Christmas Weekend

Yesterday, we woke up to a cloudy sky and rain.  Later in the morning,  the sun broke theough for a few minutes.  The last bit of ice (you can kind of see it on the right hand margin of the pond) melted.  The temperature got up to 60 degrees.  We were beginning to think there was no chance for a white Christmas.  But, this morning the temps are down to the low 30s and there is a little snow in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow.  Yeah!!  Hopefully, it will cover the ground.

Last night was the christmas program at church.  There were some young people that played or sang hymns.  They all did a great job.

Grandma read a poem.

Mr. Morris played Simeon in the skit. He did a great job.  The traditional nativity scene was told from the perspective of Simeon.  He reminisced through the Scriptures, thinking of different Bible Stories and how they foretold the coming Messiah.  He started with Adam and Eve after they were kicked out of the garden, and then went to...

Abraham and Sarah talking about how God had provided a lamb to take the place of Isaac as a sacrifice.

The third part, was Moses (played by Mr. Pile) leading the complaining children of Israel out of Egypt.  The kids loved getting to fuss and complain.  They did a great job, you might have thought they had been practicing for years.  (LOL).

They all got bit by snakes and fell down very sick.  (The kids seemed to like this part as well).

 

Then Moses tried to convince them to look at the bronze serpent and live.

Then the young children came out and did the traditional nativity scene.  Gabriel was an angel. Very appropriate.  We had a very active lamb who ran the entire time he was on stage.  (Phillip) and an angel who waltzed and danced while she was up there.

The end of the skit came when Mary (Reagan) and Joseph (Ian) presented baby Jesus to Simeon.  It really hit home to hear the words of Simeon presented.  It was excellent!

On our way home we stopped at a house that has really gone all out decorating. We have been seeing it from the highway when we would drive past, but I decided to get off and see it from the front.

Despite all the glitz and Santa's and reindeer, they did have the true meaning of the season front and center.

Kids and Church

Most parents want their children to come along with them to church with a good attitude.  But how do we as parents encourage this to happen?  I have been thinking a lot about this as I see many families struggle with children not wanting to come.  Obviously, there is a huge spiritual dimension that we have limited control over (other than prayer). However, many of our own attitudes and life choices have a big influence on our children.

Here are a few of my own observations...

Make church attendance a top priority!  If it is optional then kids pick up on this quickly and choose to opt out.  Anything that we skip church for, has a higher priority than church.  We tell our children a lot about our values by what we deem more important than going to church.  I remember as a child growing up and now in our own family, that we planned our trips/vacations around getting to meeting.  Whether it was getting to our own church or one on the road while traveling.  Church shouldn't be a club that you can choose to go to or not depending on your mood.  We obey God when we gather together with other believers.

Parents need to go to church with a good attitude.  You need to want to be there if you expect your children to feel that way.  Be careful of what you say about the meeting and the people there outside of church.  Children are quick to identify hypocritical attitudes in their parents and other adults.

Help your children to 'own' the church.  By this I mean, give them responsibilities and help them to feel a part of the meeting.  It can be helping around the building or taking part in the meeting.  Encourage them to reach out to other children and families at the church. Help them to get to know other families at church.  Have them sit in the meetings for adults.  Most teaching is not over the average third graders head.

Hospitality is a great way to get to know others at church.  Hospitality should be a characteristic of those in leadership, but it also should be practiced by all Christians.  When we invite others to our home we give our children an opportunity to get to know other families better as well as to serve them.

Live your faith out at home.  It is not the church's responsibility to teach your child about God.  It is yours!  Teach your children Scripture and pray together every day!  When you run into problems get on your knees with your children!  When you receive blessings in your life, thank God with them.  They need to see that your faith is central to your life.  It should be more important than sports, electronic media, your hobbies or whatever else you spend your time on.  Prayer should be a priority also. Bring them to prayer meeting!  Let them hear the heart of those who are praying for them.  If you don't bring your children to prayer meeting, at what age do you think they will start to go?

There are no guarantees that your children will want to go to church and to follow the Lord, but by practicing these things you will greatly increase the likelihood that they will want to.

Awana Closing Program

Awana is a Bible program for children. Our church has had it for the last 12 years or so. AWANA stands for Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed. It features Bible lessons and memorization, games, and some crafts and sometimes a snack. Our chapel runs our program from 3 year old Cubbies through the high school Journey program. It has really been a good thing. I think that this year we had about 70-75 children a week. Only about 1/3 came from our chapel. It has been a good outreach.

This is Cherry, like the fruit. One of the first posts I ever wrote was about her. Yes, she helps out at AWANA also. She enjoys hearing the children recite their verses. This lady gives some of the best hugs in the world. She is also a great encourager. It is hard to believe she is in her eighties. She still really sparkles.


At the end of the year we have a closing program that features dinner and presentations by and to the children. Here Lois and Joanne work hard at getting the spaghetti dinner ready to serve up. Lots of people pitched in to make it happen.

The men did a lot of organizing and carrying.

We set up tables in the main auditorium. Every seat at every table was filled with clubbers and their families. There was not any spots for the helpers to sit down although some seats did double duty. There was plenty of food though. Up in front was where all the presentations were made. Each group was brought up and the rewards for completing their books was given.

Thomas was given his Journey Milestone award.
(This is his cheesy politician smile)

T-Bob also got his reward. Actually all the children in our family completed their books, I just didn't get pictures.

It was a great evening and an excellent turn-out. It wsa great to think about how much Bible memorization was represented by all the children's awards.

~Mom

Thanksgiving Brunch

Thanksgiving in Ohio. The leaves are off the trees and the bare look of winter has set in. We have not had any snow that sticks on the ground yet.

Our tradition on Thanksgiving is to go to church for a Thanksgiving brunch. On of the families organizes it and does much of the food prep. The rest of us pitch in with the side dishes. It is always a special time. Most of the college students are home and people are in visiting. One gets to see friends that we haven't seen in awhile.

Plus, the food is yummy!! This year they served breakfast burritos, sausage and gravy as well as fresh fruit and lots of muffins and breads and other good things. This year the local on duty firemen showed up and joined us. They came in the ambulance and firetruck. They had to be ready to go out if they were called.

Baby Sadie just keeps growing and doing more things. She is doing a lot of chewing. She is a contented baby although she rarely smiles.

After eating we all go in the big room and sit in a circle and share what we are thankful for this year. The circle sure has grown a lot over the last 42 years. Mr. Meehling and his wife Betty started this tradition back in 1967. The Markoviches took over once the Meehlings were unable to do it. It was special to have Mr. Meehling able to attend again this year. It is a real labor of love. The meeting ended as promised by 11 AM. That is also traditional.

Nathan and Anita, and Mom and Dad, it is really nice to have almost all our family come. It is so important to stop and thank God for His blessings to us. I get really aggravated when people call it 'Turkey Day'. Turkey is not what the day is about. Especially, in these somewhat challenging times, we have much to learn and much to rejoice in and even more to thank God for.

~Mom