I think secretly we all dream of a Hallmark perfect Christmas where everything goes smoothly and all our plans and festivities come off without a hitch. 

Here's the thing -- we also live our lives day in and day out, facing good days, along with, all kinds of heartaches and crises that arise. When the hard times come, we, too, cry out to the Lord, He hears us and He answers.

We will have days that we soar; and, we will have days that we fail.  But whichever the case may be, we get up and place Jesus in His rightful place as Lord of our life.  And then we trust Him to keep us in the palm of His hand as we learn, grow, and mature in our walk with Jesus. 

There are no multiple paths or multiple gods to bring you to a relationship with God.    There is only one way and that is through Jesus.  Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me."

As Christian, we have a choice to make each day.  We can choose to live according to the Spirit; or live pleasing our flesh.  Paul wrote the instructions to the Ephesians regarding their new life in Christ and their behavior as Christian.

I knew that I needed mental, physical, and emotional rest.  It has been and is a hard season. Our lives seem to go at warp speed racing to work in the morning, racing to the next event, and even rushing from one church service to the next. 

Trying to make sense of the world around us seems to be getting harder by the moment.  There are too many sick and dying, too many questions and so much confusion.

There is no denying the crisis that is going on in our world. However, we must not let fear win and rob us of our joy. Jesus said in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Rough waters or the storms of life can come on us with little to no warning.  We may not be able to control what life brings, but we can know this:   we can take comfort in the words of Jesus, knowing that He will not abandon his children but will be with us to the end – no matter what.

Daily cleansing only comes by ingesting the Word of God.  We must allow it to wash us and penetrate our hearts ridding us of everything that is not like Jesus.