Hymn Book Angels

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” ~ Colossians 3:16-17

A friend of mine asked me for these directions a few days ago and as I looked through my files I couldn’t help but remember all of the angels God has placed in my life. I hope you can also think of one or two angels that you have been blessed to entertain on your journey!

Materials needed: Old Hymnal, Styrofoam ball (for head), Gold craft paint (optional), white craft glue, thin wooden dowel approx. 12 inches long (a shish-kabob skewer works well), a 12 inch pipe cleaner (gold or silver), coordinating craft paint

Instructions: Before you start making the hymnbook angel, find a song that you would like to use to cover the angel’s head. Put this aside until later.

Next, begin folding each page, starting in the middle of the hymn book, one by one, from the top corner of the page to the center to make the skirt for the hymnbook angel. continue doing this until you have folded approx. 1/4 of the pages from the back forward, and 1/4 of the pages from the front backward. You should end up with 1/2 of the hymn book folded in the center so it looks as if you have a skirt when the book is open.

After you have finished with the folding, put the book aside and take the page you removed, dip it in warm water, then wrap it around the Styrofoam ball being sure to smooth the folds and overlap the edges. You can insert the dowel into the ball now and stand upright to dry. (This takes approx. 6 – 8 hours)

Go back to the book and stand it up in the shape you would like it to have. Using a thinned out mixture of the white craft glue and water, brush the pages LIGHTLY so they are wet but not soaked through. Set aside to dry.

After everything has dried you can decorate the angel with a light brushing of the craft paint on the paper edges or the spine and book edges. This will give it a gilded effect. When the paint is dry (takes only a few minutes) assemble your angel by placing the dowel into the spine of the hymnal with the head now attached. Finally, attach the pipe cleaner as a halo on top of the head with some additional craft glue or hot glue.

You can also add lace, pearl beads, or other decorations to make your angel unique and give it personality!

May you be blessed to entertain your unique angels this year!

(For picture, go to attached link)

A Blue Christmas

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” ~ Colossians 3:12-14

After taking a few days off from the ministry work of the Christmas season to simply enjoy the time with my family and this very special time of year, I find myself facing the post-holiday blahs like so many other people do. I am sure that some of these feelings are due to the fact that it’s cold outside and I have the remnants of a wonderful holiday strewn about my house – including the debris of wrapping paper yet to go to the trashman and a fridge full of leftovers! Some of the feelings I am experiencing can also be attributed to the normal “holiday blues” that we all feel after any holiday experience. Yet for some reason, this year feels different.

These past few months have been a definite growing season for me. My faith has been strengthened, tested, challenged and affirmed. I am moving into a deeper understanding of the role God has called me to live out through my service as a pastor. I am also learning to be more accepting of the role God has called me to fill and recognizing my limitations are exactly what He is using to minister in the place I am serving. I think I am also coming to terms with my deep grief over my brother’s murder and my son’s death. This is the part of my spiritual growth that I am most uncomfortable with.

As we let go of those old feelings of grief, despair, hurt, anger, unforgiveness and all the other negative emotions we carry around from our past, we limit our ability to fully live the life of God has in store for each of us. As I have spent more time in study of God’s Word, there has been a growing fullness in my soul and the grief has subsided. Now to be sure, I continue to mourn the absence in this life of Mark and Matthew and my soul aches in an indescribable manner. But, my grief is finding solace and comfort as I move into becoming more of who God wants me to be.

The problem isn’t with the notion of being one of God’s holy, chosen people, BUT in living like one of God’s holy, chosen people! This isn’t an easy issue to resolve -Mark’s death is still with me after more than 13 years – but I believe that I can see the flicker of a life lived fully as one His dearly loved children.

Let the Peace of Christ Rule

“And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body, you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” - Colossians 3:15 NLT

The key word in this passage is “rule”. Let Christ’s peace be an empire or referee in your heart. Our heart is the center of conflict because there our feelings and desires clash – our fears and hopes, distrust and trust, jealousy and love. How can we deal with these constant conflicts and live as God wants? Paul tells us that we must decide between conflicting elements by using the rule of peace. Which choice will promote peace in our souls and the Body of Christ?
God’s peace is different than the world’s peace (“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” - John 14:27). True peace is not found in positive thinking, absence of conflict, or good feelings. It comes from knowing that our hope is secure, the victory has been won, and God is in control.

~ Gina

Give Peace

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” - Colossians 3:15

If you’re like me when you think of peace, you often think of the feeling of contentment and calm despite circumstances. God graciously gives us this peace, His peace, the peace that passes all understanding, which has the ability to reign in us even in the toughest of circumstances. I think that God also gives us another gift of peace; and this peace requires our action. God calls us, as members of His body, to exist in peace together. Just as we receive peace from God by accepting His forgiveness for our sins, we also extend peace to others (and ourselves) when we forgive them. Not only does God want us to take action to offer forgiveness, but He calls us to go one step further and to be thankful.

The weeks leading up to Christmas are often packed with too many things to do and not enough time to do it in. Tensions run high and the people who love each other most often grow short and snippy with each other. As all the hustle and bustle goes on around you, remember the Christ Child, who brought peace to earth that glorious night. Remember the forgiveness that God has extended to you through Christ and take the action to extend it to others in your life. But don’t stop there! Be thankful for the people God has placed in your life as we give and receive peace and forgiveness from each other.

Lord, Grant us grace as we extend forgiveness and peace to one another. Help us to be thankful for those you place in our lives.

~ Lindsay