On the First Sunday of Advent...(Updated)

New Update, November 30, 2025...I haven't had time to do a new post for this yet, so will share this from the past. Let us prepare our hearts for the celebration of the Advent of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Good Morning everyone...and welcome to Advent!  Today is the first Sunday in Advent.  Some of this is a repeat of previous years, with maybe a few edits here and there to bring it up to date.

So, without further ado, let the 2021 2025 Advent Adventure begin:

(Our home Advent Wreath, 2018)

Note: This post was originally written several years ago from our home in Salt Springs. At that time we were having a small group meet in our home for Sunday morning worship services, and the majority of this post is from that season of time in our lives. We have since moved from that location to a new community and wonderful little church that we dearly love. Below are a few pictures from our worship service this morning in our church:

11/28/2021:  Here is the lighting of the first Advent Candle this morning in our church service 

On this first Sunday of Advent we begin with the lighting of the first candle on the 

Advent Wreath:

As we light the first candle we read:

"This candle reminds us of the promise of the prophets that a Messiah would come.  The prophecy candle is symbolic of long years of waiting during which the prophets, inspired by God, kept alive the hope that the Son of God was coming to redeem us."

Then we read the following scriptures:

Isaiah 7:14

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign:

Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall

call His name Immanuel."

Isaiah 9:2-7

"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;

Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, 

Upon them a light has shined.

You have multiplied the nation

and increased its joy;

They rejoice before You 

according to the joy of harvest,

As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

For YOU have broken the yoke of his burden

and the staff of his shoulder,

the rod of his oppressor,

as in the day of Midian.

For every warrior's sandal from the noisy battle,

and garments rolled in blood,

Will be used for burning and fuel of fire.

For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of His government and peace

there will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,

to order it and establish it with judgment and justice

from that time forward, even forever.

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this."

The scene in our front yard as of last night

And then we sing together  "O Come, O Come, Immanuel"

I will continue the Advent Candle series each week when we light the second candle.  If you have never experienced the lighting of an Advent Wreath before, here is a little bit of the history:

"The word "Advent" comes from the Latin, "Adventus", meaning "coming" or "coming in", and the "coming in" of Christ has been celebrated by man on many different levels, both spiritual and social since the first years of Christianity.  The traditional Advent Wreath, like most Christmas and Advent customs, has been passed on from generation to generation.  In the Advent Wreath's evergreen boughs we are reminded of the eternalness of God.  In it's perfect circle, His all-encompassing love is symbolized.  Each week, as we add the glow of one more candle, we meditate upon another facet of the life and role of our Lord.  Candles, which are living flames, are symbolic of Christ, the Light of the World, Whose coming is nearer as the light of the candles is increased.  The purple candles represent the royalty of Christ.  The pink candle is the purple fading into the white candle, which represents Christ's birth and His purity.

Jesus said, "I Am the Light of the World...Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness."  (John 8:12)"

 

(Back to the original post:) Our special antique table that we have been using for our home Communion Service (click HERE for more about that story) is also a perfect place to hold the Advent Wreath.  Little did my husband's grandfather know when he built this little table so many years ago how it would continue to honor the Lord in the homes of his future generations.

If there are times in your life that you are unable to attend worship services at a local church, there is no reason why you cannot have a home worship service.  Although for me it is unique because my husband is an ordained minister, but one does not have to have a seminary degree to lead your family in a time of worship.  You primarily need your Bible, and ask the Lord to guide you and give you insight into His Word.  The Bible tells us that "where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."  I am not suggesting that this should be the norm, but there are times and seasons in life when it may be necessary for reasons beyond your control.  And, even if you DO attend church regularly, there is still no reason why you cannot have times of home worship and prayer as a family or with your neighbors and friends. As a matter of fact, it could be a true blessing for your family as well as those around you. 

In many nations of the world, this is the only form of church worship available, and that is often in what is considered "underground"...hidden and in secret, due to government restrictions and anti-christian leadership.  I pray that America never has to find out what that is...Pray for our nation. I look forward to the day when the fulfillment of the Isaiah prophecy will be complete:

"Of the increase of HIS government and peace 

there will be no end..."

Isaiah 9:7

"O Come, O Come Emmanuel..."

Stay tuned for more ADVENT Adventures in the next few weeks as we prepare our hearts for the Advent of our Lord...The first advent was when Jesus came to earth as a baby in the manger in Bethlehem to offer Himself on a cross for our salvation.  His second advent will be when He returns to earth:

"Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads,

because your redemption draws near."

Luke 21:27-28

"But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that DAY come on your unexpectedly.

For it will come as a snare on those who dwell on the face of the whole earth.

Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape 

all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man."

Luke 21:34-36

Are YOU Ready?

If you would like to hear our Pastor's message from this morning's worship service, here it is for you:

Have a blessed and wonderful Advent Season!

Wednesday Treasures

 It's been a busy few days since I last wrote. Got a little Christmas shopping done, but still not done. It's coming together slowly, but I am trying not to stress over it and just enjoy the journey.  I've also been busy with decorations and am pretty much done with that, with the exception of the train and village under the tree. We shall see if that even happens this year. At this point, it pretty much depends upon whether or not the kids will come back and help put it together or not. If not, then it probably won't happen because that getting down on the floor business (and then getting back up) is a little more than us old folks can handle these days. LOL  

So here are a few snippets of what has been accomplished. Every day is kind of like opening a new window on the Advent Calendar! I may not show you everything at once, and save some things for the rest of the days to follow.  That way you won't be too overwhelmed with pictures!  

For today's Advent window we are looking in on the Carolers singing their songs:

I think they must be singing "Joy to the World, the Lord is come, let earth receive her King..."

"Let heaven and nature sing...let heaven and nature sing, let heaven and heaven and nature sing..."

Have you ever gone caroling?  I'm afraid it is becoming a lost tradition...but we truly enjoyed going back a few years ago, going around to the homes of people we knew who were shut ins, and we stood outside and sang Christmas carols to them. They'd come to the door and sing along or sometimes cry because it meant so much to them to be remembered. It's a lovely tradition, and it would be nice to keep it going.

And then this arrived today in the mail as a big surprise!  It is from a dear blogging friend who loves to send surprises in the mail! I am always amazed and humbled by her thoughtfulness and giving spirit.  

It's like a giant snow globe with carolers singing outside a church...really really sweet!!

Here is a video of it in action. 

The Carolers remind me of our choir...we are currently practicing for our Christmas Cantata, which will be presented on Christmas Eve morning at church.  Last night we practiced the cantata all the way through, and it really is going to be special.  We are very small in number this year as several choir members haven't been able to participate with us, but for those of us who are there, we are singing our hearts out! We pray that God will be glorified by what we offer in song, and that hearts will be blessed with the Christmas story once again.  We will be recording it the week before at our dress rehearsal, so maybe I'll be able to share it with you then.

Speaking of our church, if you recall I mentioned that we have recently been approved to  disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church, and we are becoming a part of the new Global Methodist Church, which is Biblically conservative and follows the Wesleyan Tradition.  Since we are no longer affiliated with the United Methodist denomination we must remove all signs that have the logo of the UMC, which is the cross with the red flame beside it.  I am sad we have to remove the red flame, which signifies the Holy Spirit, but it is a requirement of the agreement.  So today our Building and Grounds manager planned to remove the small signs on the sides of the church bell tower. 

 He knew that I like to take pictures of all church events for our church Facebook page, so he invited me to come and watch and take pictures!  The Pastor was also helping by holding the ladder, and my hubby was there giving moral support.  It was a very chilly, windy day, but the job got done.

This little plaque will remain on the church as it gives historical information.  We may change the wording eventually to put the correct name, which is now Interlachen Methodist Church. That is actually the original name of the church. It didn't become a United Methodist Church until the denomination merged with the United Brethren denomination back in 1968. So now we have come full circle back to our original beginnings. There's a LOT of history in this little building. It has always stood strong for Christ in this community, and we pray it will continue to do so for many years to come.

Well, I guess that's enough for today's Advent Calendar Window.  We have great hope and joy in our hearts at this Christmas season. God is blessing our home and family with His peace and health and healing, and He is also blessing our little church with a glorious new beginning.

Isaiah 9:2, 6-7

2 

2 The people who walked in darkness

Have seen a great light;

Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,

Upon them a light has shined.

6 For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of His government and peace

There will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,

To order it and establish it with judgment and justice

From that time forward, even forever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

And now to close this post with a little "levity"...The darkness in this photo is a little bit enhanced, but this was our sunset one day last week.  After I shared it on Facebook, my sister wrote and said it looked like Santa and his reindeer were already flying up in the sky...Do you see him?  "Well, you'd better watch out, you'd better not shout, you'd better not cry, I'm telling you why! Santa Claus is coming to town!" LOL.

And with that I will bid you good night my friends. 

Santa Claus may be coming to town, 

but Jesus is coming too...so we'd best be ready...

Until next time,

Good night and God bless you all.

Tuesday Thoughts

Good Morning Friends...It's Tuesday already...and I'm afraid I'm not keeping up with everything, like the Tuesday 4 meme, etc.  But we've had some sad news in our family, and that, along with still recuperating from this bug I've had, has kind of slowed me down.

My husband's cousin "Sonny", Charles E. Kirk II, (on the left below), passed away this past weekend after a prolonged illness.  He would have turned 80 in January. 

Cousin Sonny, hubby's brother Billy, and hubby John, circa Thanksgiving, 2009, at their family camp in the Ocala National Forest.

Here again, Sonny is with his lovely wife Joy, and our cousin Jane is on the front left, and my MIL "Nanny" Vivian is on the front right. This was probably in 2017, while "Nanny" was still living in the nursing home.

Sonny is the son of my MIL's oldest sister Nellie.

Here's the obituary just posted by his wife Joy on Facebook today:

"Ellijay, Georgia
Charles Eugene Kirk, Jr. (Sonny, Tiny), 79, passed from this life to his heavenly home on November 25, 2022 surrounded by family.
Charles was born January 9, 1943 to Charles Sr. and Nellie Kirk. He graduated from Apopka High School and continued his education at Mississippi College where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. Charles spent his career in furniture manufacturing and after selling his business in 2007 retired to the North Georgia Mountains. He was a founding member of Ellijay City Church.
His survivors include:
Joy Kirk (wife) of Ellijay, GA and Jane Driver (sister) of Wildwood, FL.
Three sons: Charles Eugene Kirk, III of Centerville, Ohio, Brennan Kirk of Buford, GA, and Matthew McDowell of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Two daughters: Melissa Kirk of Buford, GA and Julie McDowell of Ellijay, GA.
Five grandchildren: Dustin Schaefer of Addison, TX; Duncan Schaefer (Courtney) of Bowling Green, KY; Caleb Kirk of Athens, OH; Olivia Kirk and Asher Kirk of Buford, GA.
Charles was preceded in death by his parents: Charles Eugene Kirk, Sr. and Nellie Mae Martin Kirk Capansky; his two daughters, Jannelyn Gail Kirk Shaeffer and Lorie Gailynn Kirk.
In lieu of flowers it was Charles’ wish that donations be made to his most recent passion, the building of Ellijay City Church, P.O. Box 1596, Ellijay, GA 30540.
For online donations go to www.EllijayCityChurch.com.
A celebration of life will be held in his honor on Wednesday Nov 30 at 6:30 pm at Ellijay City Church. For our friends from out of town we will be celebrating him again on what would have been his 80th birthday (his request). Details to follow later!"

 Since we are included in the "friends (family) from out of town", we will be "celebrating him again on what would have been his 80th birthday" in January.  Sonny had been looking forward to his 80th birthday celebration, and they were already making plans to have such a gathering when he took ill last month.  He told his wife that he would like for her to still have his birthday celebration whether or not he was present, and so that is the plan.  We are planning to travel north to Ellijay with our kids Benton and Rose when the time comes. Thankfully that isn't until after Christmas, so we will have time to plan.

And hopefully we won't have any more sickness here by then and will be ready to travel.  This morning I tried to go to Dixie Cottage but couldn't stay long.  I am having some tummy distress as an aftermath of sinus drainage and medications...and needed to come home.  "enough said".

So I haven't been able to do much of anything.  I have taken down all the fall/Thanksgiving decor and am starting to put out a few Christmas things, but the tree and all the major trimmings will have to wait until the weekend, when our son Scott will be home to help get things out of the shed. I took a look around inside the shed to see if hubby and I could do it alone, and decided we'd be better off to wait for help.  Everything is stacked up high and out of our reach...well organized for a change, but arranged by Scott, who is very tall and agile and strong.

Most of these tubs stacked up are Christmas decor. The tree(s) are to the left.

And the outdoor things are stuck behind these shelves/tubs, so I definitely can't get to them.

One interesting side note here...one of our dear blogging friends, who shall remain unnamed, may recognize the large red storage totes.  Not long before we moved to this house, she and her dear "beloved" had also moved into their new house, which is about an hour's drive from here.  Once they finished their unpacking they had several of these nice totes empty and were so kind to think that perhaps we could use them for storage here at our new house, so they drove them all the way here for us as a gift. We enjoyed a good visit and lunch, and yes, once we got our things better organized the red totes became excellent storage containers for much of our Christmas decor. We were happy to get things out of cardboard boxes so they would keep in better shape.  So you see, our blogging connections reach far and wide...and this is a very special memory of a very precious friendship...

So anyway, the only thing I have done inside thus far is to bring out the Christmas dolls and some of the Christmas tea things, since these are kept inside the house where they won't get too hot in the shed:

Lily Grace has changed into her lovely Christmas dress (which was actually a gift from another of our dear blogging friends!),

 and she joins her other friends at the table ready for a tea party.  These girls usually stay out year round, but I had to put them away while we were having the floors installed, (except for Lily Grace and her dog Bailey, who had to stay out and watch all the action!)

And these are the four Martin Sisters, all ready for their Christmas tea party. I've told you about them before, but in case you've forgotten, these dolls represent my mother in law and her sisters:

L to R: Daisy Pearl, Vivian (my MIL), Nellie Mae, and Dorothy.  I am sure they are all actually joyfully welcoming Nellie's son "Sonny" into heaven these past few days. I can just imagine the commotion that is going on in their corner of heaven.  A very happy reunion for sure.

Well, with those thoughts in mind I will close this for today.  

You know, the Advent season gives us just this same hope. The hope of eternal  life...

Isaiah 9: 2, 6-7

2 "The people who walked in darkness

Have seen a great light;

Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,

Upon them a light has shined."

6 "For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of His government and peace

There will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,

To order it and establish it with judgment and justice

From that time forward, even forever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

It's because of the hope that came through that Child, the Babe in the Manger, Jesus Christ our Lord, that we have the hope of salvation and eternal life.  Because of Jesus, we can face whatever sorrows come our way, because we know He holds our future...and Because He lives, we too shall live!  What joy and peace we have because of that great light that shined in the darkness...

A Devotional for Advent -Revisited

NOTE: This was originally written a couple of years ago...but I thought it appropriate to share with you again today, this First Sunday of Advent...

Original Post written 11/29/2020

After the busyness of the previous week of Thanksgiving preparations and spending precious time feasting with family and friends...my mind and spirit needed to get away from the hustle and bustle for a little while and spend some time alone. Sitting along the shore of our Still Waters Pond brought peace and comfort as I quieted myself before the Lord and allowed His Presence to wash over me. There is such tranquility in the midst of the noise of the earth as I come before the Lord in reverence and awe, and enjoy again the beauties of His world surrounding me.

Ah! I suddenly remembered that it is the beginning of Advent...and as I gathered together the fresh pine boughs and holly branches filled with bright red berries, and placed the cedar candle stands in the center of the wreath that will hold the Advent candles throughout these next four weeks prior to Christmas, my heart began to sing to the Lord "a new song"...

"Oh, sing to the Lord a new song!

Sing to the Lord, all the earth.

Sing to the Lord, bless His name;

Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.

Declare His glory among the nations,

His wonders among all peoples.

For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised;

He is to be feared above all gods."

Psalm 96:1-4

While I retreated from the world a little while, God reminded me again of the true meaning of Christmas...and why we should prepare our hearts for the Advent of the Lord as we proclaim Christ's birth and purpose for coming to the earth...

"The people who walked in darkness

Have seen a great light;

Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,

Upon them a light has shined."

"For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of His government and peace 

there will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,

to order it and establish it with judgment and justice

from that time forward, even forever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

Isaiah 9: 2, 6-7

What a precious time this was today...the Lord knew what I needed.  I needed to sit down in a quiet place and allow my soul to be bathed in His peace and comfort.  I needed to prepare my heart for the coming of the Lord....Christmas! I needed to make room for Him to enter into my heart and home and life again...and not just go through the motions of putting up all the decorations and shopping for gifts and baking and working and wearing myself out without enjoying the wonder and beauty of this most glorious season...

"Let the heavens rejoice,

and let the earth be glad;

Let the sea roar, and all its fullness;

Let the field be joyful,

and all that is in it.

Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the Lord,

For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth.

He shall judge the world with righteousness,

and the peoples with His truth."

Psalm 96:11-13

And what about you? Have you prepared your heart for the coming of the Christ child this Christmas? There is no time like the present to be "present" to God's peace...

That would be the very best "present" of all...

Peace on earth, and in our hearts as well.

Amen.

The Second Sunday of Advent

Today is the Second Sunday of Advent, and in our worship service this morning at church as we lit the 2nd candle, we talked about the Shepherds:

"In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid; for see--I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.'" Luke 2:8-10

Today we remember the shepherds, workers for the common good, steadfast watchmen isolated and alone, far from the warmth of home, doing the job no one wants. And yet God saw them, God valued them, and God declared the greatest news of all to them alone.

People: Today we give thanks for the shepherds among us, back-breaking laborers on whom our economy stands, those we overlook or rarely see, yet rely on for our very survival, the ones who have much to teach us about watching for God in the darkness.

On this second Sunday of Advent, we light the second candle as a symbol of the shepherds, agents of the gospel and redeemers of the world.

(picture from our home Advent Wreath, 2017)

I hope you will take the time to listen to the message today from Isaiah chapter 9. And if you'd like to participate, there is a communion service at the end.

Let's sing along with the Praise Team as we sing: Sing We Now of Christmas:

Sing we now of Christmas, Noel sing we here!

Listen to our praises to the Babe so dear

Sing we Noel, the King is born, Noel!

Sing we now of Christmas, sing we all Noel! 

Shepherds on the hillside heard the angels sing

Glory, honor, praises to the infant King

Sing we Noel, the King is born, Noel!

Sing we now of Christmas, sing we all Noel!

 

In the town they found Him; Son of Mary mild

Sleeping in a manger was the Holy Child

Sing we Noel, the King is born, Noel!

Sing we now of Christmas, sing we all Noel! 

Wise Men sought and found Him, treasures did they bring

Bowing down they worshiped Christ the King of kings

Sing we Noel, the King is born, Noel!

Sing we now of Christmas, sing we all Noel!

Click Here for another wonderful Advent post about the Shepherds from a few years ago.

A Little Bit of Christmas

 "We Need A Little Christmas"...

(by Johnny Matthis)

This old song popped into my head a few minutes ago as I sat down to show you what I've been up to today...I guess I needed a "little Christmas", so I just did a "little" bit of Christmas decorating. This is only the beginning...got a long way to go, but  as I said, "we need a little Christmas right now!"

Yesterday I had this vision of covering our multi-flowered sofa with something more cozy and in keeping with the season.  The picture below shows how it normally looks...mauve and blue and hunter green on a taupe background. Very 80's/90's. We've had this sofa for over 20 years,  and actually had two identical ones, (and they were a gift from a friend who was moving and couldn't take them with her) but we left one at the church parsonage last summer when we moved here because we didn't have room for two.  My goal is to replace this sofa eventually, but it has to go on "the list" below other things that are more needful.  It is still in good condition structurally, but to reupholster it costs as much (or more) than a new one...and I haven't found a slip cover that would fit properly yet, but that is now on my list to search for.

And so I got busy trying this and that and scouting out my sheets, blankets, bedspreads for ideas that might work to make this sofa more cozy and "wintery" for the season:

How's this?

This is how it really looks from the front...I know, it still needs some tweaking here and there, but you get the idea...

The idea is to provide a cozy cabin feel for Christmas, with a sofa where one can lie down and enjoy the "fire" in the fireplace and take a little snooze if needed.   I am happy with the results, but I am still looking for a real slip cover that isn't made up of sheets, blankets, and quilted pillow shams. LOL. 

Next I tackled the Guest Room. Not that I am expecting any overnight guests that I know of, but then again, you never know who may show up at our door needing a place to stay...So I flipped the decor from spring/summer white with blue and yellow spring flowers to a country quilt with reds and greens and other more wintry shades...and put a green and red plaid throw blanket on the foot of the bed in case one gets a little chilled in the night! (It does happen here in Florida, trust me!)

The little bear and puppy dog welcome "Chris-Moose" for the Christmas season. He comes with jingle bells and snow shoes and a basket of holly berries, 

which is good if he wants some holly berries because those robins and Cedar Waxwings totally cleaned our holly trees by Thanksgiving, just as my sister said they would!

Hard to believe just a few days ago this tree was loaded with bright red berries:

I was hard pressed to find these few remaining berries today...and no sign of those voracious robins or waxwings anywhere now! They are off in search of "redder" pastures!

So, while we are looking outside, let me show you what I did out there today as well:

These are the doors to our shed. I know, that one wreath on the left looks a little lopsided on one side. I will have to fix that. It takes looking at these pictures to see what needs to be fixed as I look at it through the eyes of my beholders...

Almost looks like snow on the roof. But it's not, trust me...

This is how it looks out there right now...

Up on the front porch we have some bright red poinsettias ready to greet our visitors...

And I love this little white church Christmas flag by the front steps:

And there's a Christmas lantern flag in the garden area:

I hope the birdies enjoy it!

Down by the pond and next to the bird feeder is this cute snowman, feeding the birds:

Up on the back porch is a "Christmas cactus" that is blooming for Thanksgiving. My sister with the green thumb was here and she confirmed it is actually a Christmas cactus and not a Thanksgiving cactus...there is a difference and she says you can tell by their stems/leaves whatever you call them...so this one is just confused and is blooming early.

On the front porch I set up our grapevine Christmas tree. We made that several years ago from our wild grapevines at our last house in the forest.  It was quite a job to do it...I'm glad it has lasted all this time because I wouldn't do it again! LOL.

Here is the view from outside. I can see it is also lopsided, so I need to tweak it a bit too. I haven't put any ornaments on it yet either...just the lights so far, and they should be redistributed to mix the colors a little better. I just pulled it out of the bag and put it on the porch and plugged it in to see if it still lights up. The rest of the work will get done eventually. I am waiting for my son to get the rest of the boxes from the shed with all of the Christmas decorations for the tree and house.  One day at a time..."Rome wasn't built in a day", and neither are my Christmas decorations every done in a day...

Found the Christmas wreath for the front door. 

So, that's all for now! To be continued later...

Meanwhile, tomorrow is the first Sunday of Advent.  I am looking forward to the beginning of the Christmas/Advent season.  We will have the lighting of the first candle of the Advent wreath at church, and I am excited that our son and his wife are going to do the first readings and candle lighting. 

I will share more about that tomorrow.

After all, this is what Christmas is all about...

Isaiah 9: 2, 6

"The people who walked in darkness

Have seen a great light;

Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,

Upon them a light has shined."

"For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Let us not forget the real meaning of Christmas as we scurry around getting things dressed up for Christmas. May we never lose sight of that Babe who was born in that manger...Who came to earth seeking each of us, that we might be saved from our sins and have eternal life in heaven...

"And that's what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown"...