Greetings to all WFTM readers (and anyone else who may be skimming the blog ) in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord, God made flesh, born in a manger, dwelt among men, and became the ultimate Sacrifice for our sins! Truly, He is our indescribable Gift that the Bible speaks of!

I pray that each of you had the most blessed Christmas time, surrounded by family and loved ones, with good food and feasting and celebration, but most of all, I pray God took you on a “journey” as He did me… a journey of the heart, in which I will elaborate on a little later.

First, I’d like to share a bit about my family’s festivities this year.

On the 23rd, I made a table full of finger foods and appetizers that we have enjoyed, taken to people’s homes, and still have left-overs from! For Christmas Day, I prepared a large meal for my family. I made white yeast rolls for the first time in my life! I’m used to grinding my wheat and making whole grain breads, rolls, biscuits, etc. But in honor of my mom and dad who both prefer white, fluffy breads over hearty, nutty wheat breads, I decided to give them a try. And by God’s grace, they came out great! I also made a 7 layer salad with home-made dressing, brown sugar glazed ham, 3 cheese baked macaroni, green beans, and yams! For dessert, I made a white cake with raspberry curd filling, frosted with fluffy white icing and coconut. I think everyone enjoyed the meal. For the past few days, however, my dad’s condition has seemed to decline.  Last night, he was having a very hard time walking, and he was having spurts of confusion. His aggression has also gotten worse. We thought we may have to take him to the E.R., but after much prayer, and an urgent e-prayer request sent out, he seemed to improve slightly, and is stable for now. That could change at any time, so please keep him, as well as my mother and I in your prayers. A lot of things have changed this year. For the first time in the history of my life (and really in about 45 years) the family did not meet at my Grandma’s for Christmas Eve. We, also did not meet at my aunt’s who is now bed-fast with Alzheimer’s on the 23rd as we have done since I was very young. It was sad to break family traditions, but through all the change, God echos “I change not. I am the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Oh, how comforting that truth is to my heart!

Christmas Eve, as I sat reflecting on the season, the Lord Himself escorted me into a “heart journey”.  I thought of all the busy-ness of doing homemade gifts this year, gifts that were fun, but also time-consuming. I thought of the time put into making the menu for Christmas dinner and the “Finger-food Social” that we had here at home, with just my parents and I.    I’ve cooked and prepared food for so many days that I wouldn’t mind to go to a deserted island for a few days where there is no food in sight. I did enjoy nearly every minute of it, though. Cooking is a passion of mine.  I recalled the hurried trips to another county to get buffalo jerky for my dad, the making and grinding of the hot cocoa mix I gave as gifts, the frantic feelings of “I’m not going to get it done in time!” Then I remembered making miniature gingerbread houses with a bunch of adorable 4 year olds, and giving a teddy bear to a little girl who lost her daddy and mommy and had never had a teddy bear. The memory of the great, big smile on her face when she realized it was all hers, still warms my heart. And the sweet, sweet nights with Jesus out at my Grandma’s. (Since my grandfather died, my mom, aunts, uncle, and myself take turns spending a night a week with her. After she is in bed, and everything is quiet, I have enjoyed sweet time with the Lover of my soul, in which He never fails to speak truths, promises, and comfort to me through His precious Word, and through the still voice of the Holy Spirit). So… as I sat there thanking God for allowing me to get everything done, and to bless a few people this year, and that our family could be together again this year…He held out His arm and escorted me to another place and time, and it had nothing to do with glitter or lights or Christmas trees or presents as we know them. It had nothing to with people rushing around like “chickens with their heads cut off” (as my Grandma says) trying to get things done by a certain deadline.  It was quite to the contrary. In my mind’s eye, I saw a young, Jewish virgin girl who was great with child. I saw her and her betrothed husband settling in a smelly, dusty, dirty stable. I saw her lying on the ground with nothing more than hay, if that, as a bed or pillow beneath her writhing, laboring body. No warm, fuzzy blankets, no soothing music, no relaxing candles with therapeutic scents of essential oils. Just a pure-hearted girl who told God to make her His handmaiden, and a probably still somewhat confused, but obedient husband-to-be, maybe an animal or three, and a Baby… A baby who had no crib or cradle, or even a soft blanket, but was wrapped in swaddling rags, and laid in a manger- the wooden box that held food for the animals! A baby born into the world like every other baby, except this baby knew no sin…ever! He was 100% God and 100% flesh all in one precious, holy, sinless child. What a Gift! How mind-boggling to truly try to swallow this amazing phenomenon! Every time I think I can half-way comprehend it, God blows me away with His awesome glory and I am once again at loss for words or thoughts, in awe of the infinity of God wrapped up in the weakness of flesh. Wow! This is the greatest gift God could ever give to man! He gave His very best, but Jesus (Yeshua) chose to come in the most humble, lowly way possible. Jesus, our humble King, our Sacrifice, our Savior. We know the story so well, but oh, how we need reminding in the busy, rushing sometimes chaos that we have made Christmas out to be. Thank You, Lord for taking me on a heart journey to the stable, where a Baby was born, and the world did not know Him, because He was not of the world. Had they known Who He really was, would they have made room for Him in their inn? As followers of Jesus, we should not expect the world to know, want to know, or accept us either (1 Corinthians 1:18). When they revile us, see us as foolish, we can rejoice because we know we are being persecuted for righteousness sake and are PRIVELEDGED to suffer an inkling for our Master!

Thank You, Lord for Your indescribable gift (2 Corinthians 9:15), and for quickening our hearts to desire to know the King of Kings!

Someone sent me a little video a few days ago called “The reason for Christmas is the Cross”. May we remember that the manger was only the beginning. Jesus’ destiny on earth was to be the ultimate Sacrifice for the sin of mankind. Oh, how undeserving we are! But how amazing His grace continues to be nonetheless! Praise You Lord!

Dear sisters, who continue to wait for the Lord, I pray you are encouraged, lifted up, and exhorted today! I pray that the God Who has set you apart will shower the blessings of His presence upon you today, and you will know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He is more than enough- all by Himself! May you remember that Mary, did not understand God’s plan at first, but because she was willing and obedient, she was given the honor of being the earthly mother of our Savior! I think it’s safe to say that nothing made sense to her, at least in the beginning. Surely, she initially wondered, “God? What are You doing?” You see, we know the whole story already, but she did not at the time. But, we can see for certain that God has good plans, hope, and extraordinary futures for those who love Him enough to truly be His handmaidens. May you joy in being His handmaiden every day! And if and when you fail, may you know full well that He is RICH in mercy and full of unfathomable GRACE. May you enjoy Jesus as your Groom now, so that when He sends your earthly husband, it will just be “icing on the cake”. May you have a most blessed upcoming year full of the provision and grace of our Lord!

Because of Jesus,

Candace 

 *Post Script: I had hoped to get the next issue of WFTM out this month, but it looks very unlikely at this point. As my dad’s health has declined, and he has had more falls, and my mother is trying to decide on how to best get him the care he needs, and as I’ve tried to support them both, it has simply been impossible. I still pray that I can send it out in January, but it may not be until February. I will post and let you know which I think it will be as I am able to get it ready for editing. Thanks for your patience!