Happy New Year

Good Morning

I don't normally post on Fridays but I found this video and had to share it. Can you imagine "walking the streets of gold" and "running where the Angels have trod"? It brings tears of joy to my eyes. I hope you all have a very Happy and safe New Year.

I hope you join me on Monday as we start a new year of Marriage Mondays. I am working on a series on Praying for our Husbands. 

In His Calm,

Mary

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all of you. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to join me here at The Calm of His Presence each Monday. You all mean so much to me. I am having a blast spending time with my family. I will be back next Monday for the beginning of a new year of Marriage Monday. I wish you all a very Happy New Year!

In His Calm,

Mary

Imagine

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you," 1 Peter 1:3-4
 

Imagine a world without Christ...

There would be a world of fear, hatred and violence. 
There would be a world of anger, bitterness and hurt.
There would be a world of poverty, loneliness, and despair.
There would be a world of broken marriages, broken families and broken lives.
But most importantly there would be a world with no hope, no forgiveness and no future.

In our world today we see fear, bitterness, loneliness and broken lives. We also see all of the other things I mentioned. However, we see so much more through God's gift of Jesus Christ. Through Jesus we have hope, we have forgiveness and we have eternal life. Christ gives us the strength to overcome fear, anger, bitterness and hurt. He is the comforter and counselor who will heal marriages, broken families and broken lives. If you are hurting take the time today to talk with Christ. Tell Him how you are feeling and sit in his presence and let His healing power take hold of your life.

My prayer is that you will experience Christ's love and hope this Christmas. May you all have a very Merry Christmas.

In His Calm,

Mary 

Things to be treasured

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. Luke 2:19

On Christmas morning 25 years ago I sat in my Grandparents den rocking my new baby cousin as she slept in my arms.  While I rocked her gently, I watched my cousins and my sister and brother running around playing with their brand new toys. I listened to my Grandparents, Aunts & Uncles and my Mom & Dad as they sat around the table laughing and telling old stories. Luke 2:19 came to my mind that day.  Time could have frozen and I would have been perfectly content. As far as I was concerned life couldn't get much better. I remember looking forward to the day when I had a family of my own to take to my Grandparents and celebrate Christmas in that same home. I am amazed at how vivid that memory is for me so many years later.

Years later I had a husband and a brand new baby and was looking forward to adding the first Great-Grandbaby to those crazy Christmas mornings at my Grandparents. But on December 20, 2004 my world was rocked. My Grandmama passed away unexpectedly. My Grandmama & I were very close. And when she died a part of me died with her. That first Christmas with our new baby was nothing like I expected.

A couple of years later we settled into a new Christmas morning tradition with my husband's parents. But then, they both very unexpectedly became ill. For the next 3 years our lives were a roller coaster and each year Christmas looked different. So, for the second time my dreams of my family celebrating Christmas with Grandparents ended.

We are now entering the 2nd Christmas without my husbands parents. A few nights ago my husband and I were sitting on our couch in front of our fireplace. The only light in the room was from the Christmas tree and the wreath & lamps on our mantle. We both commented on how we felt like we could enjoy Christmas again. Most of the last 6 years have been clouded by some sort of sadness. This year is different. We have hope again. Our kids are excited about Christmas and we are able to enjoy it with them. We can remember the times we spent with loved ones who are no longer with us but, we can also build new memories with those who are still with us.

The best part about this year is that today our daughter accepted Christ as her personal Lord and Savior. After I said the prayer with her to ask Jesus into her heart she looked at me with a big smile while touching her heart and said "Jesus is in here now." As I sat in front of our Christmas tree holding my little girl Luke 2:19 came to my mind again. This time I treasured the memory of my little girl becoming a Child of God.

Oh, the winners of last Monday's giveaway are GrammaGrits & theaikenite. Thank you to everyone who posted on my blog and on Shari's blog. I had a great time meeting new bloggy friends. I hope you all have a wonderful week finding things to treasure this Christmas season.

In His Calm,

Mary

Drowning to Swim

Welcome to Marriage Mondays. Today I have a special link with Shari Braendel a speaker for Proverbs 31 Ministries and the author of Good Girls don't have to Dress Bad. If you are visiting from her blog thank you so much for stopping by. If you are a regular to The Calm of His Presence I would love for you to visit her blog. I am featured today as her Monday Makeover. While there make sure to let her know you are visiting from my blog. Today I am offering my first ever give away. I am giving away 2 Mini-Microdermabrasion sets. You have up to 3 chances to win a set. You get an entry if you comment on my blog, another entry if you become a follower of my blog and another chance if you go over and comment on Shari's blog. I will announce the winner next Monday. Now, grab a cup of coffee or hot tea and enjoy the Calm of God's Presence.

Heads bobbing up and down, arms flailing, and little faces coughing and sputtering water out of their mouths; that is how my daughter's first day of swimming lessons looked. It was hard for me and the other Moms to sit back and watch our children struggle in the water. I found it difficult to give my daughter the freedom she needed to learn how to swim. One of the instructors told me, "She needs to 'drown' a few times in order to learn how to swim on her own". As a Mom I thought, "easy for you to say, you're not her Mom". When I saw her struggling to keep her head above water I immediately wanted to jump in to save her.

How often does that translate into our spiritual life? We jump into things not knowing what danger lies ahead only to "drown" under the mistakes that we make or the burdens we carry. God is right there, just like a mother is for her child, ready to rescue us from ourselves and the world around us. But, just like a child we are stubborn and don't want to accept His help.

In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus says "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

In these verses Jesus tells us to lean on Him. He will give us rest. He will teach us and ease our burdens. As we struggle to keep our heads above the waters he will help keep them afloat.

When we feel like we are drowning in our pain, marriage troubles, sin, anger or tragedy we can, like David did in Psalm 69. call out to Jesus. He will be there to rescue us from whatever we have weighing us down. "Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters: the floods engulf me. I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched."

If we seek God He will be there to help us. All we need to do is call out to Him and lay everything at His feet. This doesn't mean that we won't ever face hardships but if we turn our troubles over to Jesus He will help us carry the load.

Is there an issue in your marriage you need to turn over to God? Do you find yourself drowning under a failing marriage? Cry out to God. Ask Him to carry you through it. Lean on Him to carry your burden. He will give you the rest your soul needs.

I would love to pray for your marriage. Please leave a comment and let me know how I can pray for you. 


In His Calm,


Mary

The ABCs of Thanksgiving

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, Hebrews 12:28

I hope you all had a very Happy Thanksgiving. I had a wonderful time last week celebrating with my family. We took time away from our crazy, busy life and retreated to the mountains. There was no phone, no cable, and unless we made the effort to look for someone there was no one around. We were by ourselves and we were happy. We tossed the football, swung on "the dizzy" swing, hiked, read, played games and ate a lot.

I remember a number of years ago I was commuting to work on a cold, very early Thanksgiving morning. I was not happy I had to leave my husband on Thanksgiving. In the darkness of the early morning I realized I had a choice to make. I could be frustrated and mad I had to work or I could take the hour commute to thank God for the many wonderful things he had given me. I chose to thank Him. I decided to thank God by going through the ABCs. That morning I praised God during the sunrise and it wasn't long before my attitude changed.

The chance to slow down with my family this past week gave us a chance to think about how much we have to be thankful for. I decided to go back through the ABCs to list some of the many ways we have to be thankful. Here is my list along with some additions from my family.

A - Apple picking with my family

B - My bed, I love crawling in under the covers after a long day.

C - Cool, crisp fall mornings & everything that goes with fall

D - Date night with my husband

E - Eggnog, I discovered I liked it last Christmas

F - Frazier Fur scented candles

G - Guitars, my husband has several and I love to listen to him play

H - Hot tea & Hot chocolate

I - Impromptu hugs from my kids

J - Jesus & His death on the Cross to save us from our sins

K - My Kids, they are just awesome

L - Ladies night out with my girlfriends

M - Mountains, we love our family time away from the world

N - Nap time, they don't happen very often but when they do its refreshing

O - Open windows

P - Punctuality, specifically mentioned by my husband :)

Q - Quiet

R - Running, just started a few weeks ago & I love the energy it gives me

S - Sunrise & Sunset, I love watching God's amazing Glory displayed

T - Trucks & Tractors, my son's favorite toys

U - Ugg slippers, if I am home I have them on 

V - Vacations

W - Winter days when I can curl up on the couch with a good book

X- Extra measures of God's Grace when I need it

Y - Yearly traditions being established with our kids

Z - Zoo days, we love going to the zoo with the kids

I would love to hear what you are thankful for. I hope you have a wonderful week. And be sure to come back next Monday for more Marriage Mondays. I will have a special link up for you.

Today I am linked with Julie at Come Have a Peace.

In His Calm,

Mary

Heaven Is The Face

I have started this post several times on my blank screen but even more times in my head. I don't know why I am having such a hard time putting into words how thankful I am for my children. Earlier today I had no trouble rattling off a list about each one of them in my head. But now, as I sit down to type, the words aren't coming. I am filled with so many emotion I can't express them all. 

Last night my husband & I saw Steven Curtis Chapman in concert at our church. During the concert Steven and his wife MaryBeth shared the journey they have been on since their daughter went to be with Jesus in Heaven. One of the songs Steven shared was "Heaven Is The Face". The words to this song say so much about how I feel about my own two children. Garrett & Caroline are with us but I see Heaven when I look at them. They are God's gift to me. Many, many times I have asked God what I did to deserve the honor of raising these two amazing gifts from Him. 

Garrett is all boy! He came into this world with a bang, literally! He was born on July 3rd by an emergency C-section after his heart stopped. He is an active, inquisitive, energetic, loving boy. I love the way he makes me laugh.

Caroline is what we like to call a tomboy-diva. She loves to run and play with Garrett in the woods but, she also loves playing dress up and putting on make-up. She is little Miss Personality. I love to listen to her "play" her guitar & sing.

So many of our days are spent running around going from one activity to the next. I am thankful that God gave me the opportunity last night to remember all that I love about my children. Please take the time to listen to Steven Curtis Chapman's song "Heaven Is The Face". I hope it touches you as much as it touched me. 


In His Calm,


Mary