Laugh, Cry, Be Shocked! Thursday, December 25, 2008 at 7:23pm on FB
Proverbs 17:22a (NKJV) "A merry heart does good, like medicine."
Lovely poems by the Meekers & extended family
These poems started about a week ago, from Bernie & Cathy Harrington, cousins from South Dakota. They were emailed to the Meekers, who responded to ALL with new additions. It just kept on going--snowball effect. (Al, Doug, Jim, Ann, & Warren are all siblings. Parents, cousins & in-laws chimed in. Feel free to add a rhyme, if you are so inclined.)
Get ready to laugh, cry & be shocked.
Initial Poem from Bernie & Cathy Harrington from Aberdeen, South Dakota:
It's winter in South Dakota
And the gentle breezes blow
Seventy miles an hour
At twenty-five below.
Oh, how I love South Dakota
When the snow's up to your butt
You take a breath of winter
And your nose gets frozen shut.
Yes, the weather here is wonderful
So I guess I'll hang around
I could never leave South Dakota
'Cause I'm frozen to the ground!!*
Doug Meeker from Willow Springs, NC (near Raleigh):
I read your lovely poem
It's the best I've ever seen
I'll think of it tomorrow
While I'm chipping to the green
Golfing can be tricky
In this Carolina weather
If it gets much colder
I will have to wear a sweater
Tomorrow at the golf course
I will likely shed some tears
For I'll be thinking of you
As you're freezing off your rears
Ann Gaines from Helotes, TX (near San Antonio):
Now, you could be here in Texas
Where you're hot and then you're cold
Your sinuses could be driving you nuts
Your joints feeling 100 years old
The good thing at this time of year
Is the lack of snakes and ants
No worries of the creepy things
Running up and down your pants
So at times I'm very jealous
Of the snow and of the ice
But if I had my choice of places
NC would be really nice!
Al Meeker from Charlotte, NC:
My poem by Al Meeker
Sorry you're cold,
I'm not.
The End.
Jim Meeker from Jacksonville, NC:
Jim's Poem by Jim
I’m sorry my brothers and sisters must gloat
Apparently they have no shame
To laugh and make fun of one’s seasonal plight
Is starting to sound quite lame
I’m writing to try to make you feel better
About the situation that you’re in
But nothing really makes much sense
I don’t even know where to begin
I hate to say that our weathers been nice
But is really has been pleasing
Enough that I took off all my clothes
And ran through the neighborhood streaking
And now that image is stuck in your head
I’m sorry I admit
But you’re the one who started this mess
So really you do deserve it
Doug Meeker:
To forget the image you've placed in our heads
Would for some be an order too tall.
But for others the task would be nothing to dread
For the image is rather quite small
Jim Meeker:
Ah, the poor attempt to embarrass me
Really was quite weak
I'm sorry that your sense of humor
Never really peaked
But in defense of my jog that day
And clichés that are quite silly
Just point that judgmental finger at yourself
And quit making fun of my willy
Doug Meeker:
Your poem is disgusting
I think it's really bad
You'd better start to clean things up
Or I'll tell Mom and Dad
Jim Meeker:
Go ahead and tell our Mom
Or better yet tell Dad
I just don't think they really care
They probably think its sad
So if you think by tattling
That things here might change
You really are a foolish boy
And very, very strange
So if the truth must be told
And don't you think its new
I can speak for all the kids
No one really liked you!
Doug Meeker:
You tell the truth
You do not lie,
You are not a deceiver
And I am not a bit surprised,
For I don't like me either
Jim Meeker:
It’s not because you’re different
Or anything like so weird
It’s even not your moustache
Or that silly beard
There is something you do not know
That we do not discuss
We gave you to an orphanage
And they gave you back to us
Al Meeker:
The orphanage that we sent you to
was a strange one we were told
it only housed cats and dogs
in cages that were old.
The patients there were all "fixed".
surgeries performed in such a whirl
the one that they performed on you,
...you're lucky you're not a girl.
Evidently there was a big mistake
some things we do not talk
but after your briss was performed
it took a year for you to walk.
But as the years went on you ran and played
romping through all of the yards
the one thing that we could not break you of
was chasing the parked cars.
Doug Meeker:
You did not have to break me
For I now do as I ought
The thing that broke my habit
Was that stupid car I caught
Josh Harrington from Phoenix, AZ:
I'm proud to be part of this group
Our family's very witty
But I felt I must chime in...
Our weather's been quite pretty
Now I know that it is true--
Mom doesn't want to know
But this is why we love this place...
It's for the lack of snow
So pack your bags and come and see
Why we choose to be
In a place where, during August
The temp is one twenty-three!
Al Meeker:
I've been in that area
and this I know is true
That at this time of year, Josh
You'll never catch the flu
Bernie & Cathy Harrington:
We know how much you love your states.
Of that you're all quite clear.
The major problem we can see..
You're all "there" and we are "here"!!! :-(
Donna Meeker from Sioux Falls, SD:
As matriarch of this motley crew
writing a response seems the right thing to do
A path through the snow has been cleared by DAD
A job once done by the offspring we once had
Alas, they have moved to places afar
To escape the cold and the snow...way up thar!
Al Meeker:
While we were visiting in SD
There is one thing that I regret
Is that the young ones did not get to do
a thing they won't forget.
We all remember Ralphy's friend Flick
in the playground nice and young
being double dog dared (and then stupid)
on the pole he stuck his tongue.
I feel sorry for our children
an experience they'll not have
to rip the skin off of their tongues
As the parents stand by and laugh.
It has been to late for some of us
we've done all that, we know
But it still is really funny
To have seen little Warren running naked in the snow.
Warren Meeker from Rock Hill, SC (near Charlotte, NC):
I had shoes on
Warren Meeker
Nyle Meeker from Sioux Falls, SD:
As an older South Dakotan,
I'm sitting here in shock
I cannot believe that my children
are becoming a weaker stock
The snow and cold of winter
made them strong and brave
And I would like to think
it taught them to behave
It bothers me now that they all seem to falter
Because if they were home right now
they could walk on water
Diana & Brad Scott from Romulus, MI (near Detroit):
what a shame........
I read in the paper,
In North Carolina there were cries,
An epidemic filled emergency rooms,
Children having problems with their eyes.
A streaking old man,
At least old did he look.
Caused burning of retinas,
As he ran and he shook.
And it is a shame,
A man once a hero,
A veteran of war,
Now wearing zero.
What could have caused,
This hero to fall.
Was it the French vanilla,
When he heard it call?
Strong and black,
Was the way of the past.
Now it's all vanilla cuddly,
Let's hope it don't last.
Jim Meeker:
I don't know who started
This rumor of lies
When I find out
He'll wish he had died
If you look through the cupboards
No French Vanilla you'll find
Or even the fridge
You can search til you're blind
I live in a house
That's all full of lassies
It's not uncommon to find
Things that are ruffled and sassy
But when it comes to coffee
It's for me not the missies
And we all agree
French Vanilla's for sissies
~note to readers: there is nothing ruffled or sassy in MY house, even if I am a girl.~Pam
Comments Posted on FB:
Nyla Irene Hilfinger at 7:44pm December 25
We hail from New York State
It snows here its never late
It can be very cold and make us feel old.
I am not a poet and I know it!
Pamela J Meeker at 11:20pm December 25
Reality
The weather's been nice
No snow and no ice
No old men are streaking down streets
The coffee's been black
No girlie knick-knacks
And NO ONE has been eating beets
Pamela J Meeker at 11:14am December 26
Note about the beets: The Meekers kids all "claim" that their Mom, Donna Meeker, forced them to eat beets when they were little. This claim has yet to be verified, but the kids all joke about it none-the-less. Someone had to bring up beets.
Pamela J Meeker at 11:14am December 26
O.K. So my brother-in-law, Brad Scott, emailed out another addition to the poem. (He needs to be my friend on FB, but alas, he has snubbed me. And--I DID NOT start the rumor.)
Rejoice, rejoice,
The rumor’s not true.
The hero’s coffee not tainted,
By the juice of a moo.
But the story was started,
And was not a sham,
By an anonymous “insider”,
Whose name is …………..
(I got nothing that rhymes with sham.)
But a question remains,
So we must keep on thinking,
Why was our hero,
Out in the world streaking?
Combat fatigue?
Too many Broadway show tunes?
A few wild late night maneuvers,
Out on the dunes?
Or could it now be,
A government plan,
The Navy’s new secret weapon,
The anti-terrorist naked man!
Lindy Meeker at 12:30pm December 26
These poems are great,
they made me laugh when I was feeling blue,
but I must admit,
I'm slightly shocked at the people I'm related to.
Amanda Lynn Klos at 9:42pm December 27
Hahah these are great! :)
Amye Baker at 9:57pm December 28
South Dakota ain't nothing
From Cleveland I came
Where snow flakes abound
And well below zero's the game
The only problem I find
Is that all you I befriend
A streaker you say
showing off his rear end?
Oh what in the world
has old Jim been thru
to think that the world
was ready to view
His stark naked body
running thru the neighborhood
for young boys & girls
that sight was no good!
As for me, i'm cross town
and so glad to say
Not a glance I did catch
Cause I live far away!
Pamela J Meeker at 10:53pm December 29
O.K. Here's another poem by Brad Scott (sent to Jim's email):
Women love roses,
Violets, they're alright.
But it's a sad day,
When no poems do you write.
Pamela J Meeker at 10:53pm December 29
Here's Jim's quick response:
Yes, it is true
It has been a few days
I have not written
I am sorry to say
I have had the time
I have no excuse
But I think you should know
I'm not Dr Suess
Lindy Meeker at 11:20pm December 29
I love all these poems
They are great, I admit.
Such classic examples of humor and wit.
But I must say that I'd have to be a bit braver
To ponder these visions of sketchy behavior.
Please keep in mind when you're writing, my dears,
That these poems are reaching sheltered ears.
Pamela J Meeker at 10:11pm January 8
Here's another poem by Brad Scott, sent to email. Brad just needs to be my friend on FB so he can post these himself!
You aren’t Dr Suess,
But you must be busy love’n.
Because I just heard,
You have a bun in the oven.
Congrats to you,
A family of four,
I hope you are ready,
For Di to come through your door,
and see the baby and spend time with Abbie and to write another song and to do more painting and to baby sit and toddler sit and to basically move in and love her nieces or nephew and niece or what if there are twins or triplets and to love and cook and wash and play and …… wait, who will cook for me?(Jim tells me that it all rhymes, but I'm having trouble figuring out the rhyming format for the last section. I'm already loosing brain cells.)
Amanda Lynn Klos at 10:13pm January 8
Wait, are you pregnant again, Pam? :o
Pamela J Meeker at 10:18pm January 8
yes
Amanda Lynn Klos at 10:33pm January 8
Ah! That is so exciting! Did you just find out? Or are you due soon?
Pamela J Meeker at 11:33pm January 8
just found out, due around end of Aug, beg of Sept. My family knows
Julianne Joy Scott at 11:42pm January 8
hahahaha!!!! that last one my dad wrote is hilarious!!!!! i wanna come with my mom when she does :)
Pamela J Meeker at 11:44pm January 8
Too bad--you'll probably be in school. Jim already wrote a rebuttal, but hasn't posted it here yet-maybe tomorrow.
Julianne Joy Scott at 11:45pm January 8
well.... it could quite possibly happen before the baby is born... maybe my spring break :O
Grace Klos at 1:11am January 9
congrats Pam, im happy for you guys :D
Jim Meeker at 6:32pm January 9
Response to Brad
A bun in the oven
I cannot lie
It came to us
A little surprise
Happy for me
Sad for you
When its time to eat
Use the drive through
Nyla Irene Hilfinger at 7:33pm January 9
Are you and Jim having another baby! How terrific!! I am so happy for you.
Eileen Cunningham West at 9:42pm January 9
Yay~~~~~what wonderful news!!!! Congratulations!!!!
Cathy Harrington at 5:50pm January 10
CONGRATULATIONS! I'm screaming with joy for all of you!!!!!
Nyla Irene Hilfinger at 8:40pm January 11
I hope you are feeling well, and keep us posted!!!
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
God's Big Squeeze
God's Big Squeeze Monday, December 15, 2008 at 2:35pm on FB
Usually, at this time of the year, I’m listening to Christmas music on iTunes. Instead, I’m listening to Abbie sing as she plays with toys. There will be time for Christmas music when she is done singing.
Abbie is 3 ½ years old now & likes to sing the song, My God is So Big!
My God is so big, so strong & so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do. (2x)
The mountains are His, the valleys are His, the stars are His handiwork, too.
My God is so big, so strong & so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do, for YOU!
It’s almost Christmas. I have lots of fun memories at this time of year . . . Playing outside in the snow; Grandpa Muck pulling us behind the big red tractor on the toboggan (why did my sisters make me sit up front??? I always got snow in my face!); everyone helping carry boxes of Christmas decorations downstairs from the attic where Dad was dropping them down to us (usually to Diana); Mom decorating EVERY room with something Christmas; Dad feeding the fire in the family room while we watched Santa Klaus is Coming to Town & Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer on TV; decorating the Christmas Tree; placing the nativity pieces--just right; listening to the Chipmunks Christmas album; Mom holed up in the basement--wrapping gifts; visiting Grandma Killingbeck’s house on Christmas Eve & opening the gifts sent from Grandma & Grandpa Harrison; Grandpa Harrison & his video camera; big dinner’s at Grandma Harrison’s house-down in the basement & watching Grandpa’s home movies where Aunt Jo inevitably bent over in front of the camera; and the list goes on. I’m sure Di, Dawn & Patti could add to it.
But, Christmas time is more than just special memories of childhood & family. We all know (at least in America, most of us still know) that Christmas is about God sending his Son to earth, to be born of a virgin (a miraculous birth!) Sometimes we forget--when we get caught up in all the shopping, baking, wrapping, parties, etc.--what a great sacrifice was made for that miraculous birth. Remember, Jesus’ sacrifice didn’t start on Calvary. It started when the Holy Spirit came upon Mary & Jesus was conceived.
Ramblings . . .
I recently read the book titled The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis. The story is about a man who boards a bus going to heaven. When he gets there, the man finds that his fellow passengers all have a choice to make. Should they stay in heaven, or board the bus & go back (to what? Hell?) (Surprisingly enough, his fellow passengers decide to go back to their own self-imposed hells.) There are citizens of heaven who greet the passengers, answer their questions about heaven & life, and persuade them to continue on to the “higher grounds” in heaven, instead of returning to the bus.
The man, from whose perspective the book is written, is also “assigned” a heavenly citizen who answers his questions. In speaking with the man, the heavenly citizen points out that the bus & it’s passengers started out very small & had to grow exceedingly in size in order to travel to heaven & to perceive heaven as they were seeing it. Someone from heaven could not go back (to earth or hell) because they “would not fit”, they are too big to fit. TOO BIG. Too big to fit in earth---coming from heaven.
Did you ever read the book (or see the movie) Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss? You know--Horton the elephant, hears a small cry for help coming from a tiny speck & discovers that there is a WHOLE WORLD of little people (the Who’s) living on the tiny speck. Is that what earth is like compared to heaven? I often like to ponder what heaven is like. I can’t wait to get there. But, I’m living on the tiny speck right now. I can’t even comprehend how big heaven is, let alone how BIG GOD is!
When Jesus was born as a man, first He had to leave heaven. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I would want to leave heaven once I was there. I don’t even like to leave the comforts of my own home. Jesus gave up everything. Just think about it.
Jesus had to leave His home--heaven, in exchange for a manger in a stinky stable. He gave up His authority--now He was subject to earthly, sinful parents, as well as political leaders. He was also reliant on these parents, when He was once self-existent. He gave up His infinite power & timelessness--He became a helpless infant, growing up slowly in our earthly time frame. He gave up His omniscience--He no longer knew the Big Picture, but had to pray to His Father for guidance (just as we do.) He gave up His sovereignty--heaven & earth were no longer at His command. He gave up His freedom--His will to do as He wished. He gave up so much more; I cannot list all of His sacrifices here. He willingly gave up all this for us, knowing full well in advance, what we would do to Him, after having to endure this fallen, sinful world for 33 years.
God had to squeeze Himself into man,
because man is just too small to hold all of God.
Now, what is Christmas all about?
So wrap our injured flesh around You
Breathe our air and walk our sod
Rob our sin and make us holy
Perfect Son of God
Perfect Son of God
Welcome to our world
--Welcome to Our World, from the album Deep Enough to Dream by Chris Rice
Philippians 2:5-11 (NIV)
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, BUT MADE HIMSELF NOTHING, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Selected Scripture from the Gospel of Luke
Luke 1:26-35 (NLT)
God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David.
Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”
Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.
“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.
Luke 2:1-16 (NLT)
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census.
And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.
And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.
After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
Comments on FB:
Diana Lynn Scott at 8:02pm December 15
WOW! Thank you for writing!I LOVE when you share your heart!PJ you have a many gifts, ALL special, just like you!I love your writing gift! I'm in tears. Once again, Holy Spirit has touched my heart through you. I love you and am proud to be your sister!
Patti Fife at 6:44pm December 16
Listening to your child while she plays is one of the greatest joys as a parent. I am so glad you are listening!!! AMEN to your whole "note" too (except I don't think stables aren't all that stinky-I kinda like them-though I don't want to have a baby in one!!!) Love you!!!
Pamela J Meeker at 11:21pm December 19
Just a few quotes to add about the 'we're on a tiny speck" rabbit trail.
“A person’s a person, no matter how small.” Horton Elephant in Horton Hears a Who! by Dr. Seuss
“If it is maintained that anything so small as the Earth must, in any event, be too unimportant to merit the love of the Creator, we reply that no Christian ever supposed we did merit it. Christ did not die for men because they were intrinsically worth dying for, but because He is intrinsically love, and therefore loves infinitely. And what, after all, does the size of a world or a creature tell us about its ’importance’ or value?” Miracles by C.S. Lewis
Dorothy B Harrison at 11:55am December 20
I am speechless, That was sooo good. Wish we could be making more memories with you this Christmas. We have lots of snow and Abbie would love to ride on a toboggan with her cousin Jack and the rest of the bunch. We need you and Jim here to lend your voices to the Christmas carols on Christmas Eve. You are such a good Mom. Love you
Amye Baker at 7:36am December 21
Pam, thank you for this gift, the reminder in such vivid and beautiful terms. Children say and do the simplest things that lead us to the feet of Jesus...it's beautiful
Usually, at this time of the year, I’m listening to Christmas music on iTunes. Instead, I’m listening to Abbie sing as she plays with toys. There will be time for Christmas music when she is done singing.
Abbie is 3 ½ years old now & likes to sing the song, My God is So Big!
My God is so big, so strong & so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do. (2x)
The mountains are His, the valleys are His, the stars are His handiwork, too.
My God is so big, so strong & so mighty, there’s nothing my God cannot do, for YOU!
It’s almost Christmas. I have lots of fun memories at this time of year . . . Playing outside in the snow; Grandpa Muck pulling us behind the big red tractor on the toboggan (why did my sisters make me sit up front??? I always got snow in my face!); everyone helping carry boxes of Christmas decorations downstairs from the attic where Dad was dropping them down to us (usually to Diana); Mom decorating EVERY room with something Christmas; Dad feeding the fire in the family room while we watched Santa Klaus is Coming to Town & Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer on TV; decorating the Christmas Tree; placing the nativity pieces--just right; listening to the Chipmunks Christmas album; Mom holed up in the basement--wrapping gifts; visiting Grandma Killingbeck’s house on Christmas Eve & opening the gifts sent from Grandma & Grandpa Harrison; Grandpa Harrison & his video camera; big dinner’s at Grandma Harrison’s house-down in the basement & watching Grandpa’s home movies where Aunt Jo inevitably bent over in front of the camera; and the list goes on. I’m sure Di, Dawn & Patti could add to it.
But, Christmas time is more than just special memories of childhood & family. We all know (at least in America, most of us still know) that Christmas is about God sending his Son to earth, to be born of a virgin (a miraculous birth!) Sometimes we forget--when we get caught up in all the shopping, baking, wrapping, parties, etc.--what a great sacrifice was made for that miraculous birth. Remember, Jesus’ sacrifice didn’t start on Calvary. It started when the Holy Spirit came upon Mary & Jesus was conceived.
Ramblings . . .
I recently read the book titled The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis. The story is about a man who boards a bus going to heaven. When he gets there, the man finds that his fellow passengers all have a choice to make. Should they stay in heaven, or board the bus & go back (to what? Hell?) (Surprisingly enough, his fellow passengers decide to go back to their own self-imposed hells.) There are citizens of heaven who greet the passengers, answer their questions about heaven & life, and persuade them to continue on to the “higher grounds” in heaven, instead of returning to the bus.
The man, from whose perspective the book is written, is also “assigned” a heavenly citizen who answers his questions. In speaking with the man, the heavenly citizen points out that the bus & it’s passengers started out very small & had to grow exceedingly in size in order to travel to heaven & to perceive heaven as they were seeing it. Someone from heaven could not go back (to earth or hell) because they “would not fit”, they are too big to fit. TOO BIG. Too big to fit in earth---coming from heaven.
Did you ever read the book (or see the movie) Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss? You know--Horton the elephant, hears a small cry for help coming from a tiny speck & discovers that there is a WHOLE WORLD of little people (the Who’s) living on the tiny speck. Is that what earth is like compared to heaven? I often like to ponder what heaven is like. I can’t wait to get there. But, I’m living on the tiny speck right now. I can’t even comprehend how big heaven is, let alone how BIG GOD is!
When Jesus was born as a man, first He had to leave heaven. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I would want to leave heaven once I was there. I don’t even like to leave the comforts of my own home. Jesus gave up everything. Just think about it.
Jesus had to leave His home--heaven, in exchange for a manger in a stinky stable. He gave up His authority--now He was subject to earthly, sinful parents, as well as political leaders. He was also reliant on these parents, when He was once self-existent. He gave up His infinite power & timelessness--He became a helpless infant, growing up slowly in our earthly time frame. He gave up His omniscience--He no longer knew the Big Picture, but had to pray to His Father for guidance (just as we do.) He gave up His sovereignty--heaven & earth were no longer at His command. He gave up His freedom--His will to do as He wished. He gave up so much more; I cannot list all of His sacrifices here. He willingly gave up all this for us, knowing full well in advance, what we would do to Him, after having to endure this fallen, sinful world for 33 years.
God had to squeeze Himself into man,
because man is just too small to hold all of God.
Now, what is Christmas all about?
So wrap our injured flesh around You
Breathe our air and walk our sod
Rob our sin and make us holy
Perfect Son of God
Perfect Son of God
Welcome to our world
--Welcome to Our World, from the album Deep Enough to Dream by Chris Rice
Philippians 2:5-11 (NIV)
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, BUT MADE HIMSELF NOTHING, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Selected Scripture from the Gospel of Luke
Luke 1:26-35 (NLT)
God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David.
Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”
Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.
“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.
Luke 2:1-16 (NLT)
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census.
And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.
And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.
After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
Comments on FB:
Diana Lynn Scott at 8:02pm December 15
WOW! Thank you for writing!I LOVE when you share your heart!PJ you have a many gifts, ALL special, just like you!I love your writing gift! I'm in tears. Once again, Holy Spirit has touched my heart through you. I love you and am proud to be your sister!
Patti Fife at 6:44pm December 16
Listening to your child while she plays is one of the greatest joys as a parent. I am so glad you are listening!!! AMEN to your whole "note" too (except I don't think stables aren't all that stinky-I kinda like them-though I don't want to have a baby in one!!!) Love you!!!
Pamela J Meeker at 11:21pm December 19
Just a few quotes to add about the 'we're on a tiny speck" rabbit trail.
“A person’s a person, no matter how small.” Horton Elephant in Horton Hears a Who! by Dr. Seuss
“If it is maintained that anything so small as the Earth must, in any event, be too unimportant to merit the love of the Creator, we reply that no Christian ever supposed we did merit it. Christ did not die for men because they were intrinsically worth dying for, but because He is intrinsically love, and therefore loves infinitely. And what, after all, does the size of a world or a creature tell us about its ’importance’ or value?” Miracles by C.S. Lewis
Dorothy B Harrison at 11:55am December 20
I am speechless, That was sooo good. Wish we could be making more memories with you this Christmas. We have lots of snow and Abbie would love to ride on a toboggan with her cousin Jack and the rest of the bunch. We need you and Jim here to lend your voices to the Christmas carols on Christmas Eve. You are such a good Mom. Love you
Amye Baker at 7:36am December 21
Pam, thank you for this gift, the reminder in such vivid and beautiful terms. Children say and do the simplest things that lead us to the feet of Jesus...it's beautiful
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