Advent - Remember (Merry Christmas 2019)

Advent- “the Coming”

We know that He came.

So what are we counting?

The work has been done.

We count to remember

The work of the Son

And the Father and Spirit

When He stepped down from His throne.

He came to save sinners,

Of which I am one.

He’s always been and will be,

But He came down for His own,

So let’s remember.

Remember why He came.

Remember the pictures and shadows.

Remember the prophecies.

Remember how it all pointed to Him.

It’s all written in The Book.

Remember how He came. 

Remember the baby and shepherds.

Remember the special gifts.

Remember the sinless man,

Fully God and fully man.

Remember the miracles.

Remember the curses He took.

Remember the cross where He hung.

Remember He said, “It is finished.”

All that was written came to pass.

Remember the empty grave.

Remember the ascension.

Remember He’s coming again.

Remember and praise Jesus Christ!

Our Savior, Immanuel.

Merry Christmas from the McLennans 2019!

King of Kings and What a Savior

Life is a battle.

I’m my worst enemy.

I try and try again

To be in charge of me.

But what I want to do,

I don’t even do,

And what I don’t want to do

Is what I do again.

Oh who will save me,

My wretched soul?

Praise be to God!

Jesus Christ is my Savior!

You stepped in and died,

And then You rose again.

Praise be to God,

What a Savior!

Jesus, You are King,

King of Kings,

Lord of Lords.

Jesus, You are King,

And what a Savior!

And as for me and my house,

We will serve the Lord.

As for me and my house,

We will serve You.

And when we don’t,

Because we can’t,

You step in 

And show us grace upon grace.

Jesus Christ, what a Savior!

Jesus, You are King,

King of Kings,

Lord of Lords.

Jesus, You are King,

And what a Savior!

Memorial Day

Freedom has never been free.

It always comes at cost.

We often take for granted

All that freedom costs.

If we start to feel perhaps

Our freedom slipping away,

We do not take it lightly.

We want our liberty.

But are we truly thankful

For those who walked before us,

For those who walk beside us,

Ensuring we stay free?

All those gravestones line the ground.

All those flags wave freely.

All those soldiers say goodbye

And leave someone behind weeping.

No, freedom never has been free.

How thankful that I am 

That death is not the end,

That by the death of our dear Lord

We’re free from death and sin.

Today I’m truly thankful

For freedom in this life 

And for those who bought that freedom.

Praise Jesus, praise the Son!

20 Years: And We Stand Together Forever

“Canon in D,”

“To Make You Feel my Love,”

“Standing on Holy Ground.”

I was walking on air 

Because you were there 

Marrying me that day.

I looked at you.

We were so in love.

And you stood by me.

And you stand by me.

And we stand together forever.

Moving away from home,

College Degrees,

Buying our first home.

Great adventure with you 

As we learned and grew

Doing life just us two.

I looked at you.

We were so in love.

And you stood by me.

And you stand by me.

And we stand together forever.

Baby makes three

And then four, five, six,

And even seven.

Twenty years and two more moves.

I still love our life 

Together.

I look at you.

We are so in love.

And you’ve stood by me.

And you stand by me.

And we stand together forever

Deliberate in 2019

Deliberate is the word that I have chosen for 2019. With a move in this new year, I think it will be the perfect word to walk with as I seek to walk in the good works God has prepared for me. My verse is Ephesians 2:10.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good 

works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should 

walk in them.

Ephesians 4-10 is a beautiful passage about God’s rich mercy and love that made us alive in Him by His grace. What a gift! Because He has prepared good works for me, His child, I want to be deliberate in walking out His works. I want to be deliberate in walking out a life of love in worship of my Savior. Twenty years ago January 2^nd, Ephesians 5:1-2 was read at our wedding.

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk

in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, 

offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

Deliberate is defined as done consciously and intentionally. It is from the Latin deliberatus, meaning “considered carefully.’ It can be translated deliberate, determined, resolved upon, and worked out. This is how I desire to live my Christian life. Colossians 3:17 is a great verse to remind me that this is my calling.

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the 

Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

I wrote a poem/song to start off this year. I hope to write more this year. I have started a Bible study on encouragement and Lord-willing will finish it this year.

May it be a blessed year! All praise to Jesus!

Do we live our lives like they matter?

Do we really know why we’re even here?

If we really know all about Jesus,

We know each day is made for Him.

Be deliberate.

Do it on purpose.

Be deliberate

Every day.

Ev-er-y day

Ev-er-y hour

Ev-er-y moment

Let’s be deliberate

In honoring Him.

He created us to worship Him.

He created us to live for Him.

Let’s live and breathe the love of Christ.

Let’s live our lives to worship Him.

Be deliberate.

Do it on purpose.

Be deliberate

Every day.

Ev-er-y day

Ev-er-y hour

Ev-er-y moment

Let’s be deliberate

In honoring Him.

In Christ Jesus, we are created

For good works, which He’d prepared.

Now let’s walk in them

The way He planned for us.

Let’s walk in them deliberately.

Be deliberate.

Do it on purpose.

Be deliberate

Every day.

Ev-er-y day

Ev-er-y hour

Ev-er-y moment

Let’s be deliberate

In honoring Him.

2018 Comes to a Close

And just like that, 2018 comes to a close. I started the year with the word Nourish (and also Cherish), and I must say that I did not concentrate on the words as much as in the past. I needed something to help me get going for the year, to focus, but they were not as concrete as past words Faith and Mercy so it was a bit different.  I was able to accomplish the goals of reading aloud through the New Testament with my children this year and read through the Old Testament again personally, and we surely are nourished by His Word. I love the conversations that we have had and the growth I have seen in their understanding. We continue to homeschool and learn and mature together. We have had some exciting development this year in our studies and some fun travels. It is a blessing indeed to have this time together. I still feel very lacking in the desire to better nourish relationships and cherish this time more, and I will continue to work on this in the coming year.     

The end of 2018 brought news that we will move our family to a new home and town in 2019. We have been in move-mode for several months, which I will admit I am not finding a time of nourishing and cherishing. I pray that I can cherish the time we have had in our small town and will relax more and not neglect nourishing the ones I love through this time.

Onto a new year and a new adventure…

The Lamb: Christmas 2018

The Lamb

All those years prophesied,

Pictures and shadows galore,

All the lambs slaughtered,

But still there’d be more.

Then one day to shepherds

Angels appeared

Bearing great joyful tidings

For a new baby boy.

To those caring for lambs

Came the news of The Lamb,

Agnes Dei: Lamb of God,

Jesus Christ, Savior of man.

He had come to the world:

Immanuel, God with us,

And we’d need no more lambs

To show us the way.

Jesus Christ is the Way,

Fully God, fully man,

He came to save sinners

And to rise again.

This Christmas and always

We remember He came.

Love brought Him down.

His grace made the way.

Merry Christmas from the McLennans 2018!

May this find you worshiping The Lamb this Christmas season.