Devotional 12-10-16

Christmas and the Doll

Christmas is a time for thanking God for the gift of his son and reflecting on what a sacrifice that was. It is a time of giving, parents often giving sacrificially. It is a time of being grateful for family, friends and much more.

The poem below expresses thanks to a mother for her sacrifices on her daughter’s behalf. It was the year the Cabbage Patch dolls were new to the toy scene. All the dolls were gone from store shelves before the mother even knew what they were, so she made a cloth doll as close to the original as she could.

I just remembered
the Christmas you worked in the basement
hours after you tucked me in bed
making that beautiful doll
like the one in the store
I had cried for.

You must have spent weeks
down there
alone
in the quiet of the winter night
tireless
cutting and stuffing the fleshy body
tacking in the long, brown hair
painting her smiling face.

You prayed with each stitch
it would be enough to make me smile
on Christmas morning
and I don’t think I ever told you
how much I loved you for that.

Connie Karickhoff Colvin

(Submitted by Maudie Karickhoff)

Devotional 12-15-13

Kindness at Christmas Time

. . . the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Galations 5:22

At Christmas time we are especially aware of the need to be kind, to share, to give, and to love. When Christ came to earth He demonstrated the meaning of love and kindness.  As we move toward Christmas day, let us remember to practice kindness and give it freely.

When I retired ten years ago, my office staff gave me a small book, Words on Kindness, that was compiled by Helen Exley of Great Britain for Hallmark. The book contains quotes from many different sources, all of which describe the concept of kindness and its importance in human relationships and the relationship of God and his people. I would like to share a few of these with you.

Christmas is a time of kindness and giving. We give because we love and because we like the way it feels to make someone else happy. Exley quotes Joyce Hifler as stating, “Giving is so often thought of in terms of the things we give, but our greatest giving is of our time, kindness,and even comfort for those who need it.” Rabbi Harold Kushner focused on the effect of giving on us: “When you carry out acts of kindness you get a wonderful feeling inside. It is as though something inside your body responds and says, Yes, this is how I ought to feel.”

Mohammed believed that “a person’s true wealth is the good he or she does in the world.” Exley quoted the Talmud, which indicates that, “When a person does a good deed when he or she didn’t have to, God looks down and smiles and says, ‘For this moment alone, it was worth creating the world.”  Isn’t that a wonderful image?

Emily Dickinson’s beautiful poem expresses her ideas about the value of kindness. She said, “If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain; If I can ease one life the aching, or cool one pain, or help one fainting robin unto his nest again, I shall not live in vain.”

Prayer: Dear God, Father of our Savior,who was born at Christmastime, help us to remember to be kind and loving even when the holidays get hectic. Help us to feel what others feel who need our kindness.  Amen.

Maudie Karickhoff

Devotional 11-29-11

Ephesians 4:32 — … be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.
Ephesians 5:1 — Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.
Ephesians 5:4 — Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Ephesians 5:22 — Wives, be subject to your husband as you are to the Lord.
Ephesians 5:25 — Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.
Ephesians 6:1-4 — Children, obey your parents in the Lord.

Paul’s writings to the Ephesians provide us with instruction about how to live together in families. However, all too often Paul’s advice falls on deaf ears. Many specialists say that families have deteriorated over the past decades. Children are not being shown how to love and are turning to peers for that feeling of security and acceptance that they do not find in their families, often with tragic ends. Spouses become estranged, hurt each other and separate.

The product of dysfunctional families affects the whole society. Any of us can cite a laundry list of problems caused when families do not love and care for each other. When we read or hear the news about the evils occurring in society, we wonder “Where is God?” God has not moved; He is the same yesterday today and forever. It is individuals who have moved away from God and his love and instruction. They do not experience God’s unselfish love, and thus cannot give unconditional love to anyone else, even in their families.

But, thankfully there are those who value family. During the past two weeks, I have had the opportunity to see how two people exercised God’s love in their families and communities. I have experienced two funerals where the deceased persons loved their families and loved God. Charlie had been married for almost 65 years and had raised two devoted Christian children. His daughter and four of his grandchildren spoke at the funeral service about Charlie’s devotion to family and his love for each of them. Pictures displayed prior to the service testified the great joy that Charlie’s family provided to him and he to them.

In the other case, a Godly woman planned that at her funeral a polished stone that had been engraved with the word “Joy” be given to each attendee. She wanted her family and friends to experience the joy that she had felt through her Christian experiences. She preferred that they celebrate her life and not be too sad at her passing. This woman, Marilyn, had been an inspiration to her family, her church and her community. She created activities that brought her family together to share creative activities and make memories. She was a giving, unselfish person who was devoted to her children and her grandchildren. She also gave of herself to the church and the community in which she lived. Anyone who knew her felt her love, kindness and warmth.

These two examples of lives well lived could serve as an inspiration for everyone. Contrast these families with the dysfunctional ones we read and hear about. What makes the difference? God makes the difference. Families experience many stresses, communication issues, misunderstandings, heartaches, illnesses and other problems. We are not guaranteed a bed of roses. However, God’s love and grace can give families the tools they need to cope successfully with whatever life brings. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians gives us the wisdom we need to build strong families.

Prayer: Our Father in heaven, you have given us the ultimate example of unselfish love by sending your son to die for our sins. We praise you for your love and forgiveness. Help us give of ourselves to our families and grow in love and the ability to forgive. Amen.
Maudie Karickhoff

Devotional 12-27-07

The Light of Christ Remains
9:2 “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light, to those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them light has been shined . . .
9:6 For a child has been born to us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Today is two days after Christmas, the packages have been opened, the mess cleared away, and the left-overs eaten. Now our attention is being drawn forward to the new year. How easily we consider Christmas “over” and move on to new things that occupy or minds. However, when we look outside, the Christmas lights are still glowing. So, lets continue to live in the glow of the Light that came to earth at Christmas.

In the passage above Isaiah described a people walking in deep darkness who saw a great light. He announces that a child has been born to the Jews who would bring light to that darkness. Some believe that Isaiah was speaking of the birth of Hezekiah, one of the great, Godly kings of Judah. But, the same passage is a foretelling of the birth of the Messiah, Jesus the Christ. It was Jesus who brought light to the darkness of the world of his time and ours.

Christ’s coming brought God’s light of love, peace, hope, grace and mercy to all who live in darkness and who give their lives to Christ. As incomprehensible as this seems, it is really very simple. John 3:16 tells us “God so loved the world that he gave his only son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.” God’s gift of love and grace is offered freely to everyone.

Lets not let the “Light” go out with the taking down of our Christmas decorations. God has entrusted to us His Light so that as we live and work in the world our little piece will be a beacon to others.

Prayer: O God, sometimes darkness seems to overwhelm us. Send the Holy Spirit to help us turn to you so that we can experience the light of your love and grace and take them into all the world. Amen.

Maudie Karickhoff