Grandpa’s Shoes

My mom took this picture in a photography class 17 years ago. Shoes of my dad’s, my daughter’s.

She has spent her life following in Grandpa’s footsteps. From her first steps, where he went, she went. As she grew, he kept special hats and shirts for her, just like his. In fact, they were his… so she could be his buddy. Doing projects. Doing stuff.

And how he loved those footsteps following him. She is bigger now, obviously. Her steps are slowed with teenage pacing when she visits. No longer running after him with every step he makes.

Physically that is… Her heart still follows Grandpa. Every move, thought, joke. She takes it in, loving him.

Adoring everything about her Grandpa. And when her footsteps take her into adulthood, even if they are miles from him, the influence will carry her. She’ll remember the ways of Grandpa.

The way they built together, one step of love after another.

Fantastic, Easy Cranberry Bread

My friend Sandy gave me some of this bread as a gift last night, I had to share the recipe with you. It is delish! Made into small loaves, it wraps up into perfect gifts. My loaf didn’t have raisin, but instead extra cranberries. Just like I LOVE it…

Grandmother’s Famous Cranberry Bread

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp. grated orange peel
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1 1/2 cups light raisins
• 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped

(can substitute more cranberries for raisins to have an all-berry bread)

Sift dry ingredients in large bowl.  Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly.  Add egg, orange peel, and orange juice all at once; stir just until mixture is evenly moist.  Fold in cranberries and raisins.

Spoon into greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour, 10 minutes for 9x5x3 pan; 35 minutes or so for mini loaf pans.  Cool on rack.  Enjoy!

“When Light Was Born” by Stacey Covell

A special thanks to my third guest Advent writer. Please enjoy the inspiring writing of Stacey Covell…

When Light Was Born
By Stacey Covell

It was nothing.
A non-event.
Except it wasn’t.

She was a pregnant, unmarried teenager.
He was trusting in faith and love.
They were both scared.
Still, in the dark of night they had faith.
They were following the words of their Lord.

A journey.
Days and nights.
Travelling slowly, uncomfortably.
She was nearly full term.

Pain. Labor.
No hospitals. No room.
Babies don’t wait.
A barn. Animals. Stink.
That star lit Bethlehem night.

A baby was born.
Naked, helpless, dependent.
The most humble start.
A new family.
Sitting in a barn.

The baby. A King.
In a moment, the world was changed.
Light was born.

Stacey is a fiction writer and poet.

She lives in Dublin, Ireland. She loves the green, but misses the snow in her native MN. 

She loves to see beautiful things come from the unexpected.

She blogs at One Beautiful Thing , please check her out!

And The Mailbox Sang, “Don’t Stop, Receiving…”

I like Christmas cards. Yeah, I said it.

May I make the case for continuing this tradition of sending and receiving real, paper cards?

We are busy. I get that. I am taking a stand today, in rebellion against the countless articles and statements that say we are too busy for this old-fashioned practice. Ba-humbug to that! Will you consider three reasons why these cards matter?

1. People, relationships matter. We move across countries, continents. We change jobs, marry, suffer loss and celebrate great joy. Sometimes all we have is this simple card all year to catch up. It matters to people. It  matters to me. I want to know how you are, to see your hand written name, to know you are ok. I want you to know that you matter to me when you receive mine.

2. We are not designed to be Scrooge. Just because a national glossy tells you to cross people off your list if you don’t hear back in a few years, well, I contend that we send not to receive, but to give. This gesture of goodwill is not designed to be a game where we count. A scoreboard of how many people like us as much as we like them. Let’s send them because we can. Because we have hearts of love and generosity…

3. Which brings me to my final point. Generosity. Have we considered that those cards might be all the Christmas cheer someone receives? Someone might be housebound, unable to be out in the hustle and bustle. That piece of paper becomes a ministry. There is someone who might feel no one remembers her this year, a man who is burdened with responsibilities. That simple card might, just might, remind someone of why we celebrate. Love.

Are we too busy for cards? Are they a hassle? Sometimes I am. And they are. Then I pause, and reconsider, and decide to pull out my pens and stamps. It doesn’t matter if you send me a card back (though I hope you will), you’ll receive one.

Because I love you.

Let Your Homes Speak Christmas

I was 14 or so when the collection of Christmas items began. My BFF and I exchanged Santa items in bold red and green for years, every chance possible. We even at one point had a Santa shower curtain and toilet seat cover. Tacky, I know.

We were young and it was the late 80’s. Enough said.

As my faith began to grow, my focus changed. I am not anti-Santa, rather, pro-Jesus. The collection shifted and reduced to special pieces that reflected our values differently.

We wanted our home to be a place of rest, peace. Not just jolly plastic figurines.

I was psyched when Dayspring came out with this Redeemed Christmas line. The last few years a gnawing awareness of a loose Christ centered focus irritated me. The temptations and distractions around us can easily jar our focus repeatedly.

I decided to start countering those distractions with purposeful placement of items that remind me of what, whom we are celebrating.

Stopping For Directions

Alice in Wonderland:

“Read the directions and directly you will be directed in the right direction.”

Do you, like me, spend time rushing in the direction of the urgent only to find yourself misguided?  I feel my stress levels rising on days when I don’t understand where I am going.

Logically, it is all there. The calendar squares bulge with reminders of appointments, practices, meetings. Fun stuff is written in the teensiest font, desperate to find its space around the bold headlines.

Lately I feel like I am missing the point. Again. I’ve been here before, likely you’ve joined me. We glance this way and that as we grab our keys and head out. Little forethought is allowed, except for strategic planning. How to make it work… 

For me, faith is the grounding of life. When I don’t make time to stop and read the directions, my days end up overcommitted and unfullfilling. I can’t afford to waste time (=life) not knowing my plan. My purpose.  When I start my day committed instead of reactive, days are fruitful. I am directed in the right direction.

What is the point? We can all “make it work” to achieve check marks, a day finished, so to speak. That is not enough for me, I hope it isn’t enough for you.

When a day is offered to God, I achieve the same amount of work perhaps, but I am satisfied. Even in tiredness. A fullness of being rules. Not a frazzled, verge of tears mess. I have a choice each day, every moment of stopping for directions.

Want To Sign Up For Tribe Writers?

Several people have asked about the writing course I am taking. I feel so deeply that it was a life changing experience, I am going through it again. The kickoff is today for another round of classes.

If you’d like to work with Jeff Goins, here is a link. 

I can’t wait to take the relaunch of TribeWriters. I KNOW several of you have stories to tell…that you really want to tell. I understand the investment, honestly I used almost my last cents, literally. The best writing move I think I have made. The return is unbelievable.

The content is superb, support awesome, but it the PEOPLE just have been the surprise bonus. I can’t recommend this course enough if you are interested in blogging, interested in telling a story, interested in seeing what you have the potential to be.

Tribe Writers Rock. The community of sincere support is A-Mazing. And you have nothing to lose…I hope you’ll consider it.

(I am signing up as an affiliate, fyi. I would get a commission, so if you are thinking of it, please use the link. Don’t sign up for me though, this is purely because I believe in this course having potential to change and challenge YOU too)

I don’t sell things, this course speaks for iteslf. I’ll be adding a link on the sidebar for a permanent place to go…

8 Track Tapes Are Not The New Thing

In this season of”want” lists, can I state the obvious?

8 track tape cassettes are NOT the latest and greatest. Anymore.

 The things we see for sale today will someday be junk. Our life is rich, meaningful, filled with memories. Not plastic.

Matthew 6:19-21

¹⁹ “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Christmas Chalkboards and Angels

Chalkboard templates are all over Pintrest right now. I modified this idea from  Nest Of Posies. A friend found a fantastic deal on cupboard doors, so we got together and created a new display for our homes last night.

Miniature scenes using bottle brush trees are also popular. I took mine a step further, adding a tiny 50’s era group of angels my Grandma gifted me with. It was important for them to be safe from breakage and visible, this was a perfect idea.

“How to Rediscover Jesus at Christmas” by James Prescott

A big thank you to James Prescott sharing his writing with us today…

How to Rediscover Jesus at Christmas

A major supermarket in the UK has recently begun it’s Christmas advertising campaign. The slogan they have adopted this year is ‘Christmas isn’t just one day”.

Every time I see it I feel a twinge of anger.

Now in a sense, Christmas isn’t just about one day. It’s about the fulfillment of an age-old prophecy, and the birth of a man whose life echoes through eternity.

But I suspect this isn’t what the advertisers are talking about.

The advert reminds me how much Jesus has been forgotten at Christmas. Him & His story have become at best a tradition, a sideshow, or even worse, completely ignored.

The way our culture treats Christmas, you may as well take the Christ out of the name. It may as well be called ‘The Winter Festival’ or ‘Consumermas’.

But you know what? Christmas is not about shopping. It’s not about the tree. It’s not about decorations. Those are all nice, I like them all (well, maybe not the shopping..).

But Christmas is about Christ. It’s about Jesus.

It’s about the fulfillment of God’s promise. A time to celebrate the love of a Father who gives up His own Son to save His people. About a Son who gave up eternity and all of Heaven, to become a poor son of a carpenter.

It’s a celebration of the truth God hasn’t forgotten us. It’s about the greatest gift of all.

The sad thing is, even as a Christian I can easily get so caught up in the consumer-Christmas aspects of the season I forget about Jesus. It’s why I love advent. It’s a season which, advent calendars aside, has largely been left unconsumerised.

Advent helps me connect again with the truth of the Christmas story. It gives me space to reflect on the hope, joy and peace which Jesus coming ultimately brings.

In many ways, Advent saves Christmas. Because as we prepare for the coming of Christ, we have our eyes opened again to why He came. We connect again with the true meaning of Christmas.

We rediscover the hope we have through Jesus.
We sense again the joy of His coming.
We are awakened again to the peace which transcends understanding.

So when Christmas Day comes, we are ready to celebrate the coming of the King.

All of us will be surrounded this season by adverts, messages selling us the consumer Christmas. At times we may struggle to hold on to the true reason for the season.

So this Christmas season, look for Jesus. Even in the midst of the consumer-driven rush.

Whatever you are doing, wherever you are, look for Jesus. In the shopping centre, when you’re decorating the tree and wrapping the presents.

Look for Jesus.

Jesus is there even in those moments, if want to find Him.
And then on Christmas Day, celebrate His birthday. Celebrate the coming of our Saviour.

Jesus is the reason for Christmas. No matter what consumerism says.

James Prescott is a writer & creative exploring digital media & our divine journey. He blogs regularly at http://www.jamesprescott.co.uk and is a regular guest blogger for various sites. Follow him on Twitter at @JamesPrescott77