there had to be a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins.  Christ, the man that was born of the virgin, Mary, became obedient unto death…becoming the final sacrifice.  The ultimate sacrifice for all of mankind (womankind, too, in case you are gender sensitive—smile and wink).  Giving us the opportunity for new life.  In Him.

These are big deals.

And these are big days.

But these days speak of BIG FAITH.  BIG BELIEF.  BIG.  BIG.  BIG.

After all, on the days you choose to go, you are saying, I am here on a day that I believe a miracle took place—a virgin gave birth to the Son of God.

And…

I am here on a day that I believe that same Son of God rose from the dead.  He had been dead for 2 previous days.  This is the 3rd day.  There was a tomb (cave, resting place) that he was placed in.  There were Roman guards by the tomb.  And yet, somehow, he was not in this tomb on the 3rd day.  Not only that—but this same man that died and was placed in a guarded tomb, later appeared to many hundreds of people.  Hundreds.  Before ascending to heaven.  Hundreds.

I believe it is not Happy Zombie Day (like you will see without a doubt on Facebook on Easter day).  But it is instead, He has risen indeed.  Hallelujah!  He, the ultimate sacrifice, became death for me.  But death had NO hold on him.

No.Hold.On.Him.

Yep.  I am at church on a day that believes this.  Celebrates this.  Proclaims this.  And chooses to live by faith THIS!

It’s all pretty incredible.  And requires great faith.  Which brings me back to you, CEO, why do you choose to go on these days that are so big?

Why not just go two times a year on other days that may be a lot gentler—like say Valentine’s Day?  Or perhaps the 4th of July?

Or do you go on these days because you need that reminder—be it twice a year—that we all need to live like this?

As people with great faith.

 

Jesus good! Santa bad?

There is a Christmas song and it sings, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year…”

I couldn’t agree MORE!

I love Christmas.  I am like ELF (you know the one I speak of…).  “SANTA!  I know him!”

I love the Christmas trees, Christmas lights, Christmas decorations, I love the Advent calendars, Christmas Eve services, and the constant caroling through the speakers on the radio…

I love the cookies, the cookie exchanges, the neighborly cookie gifts, and the Christmas parties galore!

I love the giving, giving, giving spirits of people all around me.  I love the sparkling eyes of those that receive.

I love the Polar Express and the “trip” to the North Pole.

I love the letters to Santa…

And I LOVE Elf on the Shelf (even though ours are elves from different shelves).

But it’s funny…people are raised and brought up in many, many ways.  Totally okay, folks.  No problem here. The problem I have is when people feel bad for being Santa fans because they love Jesus and they think both cannot exist together.

Totally breaks my heart.

Let me break it down for you…My mom—raised with Santa.  Cool.  My dad and his sisters—raised only with the “Hope that St. Nick would soon be there.”  Noses pressed up against the window, believing in their hearts he would stop by…even though his existence was neither confirmed nor denied by his parents.

Then my mom and dad had kids and BOY did they have fun.  One year, Santa’s reindeer even left a barnyard mess on top of our roof!  We all climbed the ladder to the roof and witnessed that Santa’s reindeer were totally on top of our roof by the “deposits” they made!

Other years, we heard the bells outside…And, other times, Santa even stopped by on Christmas Eve, with his busy schedule and all, to give us a hug and a reminder to be good little girls and boys.

Let’s not forget The Evening News…The News always tracked Santa’s sleigh.  And our eyes would be glued on the map of the world and where Santa was nearing next…

Santa Mouse always left presents in the tree.

And Christmas morning was a magical experience, walking into the room and seeing the twinkling lights, the ornate tree, the stuffed stocking, and the presents with our names spelled out correctly on them!

Our parents never failed to tell us that Santa loved us very much.

Can you tell that I’m a HUGE Santa fan?!  Huge.  I really do give Will Ferrell an ELF-SIZED run for his money.  Hand over those tights and that hat, Ferrell.  Now!

But let me say this…as exciting and magical and lovely as Santa is in our home, our children (more appropriately our daughter since our little man is only 1) have never forgotten or failed to celebrate Christ as the Reason for the Season.

You see…It’s okay, folks, to love Jesus and raise your children to also love Santa.

Because, when it comes down to it, they know—they know that Santa loves them and gives them gifts.

But Jesus loves them and gives them life!

There is a big difference between a Barbie Car and the opportunity to know, talk to, and walk with Jesus.

It’s huge…Not even Santa’s sleigh can compare with that.

And so, we, in our happy and cozy household, love Santa—but we, in our happy and cozy household, serve Jesus.

I saw and understood that even as the tiniest of a mere child…just like our daughter sees and understands that today.

So, Jesus lovers…If you somehow feel “guilt” over the excitement of Santa in your home, stop.  Give yourself a break.

Because, truly, as long as your family loves Jesus, your children will always know…A Barbie car does not compare to Jesus the real Star!

Now, go and enjoy your holiday…in the holiday spirit that you choose.

Santa—a-okay!

No Santa—it’s not the end of the day!

Jesus—all the way!

Merry upcoming Christmas, my friends.  I can’t wait to see and hear all about your holidays!

With a love for Jingle Bells,

Brooke

(aka the next ELF!  Hollywood, give me a call.  I’m ready!)