Simply Give

Here's some easy things to do or "give away" this year - in order to spread the holiday spirit!

*Hold a door for someone

*Give thanks

*Write a letter

*Say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" to a stranger

*Forgive

*Make a joyful noise!

*Do a secret good deed

*Give someone a hug

*Take some of your good stuff to Goodwill

*Invite someone to dinner

*Tie up a loose end

*Tip generously!

*Pray for our soldiers

*Really listen

*Smile

*Give something away - without telling anyone!

*Be a comfort

*Spend time with the elderly

*Get to know your neighbor

*Buy a cup of coffee for a stranger

Just a few ideas... more to come! (Do you have any?)

Be sure to check out our Christmas give-a-way!

Sunday at SPUMC - Dec. 6th

Today was another festive and wonderful day at St. Paul's UMC!

During the Education Hour:
*The Children talked about recognizing the people you love by doing something to show them! And they are preparing for their FABULOUS Christmas performance - Dec. 20th during worship!
*The Confirmation youth explored some of the prophecies of the coming Messiah (and had fun playing some Advent games!)
*Our Study Group is discussing the "Advent Conspiracy" - a book that challenges us in our spending during the holidays... Can we spare buying one more gift, and instead give to someone who has greater needs?
*The Wired Word discussed the White House party crashers and what it means to be offered admittance... into Heaven, too!

Worship focused around the "scandalous" relatives of Jesus - and how comforting it is to know, if these are Jesus' family, then we must have a place at the table, too! Jeanette and her girls lit the Advent wreath like old pros. We sang some great Advent carols. Communion was served as the bells played beautiful music!
And "Yes" and "No" bills were handed out! These are meant to be "spent" this week - say "yes" only when it feeds your soul, and "no" when it's just one. more. thing.... You can make the choice to make this season holy!

After church, we had a lovely fellowship hour with yummy cakes and cookies; and the 2nd-6th graders headed out for some bowling!

A great day!

Remember to check out our Give-a-way! There's several ways to enter!

Serving Others

"The capacity for caring illuminates any relationship. The more people you care about, and the more intensely you care, the more alive you are."

--Anonymous

On Sunday, we talked about the "overlooked" family members in the Christmas story... But what about the "overlooked" in today's story? Who are the people you pass by everyday - unnoticed, unseen, and unheard?

Is it the homeless man at the door to the grocery store? Is it the lady cleaning the bathrooms at the airport? Is it a family member that is struggling with life? Is it an old friend that has gone a different direction... and has become lost?

When I think of the overlooked in my own life, I wonder what I could be doing this holiday season to make sure they know they are loved - by me, but more importantly, by God.

What ideas do you have? What is one simple thing we can do to reach the overlooked with love and compassion this Christmas season?

Christmas Give-A-Way #1!

"What if I told you, you have the power
To give someone hope far beyond their wildest dreams.
What if I told you, it's right there in your hands, in your hands.
It's hard to imagine how something so small
Could make all the difference, tear down the tallest wall.
What if December looked different this year?

"What if we all just give this Christmas away
If there's love in your heart, don't let it stay there.
Give this Christmas away
And your life will be changed by the gift you receive,
When you give this Christmas away.

"It's feeding the hungry, serving the poor,
It's telling the orphan, 'You're not forgotten anymore.'
It's doing what love does even when no one's watching you.
For God so loved the world that He gave us all His son,
So we could be His hands, His feet, His love... His love.

"What if we all just give this Christmas away
If there's love in your heart, don't let it stay there.
Give this Christmas away
And your life will be changed by the gift you receive,
When you give this Christmas away."
--from the song "Give This Christmas Away" by Matthew West

Want an uplifting moment?! You can watch the video and hear the song if you click here. What a great message for Christmas this year!

I'm giving away the book that was written based on the song, by Matthew West. It's a great book with LOTS of wonderful ideas for spreading love and cheer throughout the season - by giving Christmas away with money, actions, smiles, kindnesses, etc. (It's so neat, I bought myself one, too!)

So to enter the give-a-way for this fun little book, this is what you do:
1) leave a comment on this post for an entry
2) mention it on your blog for another entry (and let me know!)
3) post the link to the give-a-way on your Facebook for another entry (and let me know!)
4) become a "Follower" of this blog for another entry!

That gives you 4 possible entries! (And this is a practice round... There will be another give-a-way every week til the end of Advent!)

All entries need to be in by noon on Thursday, Dec. 10th.

Spending Time

"A wise person once said that 'time is life.' Nothing could more certainly be true. Life is measured in the moments and the days we are given. And they are numbered... Finite. What makes life precious... what makes TIME precious... is that there is only so much of it. So to share time with someone is to share something precious, indeed. It is to share life itself - purer and more costly than gold."

--Love Finds a Voice in Bethlehem

God is there to share time with us everyday. Are we willing to share time with God? Or are we reluctant to even give one hour of worship a week to God?

How are you carving out time in your busy schedule to spend with God? Whether in prayer, reading, journaling... How do you spend time with God?

I'm working on a half hour every morning of reading, journaling, and praying... and then an Advent Devotional reading at dinner with my husband. I'd love to hear your ideas, too!

Time with God

"I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love... that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

--Ephesians 3:18-19

Into the busy-ness of this hectic season your word invites me to stillness - to sit and consider, to grasp and perceive the impossble dimensions of your love. To dive into it... to bask in it... to be filled with the fullness of God. I can't do that without lavishing you with a certain amount of my TIME, Lord. And as Christmas encroaches (yes, it honestly feels that way!), time is a commodity in short supply for me. That is no excuse. In fact, it should be the reason I NEED to spend time with you.

"Pilate asked Jesus, 'So you are a king?' Jesus answered, 'You say that I am a king. For this I was born, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.'"

--John 18:37

You WANT me to spend time with you. You want ME to spend time with you - to listen to you. During this busy season of Advent I hope the truth sinks into my busy mind: that you spent (and spend) time with me. Isn't that what this season celebrates after all? You left heaven to spend time with humanity - to teach us the heart of your Father... to suffer and die to win us back... to rise that heaven would be ensured us. You've certainly got my attention. I'm listening.

A Month of Simplicity

"Half the joy of life is in little things taken on the run. Let us run if we must... but let us keep our hearts young and our eyes open that nothing worth our while shall escape us. And everything is worth its while if we only grasp it and its significance."
--Victor Cherbuliez

As I've been looking at my own schedule and list of things to do for this busy time of year... I feel I'm already failing on the "simplicity" challenge. I've decided to look at each engagement and obligation and decide - 1) do I WANT to do this? 2) do I NEED to do this? 3) how does this particular activity nurture my soul?

Most of my plans are already about family, friends, and fun homemade gifts! So now what?! How do you simplify further when you've already weeded out the things that don't need to be done and don't inspire or uplift your spirit?

When I'm overwhelmed and over-busy, I lose steam, lose joy, and lose appreciation for all that surrounds me - which is why I liked the quote above. "...Everything is worth its while if we can only grasp it..."

What have you noticed today that has made you stop, smile, and appreciate the season? Maybe part of simplifying is simply being aware of what is around us... even when we're off to something else!

So far today, I've noticed:
*one of my favorite ornaments on the tree lit up from the sun this morning
*a Jimmy Buffet Christmas song on the radio (that made me laugh)
*my little "Pause" gift on my desk that encouraged me to close my eyes and take a breath
*someone taking the time to drop off more presents for our Neighbor's collection
*some of my blogging friends doing tours of their Christmas decorations - and they all had Nativity Scenes!