Let's Build a Snowman!

But now hath God set the members everyone of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body.   

I Corinthians 12:18-20

We're planning a Christmas party here at God's Two Acres. We're all bringing recipes/instructions for building an edible snowman. I saw the coolest little marshmallow cupcake snowman on a commercial the other day, but now I can't seem to find it online. Guess I'll have to depend on memory and guesswork. 

I'm glad God didn't depend on guesswork when he constructed me or when he built His church. When we build snowmen, we build the body, then add the eyes, a carrot nose, a mouth, the scarf and buttons, arms, and maybe a broomstick. Everything is joined together and balanced so the snowman doesn't tumble over; and he looks like a recognizable resemblance of a person. We're copying, though ever so poorly, the greatest creation of God - a person. Children often complain of copycats but I always tell them a copycat is paying the highest form of flattery because others wouldn't try to copy something they didn't think was good. Snowmen are a lot like Christians. They're white! Salvation washes away our sin and makes us whiter than snow (Ps. 51:7).

God compares the church to the human body. Every member of the church has a special job, a purpose that helps that particular church and advances the kingdom of God. If we all tried to be the pastor, who would lead singing or sing in the choir? If we all tried to play the piano or organ, what a racket; and where would be the preaching? If we all tried to teach, who would listen? Even the jobs no one notices are important. We definitely would notice a dirty sanctuary and a smelly bathroom. In smaller churches we may multi-task to get all the work done but we still have to work together for everything to work correctly. And like a snowman, the church must be made of individuals whose sins have been washed away. The church must be whiter than snow. 

How do you fit into the work of the church? First you must be born again or you cannot be part of a church. Then God will put you in the position He feels best suited for your abilities.  Never feel your work is unimportant or is more important than someone else. Remember that those who were given talents were held accountable for using those talents and then given more according to their abilities (Matt 25:14-30). 

Blessings for a white Christmas,

Gail

Hey Kids:

Wanna build an edible snowman?

Have mom or dad help you make a batch of cupcakes.

You'll need some white icing ( confectioner sugar, melted butter and a tablespoon or two of milk will make plenty).

A couple of marshmallows for each cupcake.

Eyes and mouth may be chocolate chips.

A nose can be candy corn or jelly beans.

Chocolate chips again for buttons.

A fruit rollup cut in strips will make a nice scarf.

Pretzels are easy arms.

A chocolate cream cookie, aka Oreo, twisted and opened can be the base of the hat

a mini Reese's cup will make the top of the hat.  

Frost the top of each cupcake. 

Add the first marshmallow.

Place a dab a icing on the top of the first marshmallow and add the second marshmallow.

More icing on top of the second marshmallow and add the base of the hat.

Icing on the hat base, then add the Reese's piece.

The additional pieces may be pushed into the marshmallows or stuck on with a dab more icing for glue. 

Roll down a small clear gift bag. Place a base if white sugar, then place the snowman on top. Gently lift the bag up over the snowman. Tie the top off with a twist tie and maybe a little ribbon. Now you have gifts for friends and family. 

Give Thanks

O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. 
Psalms 105:1

You know that picture in our minds we all get of the Indian brave who walks into the Pilgrim village in the spring of 1621 to show the Pilgrims how to plant corn? Wasn’t his name Squanto? Or didn’t any one ever tell you about Squanto?

This Thanksgiving tale of the Indian who greeted the Pilgrims with an English “Welcome” and then taught them to plant corn and fish, always seemed to me to be just that – a tale, until I learned how God had brought it all about - A slave ship sailing along a shore, kidnapping young boys and taking them back to Spain; an entire tribe wiped out by disease; a lone man returning from Europe to find no one left. There’s far more to the truth than meets the eye here. God is always taking the evil man devises and turning it into good for those that love him. The slave traders of Europe had meant it for evil against the Indians but God used it for good for the people who came seeking to worship him in a new land.

In the Bible Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery. They thought he probably died in Egypt until they went there to buy food. Who should they find to provide for them, but their own brother, in control of all the food of Egypt. Joseph’s brothers meant it for evil against Joseph, but God had used it for good.

Tragedy seems to surround us on every hand, but God has not left us alone. He is working all things for our good. Pray for those involved in all the tragedies. Help wherever you can. Do not be afraid, because God is with us through every circumstance.

Blessings,

Gail

Hey Kids!

What can you find out about the first Thanksgiving? About Squanto? What can you tell this Thanksgiving about God’s goodness to you and to God’s people? Won’t you share God’s blessings with us, so that we too might rejoice with you?

The One Less Traveled

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. Proverbs 14:12 NKJV

I love Cades Cove and my favorite spot is the John Oliver cabin. The walk to and from the cabin is a spectacular view. Thousands, probably millions walk the trail to the cabin every year. It's incredible how quiet and respectful everyone seems to be. With so many others surrounding you, there is still that sense of peace and quiet. We've all come looking for the same thing, I suppose, peace and quiet. Out behind the cabin, other trails lead off into the woods. I don't know that I have ever ventured down any of them very far. They seem just a quieter place to sit and contemplate. But most of us are hurrying to the next point of interest and don't have the time to sit. We turn and go back among the busy crowd as quickly as we came.

A quiet place to contemplate - most people don't really want that quiet place. We don't have to think about things when our lives are busy and filled with noise. We complain, but when confronted with quiet we often turn to the TV or radio or social media. Even now, we are rushing into Christmas, almost overlooking the Thanksgiving season of quiet contemplation of the blessings of our merciful God. We gather together to eat in ten minutes the foods it has taken hours, perhaps days to prepare. Then we settle into a football game. Did we really stop and contemplate the blessings we have received or the One who daily loads us up with these benefits? 

Our title is from a poem by Robert Frost. He knew his choice of "the road" he traveled would make all the difference in his life. Our choice will make all the difference in our lives as well. Actually, it will make an eternal difference. If we allow the noisy, busy-ness of our lives to hinder us from considering the love and goodness of the God who gave His only Son for very souls, if we fail to receive the salvation He so freely offers, we miss the very point of living. The road to destruction seems like the way to go. It's wide and filled with lots of the attractions and distractions the world has to offer. It's the way everyone else is going. But the road less traveled is narrow and straight. Very few travel this road. It's a little rough and lonely, but you'll have time to talk and listen to God. Jesus says He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. For me, it's worth traveling on the road less taken. It's the road that leads to Life.

Won't you share with us the blessings God has shown to you this week in your times of quiet?

Gail 

Hey Kids:

Have you stopped to notice the leaves? Is there a tree you can go sit under, draw up your knees and just soak in the beauty of creation? Maybe you could take a drawing tablet or a notebook and journal your thoughts and prayers of Thanksgiving. Hey parents: Maybe we could do the same. 

Merry Christmas - Growing in Christ

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. Matthew 28:19,20

It was Saturday and as usual my granddaughter came to stay a few hours while mom worked at the bank and dad at the hospital.I waited until she got there to make breakfast so she could help. Blueberry muffins were her choice this morning, so after we mixed and popped them in the oven, we considered what to do on another rainy morning. Naturally, I already had an idea.

It has been on my heart that I see so many people saved, but there is very little follow up teaching them to observe all things. They become worldly Christians, probably through no fault of their own. I'd been talking to my Sunday School class and praying about where do we begin and how? I'd done a personal in depth study of I Corinthians 13. I had heard a preacher say "charity" is "love in action". What actions was I displaying as a Christian? How would I go about practicing "love in action" and teaching new Christians how to grow in the Lord - teaching them to observe all things. This time of year brings an overwhelming amount of requests for donations of all kinds. It's so overwhelming, it sometimes puts me in a Scrooge mood; enough already! But I know of one charity that practices that love in action, one that I do feel comfortable working with.  I thought, this is my opportunity to help my granddaughter know how to grow in the Lord.

While the muffins baked, I let Kady do her favorite thing, play on the computer. Her job was to research Samaritans Purse Operation Christmas Child. She needed to find out about shoe boxes. Here's the site.
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/pack-a-shoe-box/
She chose the age and sex of a child. We went over the things that we could purchase and the things we would need to omit from the box. Naturally, I had a shoe box in the closet.  Another thing the site requests is to pack the box with prayers for the child. When I asked Kady who would ask the blessing for breakfast, she asked me to do it. I prayed for the breakfast and for us to know what to buy for the child that would receive the box. I pray today, Kady remembers to keep praying for the child.

So after a couple of hot muffins, we took the shoe box to a nearby dollar store and asked permission to take it  into the store and fill it before bringing it to the check out. When we finally filled the box, she said, "it seems like we've been here a long time." We had probably spent between 30 minutes and to an hour choosing items and changing our mind, choosing more, and trying to squeeze in as much as we could. It may have been a long time, but a fun time.

Back home she wrote a Christmas card. We took a picture of her and printed it to include. She packed the box several times to make sure all the pieces were tight and secure. Then for the nice big rubber band! No wrapping. Samaritan's Purse will need to check all the items to make sure they will pass customs and standards.

We had no idea the church would be participating in Operation Christmas Child this year. We have never done that before. When the pastor announced the church would pack boxes, Kady turned around and sent me a knowing grin. Another scripture came to mind that is important to helping young Christians grow in the Lord. My paraphrase; talk about the things of God when you get up, when you lie down, when you sit at the table, when you walk in the way. Don't forget about Him when life is easy.  Deuteronomy 6: 5-12.

My prayer is this will be imprinted on Kady's heart as well as the child who will receive a Christmas Shoe Box.

Blessings,

Gail

Hey Kids!

Need I say more? Are you digging in that closet for a box and shaking out the quarters from the piggy bank? Check the site to know exactly what to send to make another kid's Christmas special this year.

This Little Light of Mine

... Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this. Esther 4:14

The world celebrates with witches and ghosts and worse, if there is such a thing. We either join in or try to change the tone to something less evil (let's call it like it is). But is there a way to be in this world and help our children not be of this world? If you homeschool, the answer is yes, but if, like most people your child attends a public school, it becomes ever more difficult to be separate from the world. I teach in a public school because God has opened that door of witness for me. The fall is a difficult time of year for Christian teachers and students because we are bombarded with Halloween. Though jack-o-lanterns have a less than perfect history, they are one thing I can use to create a positive situation. I center my unit on fall farm with pumpkins as the highlighted crop. Of course Old MacDonald gets his place with the animals as well. We get to learn about the night, moon phases, constellations, and nocturnal animals. You know, bats and owls. All of these things, pumpkins, animals, bats, owls, moon, even chilly weather are all part of God's creation and need teaching in a positive way. In my classroom, The Five Little Pumpkins don't say "there are witches in the air". I take the liberty to change the words to "there's a chill in the air". See, it goes right along with fall, not ghouls. 

The day the school celebrates Halloween, we carve a pumpkin. We measure the height and the circumference before we slice into it. When the pumpkin is opened, my pre-K class does all the yucky faces about the "guts". So. I allow each child to reach in and take out the yucky stuff. They then have to count the seeds. The students choose the shapes we will use to carve the face but we discuss the smile; scary, sad, happy, funny. Here is where we discuss that the pumpkin is like us. Is there yucky stuff in us? Does it make us happy or sad? Are we sometimes angry? How do our feelings affect others? If we take the yucky stuff out and replace it with good things, how do we feel? Do we smile or frown? Are we happy or sad? 

Our conclusion is that when we take out the yucky stuff inside of us, then we smile. Our pumpkin gets a smile as well. We add a candle to our jack-o-lantern because just like us, when the yucky stuff is out, our lights shine in our eyes and in our smile. Scholastic has a version of This Little Light of Mine that works well in my secular situation. It shows a girl who helps, takes turns, and shares. Isn't this the way Christians first begin to show others that Jesus has taken out our yucky stuff and replaced it with His Light? Do not our actions speak far louder than our words? 

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Hey Kids:

If you carved a pumpkin, I doubt you hid it under a bushel. You probably set it out on the porch or by a haystack or scarecrow. You probably lit a candle for all your neighbors to see. Do you think your neighbors smiled when they saw your pumpkin all lit up? 

Think about ways you can demonstrate Jesus' light. Can you be a helper at school and home and at play with your friends? Can you take turn with your siblings and friends? Can you share your toys with others? You may want to keep a journal of drawings and/or writings of how you felt and how others felt when you let your light shine. 

If I sneaked a peak at your journal, I would probably see a lot of happy faces and stories. Would you allow us the privilege to see a few ways you lighted your world by posting a picture or story?

Blessings and thanksgivings this week,

Gail