The beauty of cherished memories, former procrastinators, is that they point to God’s goodness. The Christmas celebration is exactly that. God kept His promise to send us a Savior. Earning our way to heaven is a weight we do not carry because He removed it.
Not everything holiday points to God. We want to make sure we emphasize what does.
Some of our Christmas traditions make me think of the stones of remembrance that God directed Joshua to set up when the Isrealites had passed over the Jordan into the promised land. God wants us to remember Him and to teach the generations following us to remember Him. “When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them” of God’s provided passage over the Jordan into their new homeland.
My grandmother baked cheese wafers my mother baked. I bake them and now our daughter-in-law bakes them. We make them because in our family those wafers are part of the celebration of Jesus’s birth.
We have the first ornament our son received, given by one who prayed earnestly for God to give us children. Others have stories that point to Him.
Our old manger scene is one I made in kindergarten. The plaster of Paris figures have faded and Mary has been glued back together. The stable is a shoebox turned on its side. The top side is bent into a peak, the whole thing colored with brown tempura paint.
I learned this truth as a child…. I want you to know, my child…. Now you teach your children…
Memories are powerful. When they point to life-giving truth, they bring joy, refreshment, comfort. We make new memories that add to our storehouse of treasures. Both help us be faithful to the Lord. Enjoy the blessing of sweet memories. Remember. Teach. Celebrate.
Merry Christmas, dear ladies!
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