I pray that I may persevere in all good things. I pray that I may advance each day in spite of my stumbling

Each day is a day of progress, steady progress forward, if you make it so. You may not see it, but God does.  God does not judge by outward appearance. He judges by the heart. Let Him see in your heart a simple desire to always do His will.  Though you may feel that your work has been spoiled or tarnished, God sees it as an offering for Him. When climbing a steep hill, people are often more conscious of the weakness of their stumbling feet than of the view, the grandeur, or even of the upward progress.

Meditation for the day ~ I pray that I may choose to cross the bridge of faith; I pray that by crossing this bridge, I may receive the spiiritual power I need

Faith is the bridge between you and God. It is the bridge that God has ordained. If all were seen and known, there would be no merit in doing right. Therefore God has ordained that we do not see or know directly. But we can experience the power of His spirit through our faith. It is the bridge between us and Him,, which we can take or not, as we will.  There could be no morality without free will. We must make the choice ourselves. We must make the venture of belief.

Psalm 73:1-2; 21-28

Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.  

But for me, my feet almost slipped; 

I had almost lost my foothold.

When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, 

I was senseless and ignorant, 

I was a brute beast before you.

Yet I am always with You, 

You hold me by the right hand, You guide me with your counsel

and afterward you take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but You.

And earth has nothing I desire besides You.

My flesh and my heart will fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Those who are far from You will perish;

You destroy all those who are unfaithful to you.

But for me, it is good to be near God.

I have made my sovereign Lord my refuge. I will tell all your deeds.

Song ~ In memory of Mary Derham Warnecke

Song~

When I am dead, my dearest

Sing no sad songs for me

Plant no roses at my head

Nor shady cypress tree

Be the green grass above me

with showers and dew drops wet

If thou wilt, remember

and if thou wilt, forget

I shall not see the shadows

I shall not feel the rain

I shall not hear the nightengale

sing on, as if in pain

and dreaming through the twilite

that doth not rise or set

Happily, I may remember

and happily, I may forget

~Christina Rossetti

IF

IF you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don't deal in lies, Or being hated, don't give way to hating, And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise: If you can dream - and not make dreams your master; If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools: If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone, And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!' If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, ' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch, if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you, If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds' worth of distance run, Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son! ~Rudyard Kipling

Tough questions from kids - Why was Jesus born in a stinky stable?

At the time when Jesus was born, Herod, the evil ruler of the area, had great forts and palaces built so he could feel safe and powerful.  One reason Jesus was born in a stable was to show us that He and His ways were opposite of the world's.  Jesus' kingdom doesn't come by force by by God working in each person.  Jesus; birth in a stable also lets us know that He came for all people, not just the rich and famous.

And and angel came unto them ~

For a Savior is born .......:)

The Shepherds and the Angels.....

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shown around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests.

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another,  "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  When they had seen him they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.  But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.  The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.  Luke 2:8-20

Loving others as you would yourself...

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment of the Law?"  Jesus replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind; this is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the Law and the prophets hang onto these two commandments.  ~Matthew 22:36-40

Tough questions from kids - Why do we pray for our enemies?

The main reason to pray for our enemies is because God tells us to. In fact, He tells us to love our enemies. Praying for our enemies and loving them is God's way.  Another reason is that all people, especially bad people, need prayer.  There is no better way to change them.  If we want bad people to stop being bad, we need to ask God to do it.