Todays Quote

Let
us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wide open
heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesus stands
as the most significant event in all history, because it has meant the
pouring into a sick world the healing medicine of love which has
transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousand years. . . .
Underneath all the bulging bundles is this beating Christmas heart.

— George Matthew Adams

powered by performancing firefox

picking a new bible reading plan

here I sit looking on line for printable bible reading plans for the year.



I'm glad to see there is such a variety out there,

so I will print some off and have them available for people in church sunday.

One of the best sites is www.heartlight.com that offers a good variety.



I am siting here tonight with two countdowns taking place in our home. One for Christmas and the other for going to Florida for the gathering conferance !



Thinking about countdowns I watched people count down my sermon yesterday which wasn't fun, My topic was getting the wonder of the season reawakened in our lives again. Cool title and idea I thought.



Now one has called to tell me today it happened to them but it has for me !



Last night 25 of our church people went caroling ( me included) and concluding the event we had a Pizza Party planned at a local Pizza Shop, and he provided all the pizza to us and hot choclate for free.

The wonder of good cheer was given to me .



Then Today I watched a male phesant go throug our yard doing his ever so cool strut.

The wonder of Gods creation was given to me.



And we had no wind today which is rare here , and I watched 'my' lake stay perfectly calm all day with the ripple of a fish .

The wonder of this place was given to me.

powered by performancing firefox

The Weekend is Gone ....

Here I am on a Monday Night and Glad to be here.

Our Church had its annual Sunday School concert which went over well , we had a lot of non- church people with us wihich is a plus .

The kids did well as well as the teachers, the only thing that was lacking was our offering , it was suggested we not pass the plate but just leave it by the door so people could put their money in.
Not the best Idea at least for me. My theory is if you come to church know you will be asked for money politely. So lets hope people make up for this day next sunday.

So why did I let it happen , well it was presented to me as I was on the platform before the beginning of the service. So with no time to say " thus says the DS. or the Discipline or get a consenious or..." that second before the start of the service my mind is on things other than offending people with an offering.

But as I have been arouind I know this is a hot beded issue with some that with guest we don't take an offering. Truly there next pay isn't dependednt on what goes in the plate....
Enough ranting on that I guess !!

Then It was off to watch my son play an excitting hockey Game which he had a goal in and helped his team win.

Yes you read it right I went to a game on Sunday ... I did it because one of the core values I have in life is commitment . So he's on the team so he goes to practices and plays ! He's committed ( well I am , because from the pulpit I know what it is to have a team of un committed players.) So I get him there, in fact I lose sleep over un commited people they just bug me.

BUt sunday wasn't the only part o fthe weekend we went to see the nativity on saturday . I had had been given 25 free tickets to hand out in church so of we went to the movies. It was my first time in our new theater it was impreesive. One man in my church hadn't been ini a theater since 1946 and did he ever see a lot of changes.

After the movie my family went to the Yarmouth Branch of the Nova Scotia Musem to see the orginal drawings by Dr. Seuss of his book How the Grinch Stole Christmas. It was the draft that the book was printed from in Dr. Seuss's own hand work frame by frame.
It was cool to see how he detailed every little thing what a mind he had.
This is the first showing of this in North America!

My wife told me today that we are less now than a month to going to the Gathering in Florida,
I have never been there before , nor have I been on a plane so this will be an adventure.

Later

Zone Ministerial

Today began with a great sunrise over the lake as I spent time with the Maker of the Sun . Reading my way through Revelations thus completing the one year reading N.T. plan.
Which I am excitted to be almost 90% completely done to date.

Also Today I attended our zone ministerial with a guest speaker
Dr. Wilson who was inspiring as always and a great guy.

From this morning of total enjoyment I rushed home and finished putting up my christmas lights , and back to town for my wife after work and home again to only be off to our church christmas supper which I think just about all were happy with their meals.
To making a visit and bringing home a bag of lobster for our enjoyment tommorow.

So now I am on a fast so I can get my blood work done in the morning I have put this off to long and I know the Dr. won't be happy when I see her soon.
The hardest part of this fast is going to be no morning coffee !

Fasting isn't natural to me at all, and I wonder who finds it easy.
But as we are celebrating advent I wonder If there is anything I could go without to celebrate in a season that emphasies getting.

Later

Today's quote

Give us, O Lord,

thankful hearts which never forget Your goodness to us.

Give us, O Lord,

grateful hearts, which do not waste time complaining.

— Thomas Aquinas

My morning radio

I love putting on the radio in the morning ! Its something I remember my Mom doing and I have grown up doing it as well.
And every once in a while they play real music like this morning it was Brian Adams song "summer of 69" now that's a classic in my opinion. Plus he's Canadian!

Yet besides the music there is always the Marine Weather Forecast , and there is the morning chuckle with 'Jimmy the Janitor' whose jokes are old and well used.

This all goes well with a good pot of coffee setting the day in motion.

I can't believe its December first and we have no snow and its more like March than Nov.
So Now its time to make sure we have the Christmas spirit in our house.
With that I am proposing a new tradition in our home this year that every night we read a advent devotional and light a candle.
So I have talked to the kids about doing this every night till Christmas .
Now My son thinks its weird and at 11 just about everything I suggest is weird these days.
Now my daughter is all for it, So I have dug out our homemade advent candle wreath that we've had for years from my Uncle and put the right candles in it and now I am ready to Go.
The goal I have in this is that we Catch what the real meaning of Christmas is...that its About Our Saviour not our wants.

Before I leave I have posted my Sister -in- laws link to her blog under the links, welcome Brenda to the world of blogging.

Later