Tag: Christmas

Christmas Morning

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Christmas mornings look different for all of us.
Some are early and loud (that would be us), others are later and quieter.
Christmas day can be stressful and fly by or seem sad and never end.
Whatever your Christmas morning looks like, my prayer for you is to invite Jesus into all of it.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 NIV
Whether you need counsel, someone to depend on or get some peace that passes all understanding – all you have to do is ask Him.
Jesus came for you.
To love you, to know you, to save you, to heal you.
Today ask for His help when you need it.
Jesus will not run out of grace and mercy – He has an eternal supply.
Have an amazing and very Merry Christmas!

Rapturous Joy

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It’s Christmas Eve.

No matter what your day looks like or feels like today or tomorrow, I pray for you to have a moment of rapturous joy as a redeemed child of God.

The great orator of a century past says it so beautifully:

We esteem every day alike, but still, as the season suggests thoughts of Jesus, let us joyfully remember our dear Redeemer’s glorious birth.

Who but He was ever longed for by such a multitude of hearts?

When did angels indulge in midnight songs, or did God hang a new star in the sky?

To whose, cradle did rich and poor make so willing a pilgrimage, and offer such hearty and unsought oblations?

Well, may earth rejoice; well may all men cease their labor to celebrate “the great birthday” of Jesus.

Let gladness rule the hour; let the holy song and sweet heart music accompany our soul in the raptures of joy.

– Charles Spurgeon

Love, hugs and many blessings from the Grasso’s this Christmas!

God With Us.

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Immanuel.
God with us.
The Second Person of the Trinity, eternal, all-powerful, left heaven to add humanity to His deity.
He came to earth to bring heaven to humanity.
He came to bring heaven to you.
“All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).”   
Isaiah 7:14 NLT
May you have a moment today where the awe-inspiring truth of Christmas captures your soul and remember that He did it all for you.

Heavenly Peace

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As you count down the days to Christmas, take a minute to focus on what is important and in the craziness continue to refocus on your Creator.
It is His love you are celebrating.
This miraculous gift of the Son, this unquenchable love of the Father, this daily guide of the Spirit.
“for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:11‬ ‭NIV‬‬
Instead of replaying past moments or creating perfect scenarios in your head of the near future, let it be what it will be. 
Enjoy the imperfections of this day and those to come.
Know that everything “being perfect” will not create the feeling of fulfillment you are looking for.
You are looking for love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness…. and these are fruits of the Spirit (not fruits of the season). 
May you be filled with the Heavenly Peace of God’s Spirit as you walk among the complicated chaos of the humans around you.

Gifts to Give

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“Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit and to all kinds of people!”
1 Corinthians 12:7 MSG

As gift-buying is in full swing, I want to remind you that God has already given you precious gifts to give to others this year that you don’t have to buy.

Gifts unique to you and that are meant to be given.

God has given you the talents of your hands, the strengths of your personality, and the driving passion of your heart. He has given you spiritual gifts to bless others with. When you do, God uses you to reveal Himself to others.

It is not a prideful thing to use your gifts for the glory of God, that is what they are for.

What gifts has God given you?

How are you going to use them to bless someone today?

What is Christmas About?

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Christmas is about a relationship.

Not a religion.

Every breath, every step, every person Jesus talked to, touched, healed and gave hope to was about relationship.

Restoring it.

Reconciling it.

Renewing your relationship with God.

Jesus was born for this.

It is the same today.

Jesus has made Himself available to you every moment of every day not so that He can control you but so He can love you.

So He can restore and renew you.

Jesus is a gift to be opened and experienced every day.

Adoration

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“Oh come let us adore him,
Oh come let us adore him,
Oh come let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.”
Adoration.
It is a beautiful moment found, experienced and breathed in.
It is being reinvigorated by an authentic connection.
It is a remembering of the first time you adored Him. Remembering the moment that your relationship to Christ changed from knowing of Him to knowing Him.
Knowing Jesus is real, that He loves you with love’s unconditional voice, not just once but every day.
Not just in some things, but in all things.
My friend, that which began in a manger continues in our hearts today- Emmanuel, God with us.
It’s not business, it’s personal.
May you experience a moment during the craziness of this season that helps you remember that Christmas is more than a tradition but a worldwide celebration of new life in Christ, starting with yours.

Yes to the Adventure

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“I am the Lordʼs servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
‭‭Luke‬ ‭1:38‬ ‭NIV‬‬
Have you ever thought that if you knew what was about to happen in your life that you would handle it better? How many times have you wished that the Lord would show up and just tell you what was about to happen?
Mary had that opportunity.
The Lord showed up and told her what her story would be by sending an angel to let her in on what part she would play in history:
But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
Luke 1: 30-33 NIV
Mary would be rejected before she was accepted, desperate before she was provided for, slandered long before she was ever believed. Her life was no longer about her story but it was about God’s story thru her life.
She said, “May your word to me be fulfilled”.
Mary said yes to God knowing that it would be hard. She decided to trust God when things were not happening the way she thought they would.
She decided to follow God when others would not understand or believe her.
She knew that it would not be easy and she said yes.
I believe it is the great mercy of God that He leads us one step at a time.
I believe it will be harder than you thought it would be but more worth it than you can imagine.
Don’t be afraid. When you follow Jesus, your life is no longer about living “your” story but it is about letting God tell His story through your life.
You will never really know what God can do through you until you say yes to the adventure of following Him wherever He leads. 
Be brave.
Say yes.

What is Christmas About?

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It is all about relationship.

Not religion.

His birth, every breath, every step, every person Jesus talked to, touched, healed and gave hope to was about relationship.

Restoring it.

Reconciling it.

Renewing your relationship with God.

It is the same today.

Jesus has made Himself available to you every moment of every day not so that He can control you but so He can love you.

So He can restore and renew you.

Jesus is a gift to be opened and experienced every day.

Christmas Morning

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Christmas mornings look different for all of us. Some are early and loud, others are later and quieter. This day can be stressful and fly by or seem sad and never end.
Whatever your Christmas morning looks like, my prayer for you is to invite Jesus into all of it.
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 NIV
Whether you need counsel, someone to depend on or get some peace that passes all understanding – all you have to do is ask.
Jesus came for you.
To love you, to know you, to save you, to heal you.
Today ask for His help when you need it.
Jesus will not run out of grace and mercy – He has an eternal supply.
Have an amazing and very Merry Christmas!