Trees ~ Part 5 ~ Emmanuel God is with us

During this time of year many commemorate the most momentous event in history.  ~ "The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us."

We drive through our towns and cities and see Evergreen trees for sale. We place gifts under these trees.

Please remember the birth of our Savior; who He is and why He came into the world. 

God the son, became the babe in the manger, that He might become the man of sorrows on the cross, to die as our sinless substitute, to release us from the penalty of sin and reconcile us to God the Father, so we can receive eternal life and live abundantly. 

All of this as a gift by faith in Him.

For God so loved the world...

God has provided us with a Tree of Life through the work of His Beloved Son ~ Jesus.

With God's tree comes the eternal, imperishable and unfathomable gifts of His grace.

His gifts don't break or wear out. They are always timely, personal and exactly what we need. His gifts are the gift of love and the Holy Spirit, free and bold access to Him, the hope of glory, the gift of triumph in times of trouble, the free gift of salvation; the gift of rejoicing, the gift of peace in Him and the gift of forgiveness and reconciliation and so much more.

Seek Him and you will find Him.

You will be transformed by His love and grace.

This is the best gift I could give to you.

God is with us still.

My Book House

I love old books. Especially old books for children. Recently, a used bookstore opened up near us. I introduced my beloved to it yesterday and we lost track of time in the tomes.  I seek out the old book section always and come home with a treasure trove of used books. This bookstore has the best prices, only $1.29 for children's books! This is a steal. Yesterday, I found a My Bookhouse Book in perfect condition.What I love about antique books for children is the attention to details. The covers are works of art with gilding in gold. I found this bookplate in one of the books. I think it is beautiful with such detail and whimsy. If you are interested in lovely, whimsical bookplates, check out Tricia Scott's blog. She creates the most wonderful bookplates and has them for sale in her Etsy shop. You can find her at: http://a-little-birdie.blogspot.com/ .What has happened in our world of mass production of books? We have lost the attention to detail, of excellent works of art for our children, of personal bookplates for them. I prefer hardbound to paperback. Instead we find the flimsy, computer generated art, and lack of attention to detail. If I could build a house out of books, I would. One of our triplets, Benjamin (who is five) said to me, "I like books better than toys". This warms my heart. I hope we are introducing our children to good literature. Even the inside of these old books is a work of art. Engaging the child, and the child in me, to cherish what I hold. "Books are our friends", I tell our children, "we treat them with respect".I found a signed book by one of my favorite artists. I will profile her on my next Free Spirit Friday. Can you guess who she is? I'll give you a hint. She was editor of Cricket magazine for many years.

Perspective

I've been thinking about perspective today. 

Webster's Dictionary defines it as: "the power to see or think of things in their true relationship to each other; the true relationship of objects or events to one another; a mental view or prospect". I feel a bit discouraged today and it got me thinking about feeling melancholy. Often when I feel this way, my head hangs down and I see small things. If I always had my head up, I would miss some details. God is into details. He seems to revel in details. There are so many tiny things in creation that display His power. I am in awe that He created all of this beauty for us (and of course, His own glory). I find that I am encouraged when I take my eyes off myself and onto Him. It is about perspective. I can either focus on experiences that are painful, losses I have suffered or dreams not met, or I can focus on the external and internal journey of grace and harmony and love. This is who I desire to be on the inside (full of grace and harmony and love). I begin to lift my head and see forward. I see the faces of people who love me. I see distance and hope. I see vistas and more beauty and still the details are there. I don't want to have my "head in the clouds"; it's there that I can stumble and fall. He takes care of the distance. He is in my tomorrow. He already knows what it looks like and I can find peace in that. He gives me the grace I need for this day. This day I choose to remember what I have learned through pain, through loss and my failings. This day I cherish what I have gained because of His love for me. I am grateful that He softened this heart of stone. He is mindful of me. He cares about details.I can continue to feel joy in the midst of uncertainty. I can feel secure in the midst of the unknown. I can embrace the day and reclaim my focus. His beauty is in it all.

 I see His touch in the vast and the small. He is in it all. This is a safe place to be. He will not fail us now (He never has).

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  ~ all photos by me, Rebecca Howell Gibson (feel free to copy)