New Year

Tomorrow marks the end of 2010 and the beginning of a New Year for all of us. Tomorrow is also a full day, so I'll post my New Year's wishes now.

Wishing one and all the blessings of the season and all the best for the coming year.

Because we are approaching the first Sunday of the New Year, I feel somewhat compelled to share the words of Charles Wesley’s Covenant Prayer, with the usual pre-emptory apology for the lack of inclusive language. Some things, like the King James Version of Luke's birth story of Jesus, you just don't mess with. The language is as it is meant to be.

As I enter the year of 2011, I re-dedicate my faith with the words of Wesley:

I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed for thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low for thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine.
So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

(as used in the Book of Offices of the British Methodist Church, 1936).

Thanks to RLP

A man I deeply respect as an online buddy and colleague who previously went by the name Real Live Preacher, Gordon Atkinson, wrote the following column some time ago. I've kept it handy for days like today when I need this particular bit of wisdom.

Thanks Gordon. I owe you one.

There are 12 people who...
by Gordon Atkinson

I have a friend named Sarah, who is a very wise person. She once told me something that I’ve never forgotten. She said that in this life there are about twelve people who will hate you, no matter what you do. It doesn’t matter how good or bad you are. It doesn’t matter how hard you try to be nice. These twelve people are going to hate you. Who knows why? Maybe you remind them of someone else. Maybe there’s something about you that rubs them the wrong way. There’s no figuring this out.

It’s good to know that these twelve people are out there, because occasionally you’re going to run into one of them and it won’t be pleasant. So it’s good to know that ahead of time. These people will assume the worst about you. They might be passively or actively aggressive. They may spread false rumors about you. They might actively work against your happiness. So when you meet someone like that you can say, “Oh, this must be one of the twelve people who hate me.”

It’s actually a relief to realize you’ve run into one of the twelve, because you can relax and stop worrying. If you've made a good effort to be kind to someone but the relationship doesn't improve, you can let go and get on with your life. It's very Christ-like to return love for hatred and to be kind to people who dislike you. But remember that Jesus also suggested the time may come for you to shake the dust off your feet and move on. Letting go makes it possible for you to forgive this person and stop trying to figure out what you did to deserve this. He or she is one of the twelve who hate you. So be it.

Sarah also said that in this life there are about twelve people who think you’re the greatest person in the world. In their eyes, you can do no wrong. They will think that everything you do is a work of pure genius. So when you meet someone who is a little over-the-top in their praise of you, say to yourself, “Oh, this must be one of the twelve people who love me too much.”

The twelve people who love you too much are more fun to be around than the twelve who hate you, but make no mistake about this: they are every bit as dangerous. Don’t take their praise too seriously. Don’t start believing what they say about you. Don’t worry too much about trying to pay them back by saying something as nice about them. Just smile, say thank you, and don’t believe them for a minute.

Sarah’s wisdom helps me remember that while people's opinions of me do matter, I can never let other people have the final say about my worth. Only God has the right to do that. Sarah’s wisdom does not release me from my responsibility to be kind to others and to be Christ-like in the way I treat them. Sarah’s wisdom does not give me permission to stop trying to make relationships work.

But Sarah’s wise words remind me that only God has the right to judge us. Others have opinions about us. Some will be healthy opinions and others not so much. We are human beings, which means even our judgments are broken and fallible. We cannot make an idol out of what others think about us.

Sarah’s words also remind me that I have no right to pass absolute judgment on others. I do not want to be one of the twenty-four people for anyone else.

More Christmas 2010

I don't know about you, but I see a gift theme here: :)



Some photos from the church before the decorations go back in the box. This year we had memorial angels on the tree. It was quite beautiful.

Holy Nap Time: Boxing Day Edition

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Happy Christmas Everyone!

It's after midnight, so it's officially Christmas!!

Best wishes to one and all for a wonderful, wonder-filled day.

This year for my Christams gift, I decided it was time for new bedding. The pictures here don't really do it justice. It looks far more "blingy" in the pics than it really is. It's actually just a nice muted black and mossy green with a little bit of silver "flourish" here and there. We've ordered new curtains because, of course, the curtains have to work with the bedding. Of course. The curtains will add a splash of deep crimson to the room.

Yes, that is a large pile of reading on my night stand. It multiplies exponentially over time. There's nothing to be done for it.



Truffle was a tad troubled by the new bedding. She's not great with change.



Good news!!! (this will come as a shock to kathy a - who had a parallel childhood to my own - I was allowed to open ONE gift tonight and it was.....


.....wait for it....


....pajamas!!!! Yay!!!! (kathy, they weren't red. P went way off the charts and bought me blue jammies - imagine!)

Merry Christmas everyone!

Because it's Christmas...

I can't resist a few of Sara's now infamous "Cavalcade of Bad Nativities." Be sure to go and check out the whole collection.

"When baby Jesus gets to 0 your cookies are ready."

"Herod's always messing with me Lucky Charms."

Christmas Eve

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.”

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Anyone Who Has Ever Owned a Cat Has Seen This Face....

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Yup. Happens around here every day. Her highness does not appreciate late dining. Just sayin...

RevGal Friday Five: Christmas Past Edition

The RevGal chllenge for the week is to list five memories of Christmases past. Here are a few of mine. (There are obviously so many more than five, but these are a good start).

1. Christmas Eve. All four of us girls would literally *beg* my mother for permission to open just ONE gift from under the tree on Christmas Eve. My rationalization was that so many of my Finnish friends opened ALL of their gifts that night, but my mother noted that we were not Finnish (she was so....logical... in that way. In any case, Mom always gave in and handed each of us one gift to open before Santa arrived. Guess what? It was always Brand New Christmas Pajamas!!!!!! How did she know? It's a memory that makes me smile. In our new jammies, we would sneak out to the living room around 5:00 am and were allowed to open our stockings in our rooms before waking the parental units. My sister M and I always had fun with ours, because we always shared a room.

2. Family Christmas Dinner. While my grandmother's drank bad 1970s rose wine in the living room, one year my Dad dropped an entire box of rice krispies off the top of the fridge, literally covering the kitchen floor with tiny rice cereal. We all laughed hysterically while Dad tried very hard not to curse in front of the grandmas. Good times for sure.

3. Christmas Eve dinner. My mother made the most delicious Seafood Casserole for Christmas Eve - something I continue to do even now - only she insisted that those packaged crescent rolls were the perfect thing to serve *with* the casserole. The only problem was that EVERY year she managed to burn the buns. It wasn't Christmas Eve until we heard Mom say "Sh*t" from the kitchen. If the smoke alarm went off as well, that only added to the fun.

4. Grandbabies. My Mom, may her memory be a blessing, LOVED her grandbabies, every one of them. Christmas for me, in the years that our boys were growing up, was perfect once the whole flock of grandbabies had enoyed their Christmas cuddle in my Mother's ample bosom. The memory of her outstretched arms welcoming in her little babes still brings a tear of joyful memory to mind. She had the perfect Grandma shoulder for babies and the perfect Grandma hug for the older children.

5. My sisters. We have wonderful photos of the four of us in matching Christmas jammies, with our waist-length long long hair, sitting on our parent's massive couch. My favourite was the year of the red floor-lenth night shirts. Classic family photo of all four of us on Christmas morning. Good memories for sure.

Bonus recent history: So many Christmas memories with our boys, their grandparent's on hubby's side, and Christmas Eves so cold that gifts left in the car during church services would literally toss off their bows because the -40C temps would freeze the glue that held the bows in place. Watching those bows explode off the packages was great fun!

Christmas in Northern Canada is always an adventure. We've been blessed with so many wonderful adventures, they are too numerous to name. These are just a few.

A blessed Christmas to all!

Yay!

Ah, even the worst kind of week can be turned around. In a series of small Christmas miracles, our Sunday troubles are, at least for now, resolved. Our resident church computer guy (thanks J!!!) set us up with wifi. So now P and I are all signed on to skype and we tried it out for rehearsal tonight. The sound was a bit muffled at times, but P could see the whole thing.

No, it's not the same as being here, but it's close. As close as we can manage for this week.

And that's enough. More than enough.

Happy Christmas everyone.

In Which I Reserve the Right to Whine....

So, here's the thing:

I'm not a great singer. Any more than I'm a great mountain climber.

I know that. But the other thing is that I really, really like singing. So, for two years now I've stood stalwartly beside a great alto voice trying to learn. I'm catching on. I am no longer afraid to let the notes escape. When I'm in my (rather small) range, I can let 'er rip and belt it out like the best of them. Ok, maybe not the "best", but you get the idea. I am no longer afraid to sing.

I've been told my whole life that I cannot sing. It's been a family myth for my whole life. I had a nasty teacher who told me early on to just mouth the words because I didn't sound like the other kids. Friends teased me about my lack of singing skillz, but only because I laughed about it myself first. I gave them permission by laughing at myself when really - it was something I wanted so badly to do well.

I may never sing well. I get that.

But I love it. So I do it. And thanks be to God, we have the best Music Director EVER who wouldn't mind if I croaked like frog. She's just glad to have a fun, vibrant choir that's ready to have as much of an adventure as she can envision.

This Sunday will be my first Cantata. I'm trying to be really cool about it, but in fact, I'm sooooooo excited. I've listened to the CD a gazillion times, practiced it over and over in the car, and haven't missed a practice. For the first time in almost 13 years of ministry, I get to sing instead of being the one reading the narration.

Even better, my beloved father-in-law is doing part of the narration. It's going to be wonderful.

Here's the whiny part: I want Pillar to be there. Since we were sixteen years old, *he* is the one person who has always told me that no matter what I do, I can always do it well. He has never once wavered in believing in me. Not once.

But he won't be there. He can't come to our "Almost But Not Really" accessible church, not even for special occasions. I won't elaborate on the details, but the ramp into the main floor of the building just isn't enough for him. Until the church is truly accessible - something,btw, I was told would happen nine years ago when I arrived at LCotC - Pillar can't be there.

Today we thought we had found a way for him to see the Cantata - by video - but that's not going to work out either. Because MS is like that. It's unkind, unfair and sometimes just sad.

So I'll go on Sunday. It will be wonderful. And I'll come home like I always do and tell Pillar all about it. And he will say something wonderful like "I knew you could do it!" Because he's like that.

The same thing will happen on Christmas Eve. I will leave for worship alone, be thankful for our son and my in-laws because it's good to see family there for the holiday service, but I'll come home alone too. And I'll turn the key in the door, tell Pillar all about the service, we'll fill the stockings and it will be Christmas.

I know what a massively first-world whine this is. We are SO fortunate to have all that we have.

Mostly, we are blessed to have each other.

But darn it. I wanted him to be there.

My kitteh would totally do this...

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Not that you asked, but we both watched this afternoon as Truffle watched a full hour of "The Science of Cats" on the Discovery Channel. I was reclining as I'm recovering the Teh Plague of 2010, while Pillar watched from his chair. Truffle was spellbound and doing the bum-wiggle, ready-to-pounce thing for a full hour. Must be the HD.

And yes, a lot of our afternoons are that exciting. I know it's hard to keep up, because the action is non-stop, but do try.

RevGal Friday Five: December Survival Edition

This week's question over at theRevGalBlogPals site:

Whether a RevGal or a Pal most of us in this cyber community have enhanced responsibilities during this time of year. We also have traditions - religious and secular - that mark the season for us in a more personal way.

For this Friday Five please let us know five of the things that mark the season for you.

And the bonus? Tell us one thing that does absolutely nothing for you.

1. Exercise. An hour of speed-walking/running intervals on the treadmill, and about half an hour on the elliptical and I'm a new person. Keeping up the routine visits to the gym makes more difference through Advent than at any other time of the year. For the record, the Glee version of "Time Warp" is the perfect tune for a run interval. Just so you know.



2. Christmas Music. I love Christmas music. I'm one of those annoying people who start playing my vast array of Christmas tunes in early November. It helps to get me psychologically ready to plan Advent services, but I also just enjoy it. This year is especially great because I get to sing in my very first Cantata! I've generally been the Narrator, but this year I get to sing with the choir - FUN!

3. The Charity Pick. Several years ago, my sisters and I agreed that none of us really needs anything. So we stopped buying each other gifts. Instead, each family gives the amount we would have spent on those gifts to the charity of our choice. It's been a wonderful part of our family tradition to pick the charity each year. Every Christmas when I write that check I think, "Yup, that was a good idea."

4. Happy Minimalist Christmas. Since I've been in ministry (almost thirteen years now), and December has been so insanely busy, we tend to decorate the house one item at a time. Years ago, I would bring EVERYTHING out, and a few hours later our home would look like the front of a Hallmark card. Now we consider it a good year if the tree is up on Christmas Eve. If it has decorations on it - even better. Life changes. I've found excellent ornament storage boxes to keep all of the best tree ornaments in - mostly the ones made of pasta that the boys brought home from school every year. So, while they may not always make it to the tree, they are treasured and kept well.

5. Advent Massages. I make sure that I book a one hour massage for every Friday in Advent and one during Christmas week itself. LOVE this relatively new tradition. Costs a bit up front, but my health plan pays for most of it in the new year. Even if I weren't reimbursed, it would be worth every dime. Aaaaahhhhhhh....



Bonus: The one thing about Christmas that does nothing for me - busy places. Grocery stores, the *shudders* mall, even driving around town. So many people so much of the time and my inner Introvert needs some serious alone time.