Christmas Memories

Our staircase

"These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me...with the voice of joy and thanksgiving." (Psalm 42:4)

A couple of nights ago, I was thumbing through my mother's recipe box and came across a Christmas treasure - my mother-in-law's recipe for peanut brittle with a note she'd written to my mother in the 1970s thanking her for a Christmas wreath and homemade candle. 

Mrs. Glassco's peanut brittle, Mother's candles, and those two, beautiful mothers are all treasured, Christmas memories.

Make treasured memories, beloved, as you celebrate Jesus this Christmas season.

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Gatlinburg Wildfire Relief Shop

Bluff Illustration from The Schoolhouse
by talented artist Cami Monet Webb

"Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ." (Gal. 6:2)

Six years ago, we traveled to Gatlinburg, Tennessee in search of an artist to illustrate The Schoolhouse and, with God's help, found Cami Monet Webb - a talented, young watercolor artist, calligrapher, and stationery designer. 

Cami, now married and based in Orlando, Florida, grew up in the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee on Morning Glory farm. After the recent, devastating wildfires ravaged her hometown, she started the Gatlinburg Wildfire Relief Shop, and to my delight, the bluff scene from The Schoolhouse is one of the beautiful watercolor prints (the "pray for Gatlinburg" heart) available.

All proceeds from these print sales go directly towards helping evacuees and those who have lost everything. Check out the shop, beloved, and share the burden for Christ's sake.  

Visit:   Camimonet.com

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It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Small Group Christmas Party

"That night there were shepherd staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them..." (Luke 2:8-9)

Fall Bible Study ended last night with a fun-filled, all-inclusive Christmas party with Christmas dinner, Christmas cookies, Christmas games, Miss Tackiest Christmas Sweater pageant, decorating the Christmas tree, and Silent Night, a Christmas carol. It goes without saying, that around my house, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

On the first Christmas so long long ago, snowman cookies and tacky sweaters weren't in picture. Instead, a newborn babe in a smelly barn, heavenly hosts caroling frightened shepherd in the fields, and the radiant glory of the Lord adorned the night that God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). 

May we always remember that Jesus is the reason for the season, and may you have yourself a merry, Christ-filled Christmas, beloved!

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Join the Triumph of the Skies

Sweet baby Meredith in her mother's loving arms

"And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. Mary gave birth to her firstborn Son. She wrapped Him snugly in strips of cloth and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room in the inn." (Luke 2:6-7)

After PDA surgery, rounds of steroids, and a plethora of prayers, baby Meredith has turned the corner. She's now a whopping 4 lbs. 5 oz. and continues to have good reports. Praise You, Lord Jesus, from whom all blessings flow!

And praise You, Lord Jesus, that 2,000 some odd years ago, though You are God, You did not think equality with Father God as something to cling to. Instead, You gave up Your divine privileges; You took the humble position of a slave and You were born as a tiny baby boy. 

When You appeared as man, You humbled Yourself in obedience to Father God and died a criminal's death on a cross. There, He highly exalted You to the place of highest honor and gave You the name above all names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:6-11).

Hark the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the newborn King"

Peace on earth, and mercy mild

God and sinners reconciled

Joyful all ye nations rise

Join the triumph of the skies

With angelic host proclaim,

"Christ is born in Bethlehem"

Hark the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the newborn King!" 1

1 HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING. Charles Wesley, 1739.

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Smoky Mountain Wildfires

Great Smoky Mts. 1 month ago





"...The Lord be with you all." (2 Thess. 5:16)

You've probably heard about the tragic wildfires that swept through Gatlinburg and the Great Smoky Mountains Monday night destroying hundreds of businesses, homes, cabins, acres and acres and acres of forest lands, and more importantly, at least fourteen lives. My heart aches  for the Sevier County community.

May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, who stands in the midst of you. May His presence go with you and give you strength. May the Lord sustain your hope in Him and supply your every need as you rebuild.

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And the Rain Rain Rain Came Down Down Down

2.5" of rain

"Then, when He prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops." (James 5:18)

Alabama had a Winnie-the-Pooh like blustery day yesterday that poured 2.5" to 3" of rain on our dry and thirsty land. 

All praise and thanksgiving to You, Lord Jesus, who sends rain on the the just and unjust alike!

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You Silly Goose

The Glassco brothers: race car drivers

"When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things." (1 Cor. 13:11)

Race car shopping carts are high on the favorite list with toddler and baby grand. Much to their disappointment, on a recent trip to the grocery store, all the cool, green carts were taken. When a little boy driving a race car cart passed their plain-Jane buggy, our two-year-old called, "Hey! Come back here, you silly goose!"

The unknown writer of Hebrews urged believers to stop going over and over and over the elementary teaching about Christ and to press on to maturity in faith toward God.

When it comes to Jesus, beloved, are you still speaking, thinking, reasoning, and praying as a child? Let your roots grow down into Christ, and let your life be built on Him. Let your faith grow strong in the truth you were taught, and press on toward maturity, you silly goose!

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Wayne

Our Thanksgiving table yesterday
(Wayne, far right)

"He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6:8)

When I met Wayne, he was a married man, father of two, Sunday School teacher at Dawson Memorial Baptist Church, a deacon (I think), head  pharmacist at Montclair Baptist Medical Center, and my boyfriend's brother-in-law - qualities that weren't especially impressive to a fifteen year old. Just an ordinary American man in 1971.

As a teenager, I remember him bragging on my straight-A grades. I liked that. I also remember  Phillip and me promising his son, Tim, we'd come to a baseball games. Wayne pulled us aside and said, "Your coming to Tim's game means a lot to him. Don't tell him you're coming unless you mean it." (Needless to say, we drove from Ft. Payne to Birmingham and watched Tim play.)

As college students, I remember going with Wayne and Loretta to the young couples Sunday School class.

As a young mother of three, I remember Wayne and Loretta keeping our kids over night and giving Phillip and me a night to ourselves in a time when finances were tighter than bow string. They also took the kids to McDonalds, the McWane Children's Science Center, and the circus during that season.

When I began writing and teaching Bible studies, Wayne boasted. When the children's books started, he encouraged.

Forty-five years have passed through the hour glass since 1971. I've watched Wayne feed the hungry, clothe the needy, and faithfully walk justly, kindly, and humbly with His God - all with a sensational sense of humor.

Hmmm...

Fifteen-year-old Jill was most definitely wrong. Wayne's not  an ordinary man by any stretch of the imagination. He's indeed quite extraordinary and highly esteemed by God...

and me.

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Popcorn

The Winfred and Verna Watson (my parents) Family
Thanksgiving 1984

"Enter His gates with Thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations." (Psalm 100:4-5)

One Thanksgiving when I was a little girl, as my mother prepared Thanksgiving dinner for our family of five plus grandparents, aunts, uncle, and cousins, her "long-lost" cousins called to say they were dropping in for lunch. So Mother prepared two Thanksgiving meals that day. After the last dish was washed that night, she sat down by the fireplace, and I piped, "Mama, will you pop us some popcorn?"

As a child, I couldn't fathom the amount of work mothers do. As a child of God, I fail to give adequate thanks for the tremendous work God has and continues to do. So on this Thanksgiving day, I thank You Father for...


CREATION - "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb." (Psalm 139:13)

SALVATION - "Jesus, You freed us from our sins by shedding Your blood for us." (Rev. 1:7)

REDEMPTION - "You redeemed us not with perishable things like silver or gold from our futile way of life but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ." (1 Peter 1:18-19)

SANCTIFICATION - "Therefore, in Christ, we are new creatures; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." (2 Cor. 5:17) and "You predestined us to become conformed to the image of Your Son. You justified; and these whom You justified,..." (Romans 8:29-30)

You will one day GLORIFY. (Rom. 8:30)

You are a masterpiece, beloved, hand crafted and beautifully made. Thank the Master today! And happy Thanksgiving-to-God Day!

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Riverside People

Coosa River Autumn

"But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months o drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit." (Jeremiah 17:7-8)

Last week, my Phillip and I took a fun afternoon cruise down the river to see the breathtaking fall foliage. Alabama mountainsides are brown and dormant these days due to long months of drought, but as stated by the Old Testament prophet, Jeremiah, the riverside trees with roots that reach deep into the water are full of  color and life - not  bothered or worried by a long train of rainless days.

Wanna be a riverside person, beloved - not bothered or worried by a long train of difficult circumstances? Trust in the LORD, and make Jesus your hope and strong confidence!

(Baby Meredith update. This morning, she beautifully came through surgery to close the ductus arteriosus. No blood loss. No chest tube. Next 48 hours are important. Keep praying please!) 

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Close to His Heart

Daddy, Mommy, and sweet baby Meredith

"He will feed His flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in His arms, holding them close to His heart. He will gently lead the mothers with their young." (Isa. 40:11)

On October 24th, sweet baby Meredith made her debut 13 weeks early at 2.6 pounds. Everyday her family rides an emotional roller coaster, but their feet remain firmly planted on the hope of Jesus Christ, the One who holds their tiny lamb close to His Heart.

O Lord, thank You for Meredith. We ask for long life and good health for her in body, soul, and spirit. Please grant her parents, Blaine and Nicole, strength, hope, wisdom, and endurance, and please provide for their every need. Unto You who is able to do far more than we ask or can even imagine, be glory forever. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen and Amen.

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How to Win the Holiday Race

Our Ben and toddlergrand

"You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart," declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 29:13)

My "to do" list for the next 5 weeks:

1. Grocery shop for Thanksgiving dinner.

2. Cook Thanksgiving dinner and birthday cake

3. Shop for gifts for a daughter-in-law's Thanksgiving day birthday

4. Print pictures, write and print Christmas letters, and address, stamp, and mail 100 cards.

5. Make a cookie monster cake for babygrand's 1st birthday

6. Shop for gifts for baby grand's 1st birthday.
7. Down with the fall decorations and up with the Christmas
8. Christmas dinner party at my house for small group

9. Finish Christmas shopping for 13: kids and grands and hubby.

10. Travel to the midwest to see grands' Christmas program.

11. Grocery shop and cook for the kids and grands at our house Christmas week.
12. Down with the Christmas decorations.

OR

1. Seek my God each day with all my heart and serve others with gladness.

And the winning list is.... #2.

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A Dry and Thirsty Land

My daddy and his mother (my grandmother)
WWII before he shipped overseas
Riverside, California 1944

"...my soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water." (Psalm 63:1)  

I can't help but wonder if there's a reason for the umpteen rainless days and drought in Alabama.

In Israel's parched days of the Old Testament, the Lord through the prophet Isaiah declared, "You refuse to ask for My help. You have not honored Me with sacrifices or brought Me fragrant calamus. Instead, you have burdened Me with your sins and wearied Me with your faults."

O Lord God, Maker of heaven and earth, we, too, as a nation have wearied and burdened You with our sins. Have mercy on us, O Lord. Please pour out water to quench our thirst and to irrigate our parched fields, and pour out Your Spirit on our dry and thirsty souls. May the United States of America openly profess once again, "We belong to the Lord." In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

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Stars Fell On Alabama

My man and me
Senior Prom 1974

Jesus said, "You don't love Me as you did at first...Turn back! Recover your dear early love. " (Rev. 2:4-5)

I'm having a blast writing the expanded edition of Secrets of Shiloh for republication with Deep Sea. When I came to the "Prom Night" chapter, however, I felt stumped and a bit silly. 

So...

I dug out our old prom pictures and pulled up on YouTube Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong's rendition of "Stars Fell on Alabama." The hands on the clock of my mind turned backward, and I was eighteen again - dancing with my head on Phillip's broad shoulder. Sigh. (I ordered that CD.) 

Been married a long while, beloved? Put a log on your fire of romance, and may the stars fall on your Alabama tonight.

From Secrets of Shiloh, Chapter 10:

Ebenezer High School gymnasium had transformed into a twinkling, velvet-night dreamland. White cloths covered round tables edging the black, draped walls and sweet magnolia blossoms scented the candle lit room.

Martin took Rachel's hand and guided her to the dance floor as the school orchestra played the old 1934 classic "Stars Fell on Alabama."

I never planned in my imagination

A situation so heavenly

A fairyland where no one else could enter

And in the center just you and me, dear

My heart beat like a hammer

And my arms wound around you tight

And stars fell on Alabama last night

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