When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!  But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.  Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!”  

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…”
- Luke 1:41-47

What an awesome-dynamic moment of connection - two godly women, one young, the other older, relatives living at a distance, both bubbling with the anticipation of a first-born son, and having this divinely appointed meeting!  Hormones and emotions in each woman must have been moving at a fever pitch as their eyes focused on each other.  Put yourself in one of their shoes. What would you say to the other?   Elizabeth blessed and encouraged Mary.   Mary refused to take to herself the glory that rightfully belonged to God as her immediate response magnified her Lord.  Psalm 115:1 “Not to us, O LORD, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.”

Christmas is a season of opportunity for us, like Mary, to glorify the Lord in what we say and do because of His gift of Love.  Will we celebrate Christ in our daily schedules? In our gifts?  In our homes?  In our celebrations? In our financial choices? In our invitation guest lists?  In our visitations?   In our Christmas cards/greetings?  In our conversations?  In our church programs? In our Women’s Ministry events? In our souls, our hearts?  God’s Christmas gift to Mary filled her heart and Elizabeth’s life with overflowing song of praise, worship, honor, and thanksgiving to God.  May you have a Mary Christmas that likewise glorifies God and when we, like Jesus, come to the end of our earthly sojourn, may we be able to pray, “…I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.” 

To God be the Glory!

I was shopping in mid-October in a local nursery and admiring all of the new Christmas decorations! Forget the fun and frivolity of a Harvest Festival; there they were in the corner of the store on sale for 70% off! And Thanksgiving? Well, the retailers were giving thanks and feeling blessed as we the consumers were gearing up for the spending frenzy of November 25th.

What caught my eye was just around the corner: a fully decorated Christmas tree with indigo blue and gold ornaments, and richly decorated scarves. To give it that “real religious” feeling there were quite a few nativity sets placed strategically around it. What caught my eye was not necessarily the beauty of the ornaments; but the placement of the tree. The tree was hung upside-down, suspended from the ceiling with about ten to fifteen gold stars around it! You may have seen one or heard about it on the news. One online retailer has already sold out. The biggest selling point…you can put more presents under the tree!

That may seem outrageous but how is it different than any other time of the year? Was I merely offended because this is, after all, a Christian holiday? The thought left me questioning my own commercialism. Am I not guilty of the same ridiculous behavior the rest of the year? And quite possibly during Christmas also? How do we tame the Holiday Beast?

Now, almost everyone enjoys the hustle and bustle of the Christmas Season; time with loved ones and friends, finding the perfect gift, and opening that treasure that was picked out just for you. But as a follower of Christ, where should my focus be?

The gift under the tree is but a small reminder of the greatest gift of all. When I prayed the sinners’ prayer I was not instantly taken home to heaven. I was left here on earth to be a witness, a living sacrifice for all around to see, prayerfully, Jesus Christ within me. How I play this out as a Christian is what I believe Paul is saying in 2 Corinthians 4:5-6 “Remember, our Message is not about ourselves; we’re proclaiming Jesus Christ, the Master. All we are is messengers, errand runners from Jesus for you. It started when God said, “Light up the darkness!” and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful.” (The Message)

However outrageous that upside-down Christmas tree may have been, it had a ring of truth to it. The nativity scenes surrounding it – how beautiful! I now see the upside-down tree as our fallen human nature, with so many lost in this fallen world. And the nativity sets as believers in Christ left here on earth, strategically placed to surround, encourage, and witness to that world and each other…. you and me with the living Jesus Christ within us.

So, when I experience the Christmas gimmies, I do my best to remember to look to my Father and remember the greatest gift ever given: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16. (NIV) It is not what is under the tree but what is in the heart. How are you going to share the gift of Jesus, not just this Christmas season, but this year?

Merry Christmas, Many Blessings and Happy New Year,

Tresa Myers<><

I must admit I had never gone to church and felt God speaking to me through every part of the service. Usually it is the pastor's message or a song that might touch my heart. I think it was the end of July after a horrible hail storm I went to church and was amazed by the way God organizes a church service to speak to people.

My husband is a farmer and I am a city slicker. We have been married about 1 ½ years and through that time there have been many adventures, but this year, the weather challenges for farming topped them all! Our land was flooded twice this summer and then hit by hail a few times. Our whole community was in despair, and then you think of those affected by the London bombings and more recently, hurricanes. A local recreation spot, Lake Metigoshe was also flooded. You would never think a lake in North Dakota would flood. The most common expression this summer was "this is unbelievable".

When I went to church that summer morning I had no idea God would speak to me through every part of that service (songs, scripture, prayer, sermon and even the guy who does the announcements!) Psalm 31:24 was shared during announcements: “Be strong & take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.”

The Lord will save us from our troubled times on the farm or losing a home. God is there to comfort and support us but we must trust in him. Just like babies tighten their fists around our fingers, we must take God's hand and never let go! We need to let go of our expensive vehicles, homes and land.

It was also brought to my attention during church that Christians are not achievers, but we're believers! God does not want our achievements but our beliefs. God will save us from all troubles! With trust in the Lord we can move from DESPAIR to HOPE!

I would like to leave you with a few words from a song that Sunday morning:
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas,
I am strong when I am on your shoulders,
You raise me up to more than I can be!

Thank you Lord

As I flew home from the CLB Convention, it was a clear, sunshiny day. I enjoyed sitting by the window and looking at the countryside. When the plane first started to climb I could see houses and trees, schools and ball fields, roads and cars. As we flew further and higher, I saw fields and farmland, more trees and roads. I thought about our occupation, farming, and began to reflect on all the crops planted down below…What a delicate balance of sunshine and rain it takes to produce a crop!

Farmers are probably most often accused of talking about the weather, and yet it is a God thing. He makes the sun to shine and the rain to fall. It is a constant topic of prayer. A well-seasoned farmer knows that nothing short of God’s mercies brings us to a harvest in the fall. As I looked down, from my airplane window, on God’s creation, I couldn’t help but think about what a small part of the world my life and our farm occupies. It is very minute even in the few hundred miles I flew over.

Then my thoughts turned to verses of scripture like: Isaiah 55:9-11 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Philippians 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” I felt God’s love and peace. I remembered that He cares for me, for my family, for each one of us. He knows who we are and what we are made of. He knows our needs and desires. He sees our hearts and has a plan for us.

It made me thankful. I’m thankful for His creation, thankful for His love and for giving me eternal life through the death of His son Jesus. God provided a way to take care of the sin problem we have and that’s through the blood of Jesus. Does He care about me, one person in this whole world? The answer is YES. The Bible tells us so. As the plane descended and we landed in the airport, I could see the actual corn and bean fields and was reminded that, yes, God sees when we need rain and sunshine He knows the big picture and I can rest in the fact that He is in control. My corner of the world is small and yet He gives me purpose. He gives us life and breath, friends and family, people and opportunities, His word and trust. What am I doing with what He’s given me?

Hopefully you are finding lots to talk about through a summer Bible study. Most structured studies take time off in the summer. What are you doing?

If you look at Matthew 16 the Pharisees’ wanted visible signs from heaven.
The disciples forgot to take bread with them.
But Peter responding to a question answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”

“Some people talk about the weather.”
“Some people talk about food.”
“Some people talk about who Jesus is!”

Summer’s not over yet, so make a plan right away about what you can still study. What will really give you something to talk about? Don’t just talk about the half yearly sale at Nordstrom’s or what new gadget came in the kitchen section at WalMart.

What nugget of truth did you receive today by reading in God’s word?
Our WMCLB convention theme this year was “Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness…” Psalm 5:8

What is God leading you to do? You could find a short book to read – Mark is only 16 chapters! Search it and make a study on the people that Jesus met and how they responded to him. Is there a warning, a challenge, or maybe a promise? Can you find something you need to change?

Has God been giving you an idea to call a girlfriend or maybe someone in your church who you do not know very well? You could meet for coffee and share what you are studying. Maybe you could begin to do it together!

Let the One who leads best, lead you….
   Make a plan, start now and complete it!
       You may just find something to talk about!

Those of you who don’t know me may be surprised that between my husband Richard and myself, I am the extrovert. Those of you who do know us are most likely smiling or laughing out loud at the obvious.

It has only been three weeks since the Bible study at Maple Park came to a close for the summer; and only two weeks since my Bible Study Fellowship class came to an end. In both classes we shared how valuable it will be to study the Word daily over the summer break. Just last week, during a time of prayer, I felt the Holy Spirit quicken my heart and knew that the answer to my prayer could be found in the Word.

Over the past few months my schedule has taken quite a beating. As I adjust to a new work schedule outside of the home and the new responsibilities in the synod, I haven’t experienced the daily time with Christ that I crave so much. Knowing this to be true, I went to the Father asking for forgiveness and a renewed joy and excitement as I read His word.

I turned to the book of Daniel. Wouldn’t you know it? God had more than a few words for me! The one that touched my heart the most (and will bring this back to the reference between Richard and me) is found in the sixth chapter of Daniel.

You may remember this as the famous “Daniel in the lion’s den” chapter. This is an awesome chapter on standing in the wake of persecution. As I have stated before, my past year has gone great; the changes in my life have been of a positive nature. For Richard, too, it has been a year of change, though unfortunately his road has not been so positive. This past year at work Richard lost his lieutenant to pancreatic cancer. This meant a change in leadership and personnel in his work place. Out of Richard’s original unit of six, only he remains. This new leadership has thrown my husband into the “lion’s den” so to speak. 

As I read chapter Six these two verses resonated with our life and the need to stay in the Word of God:

Daniel 6:4 At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. NIV

Daniel 6:10-11 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for his help. NIV  

What I noticed about verse four was that as Christians we are always being watched. Some people are drawn to the love of Christ that dwells within us and others are repelled. I believe that part of what made the administrators and satraps so angry and envious of Daniel was his relationship with God. They could find no corruption in him. We see proof of this relationship in verse ten and eleven. When Daniel learned what was to happen to those who prayed to any god other than the king, he went home to open windows (not into hiding) and did what he always did -- gave thanks to his God. After giving thanks he then asked God for help.

While the leadership at my husband’s workplace has thrown him into the “lions den”, others are watching and wanting to know why he is not reacting in a “worldly way”, resorting to retaliation. One detective that left wrote, “You have taken the high road when others would have taken another path. I respect that, you are always checking yourself and your responses – “Did I do the right thing?” Many people don’t have that in their value system.”

I know that my husband draws his values from the word of God. I’ve watched over the years as he does his devotions and reads his Bible on a regular basis. I respect and admire him for his gentle strength and restraint in difficult situations. I know that the strength and restraint that Richard possesses comes from a relationship with Jesus. It is the power of the Holy Spirit and my husband’s example that will encourage me to stay in the Word this summer.

I think of February as being the “Love Month” since we celebrate Valentine’s Day. We show love in special ways to those who mean a lot to us. In doing a recent Bible Study chapter on “love”, I was reading I Corinthians 13 “The Love Chapter”. Paul says if we do and say all these things and have not love, we are a resounding gong, a clanging cymbal, and we have nothing. “We love Him, because He (God) first loved us.” I John 4:19. This is the one and only reason we can love ourselves and one another. God truly desires our hearts. He created us and even in our fallen nature loves us and wants us for His own.

How is your love for one another, husbands, wives, families, neighbors, co-workers? Are we living in the light of Christ’s love for us? Are we loving as Christ loved? We live in a busy world challenged by many things around us including family, work, schedules, activities, unloving people, feeling like we’re just surviving. Let us remember to LOVE one another above all, and take the time to think about what that really means. It can truly affect who we are and how we see those around us.

I Corinthians 13:13 “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

On June 25, 2007 the first grandchild of my brother, Paul Rangen, was born. Paul and great-grandmother Estelle are catching the excitement from their heavenly vantage point. Parents, Brent and Jackie Rangen, and extended family on earth are networking feverishly. Taylor Lynn’s arrival has been a time of rejoicing, of thanksgiving, and of celebrating! New life has been given. A new generation has been born to bring glory to God.

I am intrigued as I contemplate what exactly connects one generation to another. Also, what responsibility does the older generation have to the younger? How do relationships happen? King David often talked of the generations. In Psalm 145:4-7 he said, “One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts. They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty… They will tell of the power of your awesome works…They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.” In Psalm 22 he explains, “Our children and their children will get in on this. As the word is passed along from parent to child, babies not yet conceived will hear the good news - that God does what he says.”

Praise God, this reality has happened in our family! I have connected personally with six generations that have commended God’s works to another generation. This rich heritage of faith, trust, and love of God has been passed along, and now another generation is beginning who will either grow up knowing the Lord and what He has done OR grow up not knowing the Lord and what He has done. What a privilege and my, what a great responsibility for us to guard the development of an immortal soul! Is it only the parents who shoulder this obligation? Grandparents, family members, godparents, church family - all believers must be involved! God intends for His Good News of Salvation to be passed along from generation to generation. What are we passing on?

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for entrusting us with another child. Thank you for your Holy Word so full of wisdom and instruction. Help us to teach our children above all to love and live for Thee. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

1John 4:9
“In this the love of God was made manifest…that God sent his only Son into the world.”\

This time of year I find myself scurrying to find the perfect gift for a family member or friend, write a greeting card or practice for the Christmas program. The Christmas season is filled with excitement, anticipation, shopping, baking, decorating, and a wealth of good wishes to pass along.

As I pause to contemplate the real reason for Christmas, I am in awe and thankful for the very perfect gift we have in JESUS. All the preparations and celebrations would have no meaning at all if we did not understand the reason for the Christ child’s entry into this world. He came as a babe to grow, live and die just to save His people, you and me, from sin and death. Make room in your heart, life and celebration this Christmas for HIM.

Room for Jesus, King of glory! Hasten now, His word obey;
Swing the heart’s door widely open, Bid Him enter while you may.

  I just returned from our district women’s retreat, a time to connect with other women and with Christ Jesus in a fresh way. Casey Baardson, our speaker, talked about our “everydays”. Most of the time, our everydays aren’t very exciting or glamorous.

Depending on our stage of life, they might consist of a two-hour commute and eight and a half hours at a mediocre job; wiping runny noses, changing diapers, negotiating peace settlements between siblings and laundry; or facing a long day and evening alone.  What makes our everydays special is the attitude with which we approach them, and whether we see them through our own eyes or through the eyes of an eternal, loving heavenly Father who has a wonderful plan for our lives.

Often, our lives look nothing like those fairy tales that we dreamed of as little girls. Prince Charming didn’t arrive on his white horse, and Betsy didn’t become a doctor. But as believers in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross, we know it doesn’t matter. Our heavenly Father had something far better in mind for us. Something our finite minds couldn’t even begin to imagine.

Through the eyes of God, our everydays are spent preparing ourselves and others for heaven. Through human eyes, our everydays may feel more like a treadmill, exhausting, but going nowhere. What are we doing in the midst of our everydays? Do we pray without ceasing and express thanksgiving in all circumstances? Are we growing in wisdom and knowledge of our LORD? Is our love for others increasing? Are we anxious for heaven?

Just this past weekend, I received an e-mail from a friend who was very upset because there was a possibility that she could be evicted from her apartment because of the actions of someone else. Sadly, she could only see it through her own eyes, eyes of fear and hurt. I saw it as an answer to her prayer. Many times over the past years, she has asked friends to pray that she would either have the money to move or that he would be evicted. My response to her was “…this could be the answer to your prayers. God works in mysterious ways, and almost never the way that we expect. If He has you evicted than He will also provide a better place to live. He never takes something away that He doesn't replace with something better for us. Now, we don't always think that it is better at the time, but in time, we find that He had a marvelous plan. Hang in there, the blessing is just beginning.”

I don’t know the outcome and to be perfectly honest with you, my friend wasn’t impressed with my response. But I am standing by my words. I know that God has a plan for her, a plan “to prosper [her] and not to harm [her, a plan] to give [her] hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Several years ago I had the opportunity, along with my husband, to attend the Inter-Varsity Mission Conference in Urbana, Illinois. We enjoyed many small and large group sessions.

The founder of Tropicana orange juice spoke in one of the small group sessions. As an elderly Christian business man, he shared his story of success. During question and answer time someone asked him to share the secret of his success. He answered, “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God…” ( Matthew 6:33a) While a little astounded at his answer everyone in the room began to realize how simple but profound!!

Since then I have thought about that answer from time to time and realized the value in that verse in many areas of life. Not only does it apply to success but it makes sense in every day life. It gives comfort, strength, courage, wisdom and peace in an ever changing world and society where we make many meaningful decisions every day. What a basic but timely truth Jesus gives us in this passage of scripture as we apply it to our daily walk in Him.

In my role as a dementia care training consultant with the Alzheimer Society of Calgary, I am often asked questions regarding the losses associated with Alzheimer Disease and other types of dementia. Families want to know when the car keys should be taken away, staff want to hear about quick and easy-to-implement strategies for care, and the general public wants to know, “What is the cause?” and “Do we have a cure?” Towards the end of one particular training session I was asked a question that I had never been asked before, even after working for almost 20 years in dementia care. The question was “When do we stop talking to the person (with Alzheimer Disease) about God?” In other words – when does the disease completely involve the person so that they no longer have any cognitive ability to think, reason, make decisions, communicate or understand what is happening around them.

I was stumped for a brief moment as I thought about the physical disease process of Alzheimer Disease, how the brain cells were dying and the brain was physically shrinking due to brain death. I thought about the different lobes of the brain and their individual and combined function and how the damaged brain cells caused a permanent, progressive loss of function, resulting in the person’s inability to comprehend both the written and verbal word, and then I thought about GRACE!

Scripture tells us in Ephesians 2: 8 & 9 “for it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God”. We, as individual people do nothing – instead, Salvation is about what God does for us.

As my head and heart filled with the wisdom of God and the truth of the scriptures, I had to refrain myself from climbing onto a chair and preaching the gospel! I was working, and was therefore obligated to present information in a non-biased way, respecting the diverse beliefs of the attendees. By now, only a moment had passed in time, though seeming much longer, so I quickly prayed and asked God to give me the words to answer this question in a way that was appropriate for my role, helpful for the attendees, an opportunity to minister to the person with Alzheimer Disease and wrapped up in a way that was pleasing to God! Did I have high expectations of God? Of course I did. Did He meet these expectations? Of course He did!

The answer God gave me at that moment is one that was not limited to that particular audience, it was not watered down for different beliefs, and it is as applicable now as it was then. God reminded me that we should never underestimate His power, grace, mercy and love. For it is the grace of God that brings salvation to all men. (Titus 2:11) We cannot put God in a box and apply our human organization and structure to His plan. We cannot make a decision that someone is unable to be reached by His love and mercy based on our own human understanding of a situation. Whether the person has suffered a brain injury, is born with a cognitive disability, is cognitively intact but fallen away, perhaps they are just plain stubborn, or they have Alzheimer Disease – it is God’s desire that we continue to pray for them, witness to them in whatever ways he encourages us to do and then leave the miracle of salvation up to the master of miracles Himself, God our Savior!

May God bless you and give you wisdom and strength as you continue to serve Him, witnessing to all of His people
Linda Roberton

It’s spring and the Easter Season. I’m reminded in various ways of spring’s presence as I see the trees and plants blossoming. I feel warmer weather, and here in Arizona – spring training for the baseball teams.

As I reflect on Easter, I’m reminded again of the Amazing Love of our Lord Jesus. The very fact the Holy Sovereign God would come to earth knowing the cruel beatings, rejection and horrible death He would suffer as He died on the cross for me and you. What an awesome God he is! I can’t help but be thankful that His plan of Salvation included me. I have been forgiven, redeemed, cleansed by His precious blood and accepted as His child.

I Thessalonians 5:9: “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but…salvation, by our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The hymn writer Charles Wesley has put into music the words that express so well my praise and gratitude for what Jesus did for me!

“And Can It Be That I Should Gain?”

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died he for me, who caused his pain?
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love!  How can it be?
That thou my God, shouldst die for me?

He left His father’s throne above,
So free, so infinite His grace! 
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race!
‘Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For, O my God, it found out me.

Long my imprisoned spirit lay     
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray;
I woke the dungeon flamed with light!
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

No condemnation now I dread:
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head;
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’eternal Throne,
And claim the Crown, through Christ my own.

Amazing love! how can it be, that thou my God shouldst die for me!

Amen.

This is my prayer for you; may you know this wonderful Savior and friend. May you give Him all your praise and worship today and always?