Caregiver's December Fellowship

This night was truly special in so many ways. We all came in with so many different things on our heart and mind – some spoken, some, o so deep that are not mentioned audibly. We were greeted with warmth from a wonderful home, smells of yummy food, a beautiful table, a glowing chimney…this all for us from Our Heavenly Father through His servant. Our God is so personal and knows exactly what we need…thank you Jesus!

We laughed, we shared and we enjoyed some good food (as always, thank you Ida for all the work). O, and yes, the desserts – we won’t go into the cake story, to protect the innocent – he! he! And Theresa’s goodies were o so yummy – who said we are on a diet anyway. We also exchanged “hand-made” gifts – there is a lot of talent around this group. All the gifts were precious and beautiful. Thank you ladies for all your hard work and all the love poured into each and every gift.

As we sat at the table we began to talk and share – funny how the Holy Spirit has been teaching us all the same thing, in different ways. The underlying thought “LESS IS MORE”. Teresa shared of the beautiful Christmases as she was growing up during World War II – talk about “less is more”…attitude and perspective is what it is all about (hey, wasn’t this on another post?). Teresa shared that her family knew Christmas was about Jesus. And that they were very grateful and content with God’s provisions. Teresa’s brother would collect the wood for the stove to make cookies, while her father would go on the hunt for a Christmas tree (and he wouldn’t go to a Christmas tree farm to look for a tree, he would go to the forest). He would chop one down and bring it home to his family. Their special family gift was time together, decorating the tree. Their Christmas tree decorations consisted of walnuts that they would wrap in aluminum to make them shiny, the cookies that they had previously made, that of course, they would later eat. They would light up the tree by putting little candles on the tree, yes, candles – wow! Is this creative or what? Do you get a sense of warmth and love as you here this story? Nothing to do with what we have made it out to be now.

Diana shared a beautiful song by Michael Card, named “The Basin and The Towel (Galatians 6:9 – So don’t get tired of doing what is good. Don’t get discouraged and give up, for we will reap a harvest of blessing at the appropriate time):

In an upstairs room a parable
Is just about to come alive.
And while they bicker about who’s best,
With a painful glance, He’ll silently rise.

Their Savior Servant must show them how
Through the will of the water
And the tenderness of the towel.

And the call is to community,
The impoverished power that sets the soul free.
In humility, to take the vow,
That day after day we must take up the basin and the towel.

In any ordinary place, on any ordinary, day,
The parable can live again
When one will kneel and one will yield.

Our Savior Servant must show us how
Through the will of the water
And the tenderness of the towel.

And the space between ourselves sometimes
Is more than the distance between the stars.
By the fragile bridge of the Servant’s bow
We take up the basin and the towel.

We read Luke 1:26-38 and Luke 2:7-14

We sang a different rendition of Silent Night:
Silent Night, Holy Night
All is calm, all is bright
Round young virgin, mother and child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace

Silent Night, Holy Night
Shepherds quake at the sight
Glorious streams from heaven afar
Heavenly host sing alleluia
Christ the savior is born, Christ the savior is born

We worship Him, we honor Him
Born on this night, our God our true light
We worship Him, we honor Him
Jesus our Lord and our King

Silent Night, Holy Night
Son of God love pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus Lord at thy birth, Jesus Lord at thy birth

We worship Him, we honor Him
Born on this night, our God our true light
We worship Him, we honor Him
Jesus our Lord and our King

Then Ida shared with us the following devotion:

Read Matthew 1:18-25

MARRED by David McCasland (Our
Daily Bread)

During an all-night festival in Paris, five young people,apparently drunk, broke into the Orsay Museum and left a 4-inch gash in a priceless painting by Claude Monet. Culture Minister Christine Albanel said the painting could be restored, but she was deeply disturbed at the damage done by “a purely criminal act.”

One news headline read: “Monet Masterpiece Marred.” To mar is to injure or damage; to spoil, disfigure, or impair. It’s an apt description of sin’s effect on us. We know well the results of our own choices made in ignorance or defiance of God.

As we approach Christmas, it’s good to remember why Jesus was born. The Son of God did not come to establish a nostalgic, family-oriented, commercially successful holiday. The angel told Joseph: “[Mary] will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Christmas began with a present from God to His sin damaged world: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

The masterpiece of God’s human creation, marred by turning away from Him, can be restored when we give our hearts to Christ.

Then we proceeded to prepare ourselves to take sweet communion together. We each read a Scripture:

Theresa – John 6:51, I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.

Margaret – Matthew 26:26, And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

Sally – John 6:35, And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”

Susie – John 6:32-33, My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.

Meg – John 6:27, Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.

Diana – John 6:56, 58, He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. This is the bread which came down from heaven not as your fathers at the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.

Leti – Matthew 26:27-28, Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Then we all took communion together…sweet time.

As always, the time flew by and the hugs and kisses began. God’s love and care flows through each and every lady. God has knitted us together with the common bond being Him. One of the ladies shared that in December (this month) was this ministry’s anniversary – 3 years!

To God be the glory for all that He has done and will continue to do.