ThinMint

Step away. Find a quiet spot. Deep breath. Thoughts on God. Confess your need for Him. Praise the Lord for His mercy and grace. Wrap yourself in His love. Steady. God is on the throne. Jesus resides in your heart.

Two special videos placed in the comments...

-3- It’s love. That’s what it’s all about. Love. Jesus was born out of love, for love, to show us how to love. We love because He first loved us. What’s the point of Christmas cards, music, food, décor, gifts and traditions if you don’t love? We hurt. We still need to love. Forgiveness is love. Praying is love. Quiet worshipful offerings to God is love. Being in awe of the Creator of the Universe is love. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35 If. Jesus said if. The choice is ours. We rise above the struggles, the fray, the scary unknowns, the unfair trials through love. His love. His agape love. We say thank you to Him for His love by loving others. Jesus isn’t just the reason for the season; He is the reason for everything. Jesus is the manifestation of Love. That’s what it’s all about. Love.

-2- Since we were first married, I make a big Christmas Eve dinner, savoring the leftovers for the next few days. Felix’s Hospital Adventure™ changed just about everything in our lives, even touching how we celebrate the holidays. This year, I plan to make the dinner, albeit not as large, on the 23rd as I want the 24th as one more day to just hang out together as a family. Our lives have been changed from what happened a year ago. Capturing the perfect pose, in the perfect clothes for the perfect Christmas card; getting the presents just so, wrapping them just so, placing them under the tree just so; making sure we have this food or that dish or we need to make this or that… was not the plan this year. The Christmas cards got mailed on the 22nd. The ham is still frozen. I have nothing to put in Felix’s stocking (first year he and I have ones). Record lows and power outages are predicted. Unexpected changes with some relationships. Kids loud, louder, loudest. All water off a duck’s back. We are together. The six of us. Cozy, crazy, cherishing.

-1- There are certain traditions that make our holidays feel like, well more holiday’ish. Christmas brings joy for many reasons –ones we need as we don’t know Christ’s true birthday. For many of us, Christmas is special because we fondly cling to precious childhood memories. Growing up my parents always got a live tree. I’m not sure why as it caused my dad so much angst. The furnace was the nemesis for the dad in A Christmas Story; my dad’s was the Christmas tree. But, once he got it set up… The giant, colored bulbs and shiny garland were captivating, and us kids got the privilege of tossing the tinsel! As my brother slipped into teenagehood, Christmas decorating fell mostly to my Mom and myself. By the time I reached teenagehood, I did most of it. My favorite was setting up the Nativity –my imagination kicking into overdrive as I imagined the sounds, smells and sights of the first Advent. For me, it’s not about celebrating the birth of Jesus per se; it’s going deeper in thinking about my Lord, and adding to my faith. The Christmas music written for our Savior pulls my mind and heart towards Heaven. Everything else is fun time with my kids, creating beloved memories for us all to reflect back upon as we grow older.

Please share your beloved traditions.

Sorry for the delay. I am NOT a morning person 🫤 👇🏻 Looking forward to trying some new cookie recipes! Have a blessed day! 🍪

They keep it classy. No comparison to the other administrations.

My kids unintentionally made Dr Seuss Shanties™ and I love it!

Gingerbread decorating party

❄️ If anyone is looking for something to do, but you’re not quite sure what, may I suggest hosting a gingerbread decorating party? Since 2018 I have set up this event each December for our homeschool organization. Families pay a small fee to cover supplies for decorating -and eating! It’s so much fun to watch kids and grownups create and enjoy themselves. This is such a flexible project, too. Some bring ready-made-kits and some bring homemade gingerbread houses. If the budget is tight, use graham crackers (you can hot glue the pieces together). I also pick up non-candy items such as animal crackers, cereals, marshmallows, chocolate morsels and pretzels. Of course, you’re not limited to just a house design. Over the years I’ve seen the Empire State building, an At-at, the Millennium Falcon, the Doctor Who phone booth, a horse, a sleigh, a barn. Consider inviting some neighborhood kids or kids from other families you know through school, church, work or sports.

Thin Mint, thank you for helping people like me focus on family love and God. This has been a difficult year for me and the world seems so ugly right now. It’s nice to have a channel who promotes the things we should look to. I’m sorry for the trials you are facing though I rejoice that these difficult events will being you ever so closer to the Lord. Lean into Jesus! The world has always been ugly, but I think this is the first time in human history that much of humanity has been privy to the evil at the same time, under the same circumstances, under the same evil doers. That said, there is still so much beauty that abounds. We would do well to find it, share it and preserve it. I thank you for the kind words, and I am relieved that you see the hand of God at work here. I’m a goofball so my ideas are ridiculous. Like wanting to play soccer with cars and inserting a cheeseburger into a pizza. God gets all the laurels for the good and helpful things. You deciding to be a part of this precious community is deeply appreciated. Thanks for giving me a chance. Have a very bright and happy Christmas with those you love!

TM – I appreciate you trying to be positive but there are bad things happening like ________ and ________ so I don’t see the point in focusing on pagan Christmas stuff when we should be out ________ and ________. You need to do what other channels like ________ and ________ are doing in covering ________, ________. Well, there’s nothing new under the sun, meaning bad things have been happening since sin entered the world. We read in the Bible that we should enjoy the fruits of our labors (Ecclesiastes 5:18-20). The Israelites had festivals to give praise to the Lord. We know that, "every good gift and every perfect gift is from above" (James 1:17). We know that Jesus attended a wedding celebration. I think we mark certain occasions, certain moments in our lives with God’s blessing when we do so with a humble, grateful heart. Christmas is a good example of blending secular and religious traditions. It is not up to me to tell anyone else what they ought to do or not, what they ought to celebrate, or not. Perhaps for many of us it’s not so much about Christmas itself, but acknowledging some of the sweet things from our childhood. One thing I really love about Christmas is the music. Some of the most meaningful worship songs came about because of Christmas. I adore these precious songs. We are capable of duality. For example, at a wedding you miss a family member who passed away earlier in the year, yet still celebrate a new marriage. It does not need to be an either/or. If Believers are praying then the Holy Spirit will tell them what they need to do, not me. I may offer suggestions, but I would not assume to command others. You do what works best for your situation. As for doing what other channels do, then that would make me just like other channels, and have me walking outside of God’s will for my life. I don’t want to be like everyone else; I want to be authentic me. And I want to follow what God instructs me to do. I hope other channels are allowing God to use their talents for His glory, too. Like the channel description states, “A little bit of this and that, with a heavy sprinkling of humor along with gentle reminders of the good in life.” I am very content in this approach, this is me. Be blessed.

You know how two people can watch the same movie and have vastly different reactions and interpretations of what they both watched? Sharing the two messages I got below just in case anyone was kinda thinking the same thing...