I have a Christmas gift for you!
What, it’s only July?! Is it ever too early for a little Christmas? (I know many of you will say, YES! I disagree. 😘) You may not know that I LOVE Advent and Christmastide, and our family has been celebrating with intentionality and serious fun for more than two decades.
At the beginning of those two decades, I searched for the perfect family resource. After years of searching and trying different books, I GAVE UP. What does a writer do when she gives up searching?
She writes her own book!
The Joy of Advent will release from Paraclete Press this October! For a limited time, you can download a preview. Could The Joy of Advent help you celebrate the holidays with new meaning and JOY?
Click the button below, and select “download a preview."
But it’s JULY, so life is not all about Christmas (but it should be!). Scroll down for some of my latest and most popular summer resources, or read on for a few words about life.
Life has actually been overwhelmingly full this spring and summer, so full I didn’t even plant my garden. I tell myself I’m giving the soil a “rest,” but really, I just couldn’t find the time amidst book projects, schooling, and all my young adults moving home for the summer. It’s only one season, and while I do miss checking for ripe tomatoes and picking fresh beans, I have high hopes that next spring I’ll return to the garden with a refreshed spirit and fresh enthusiasm. And it’s not totally dormant. I’ve harvested my hardy oregano three times!
One thing on my mind now, however, is how do you find JOY in every season? Because sometimes God calls us to seasons of drought, of overwhelm or grief, of pain, illness, loneliness. I’ve learned (realistically: am learning daily!) that every season has a purpose, and every purpose of God’s is good and perfect, even if we can’t see what that purpose is.
Isn’t that what the walk of faith is all about?
It’s easy to trust God’s plan when the savings account is full, our kids are healthy and happy, our lives are running like a well-oiled Whirly Pop. Is God’s plan any less perfect when we’re facing a scary diagnosis, a child is suffering, or the economy leaves us financially devastated? In the words of one of my favorite prayers, “God knows what He is about … He does nothing in vain.” Even a season of overflowing blessing has a purpose. Guess what the purpose of overflow is? It’s to flow those blessings onto others!
Feel free to reply and share with me, what’s your season right now? How can I celebrate with you or lift you up in prayer?
Rebecca