Make Christmas Matter

An Invitation to Make Christmas Matter

“Mom, I want that!” My daughter points to the television set. It’s a commercial for squishy sand. Batman Duplos. Scooters, Dora apps, a self-cleaning fish tank. The toys may change day by day, but the response is the same. “Mom, I want that—for Christmas!” It’s natural for a child to crave presents. And I do love giving gifts to my kids. But the gifts I long to give them aren’t just the toy store kind. Above all, I want my children to receive kindness, generosity, mercy and love—and to know how to pay them forward. Those are the true gifts …

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Expectant holiday expectations

The secret to managing your holiday expectations

And just like that, the holiday season is here! If we’re honest, most of us have expectations for these special days. At the very least, we have hopes. The holidays are a snapshot of mom life. A lot of how the journey unfolds depends on our expectations. Children have expectations too. Can we blame them? We bring mounds of popcorn to the couch for animated movies about snow, talking reindeer and wishes coming true for kids across the spectrum of naughty and nice. We sing songs about the most wonderful time of the year and days that are merry and …

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‘Twas the Night of Jesus’s Birth

Moms, it’s so very important that we keep Christ before our children during the Christmas season.  There is no account so grand as our Savior’s birth. Angels flying from God’s throne room far surpasses tales of flying reindeer.  The star God placed in the heavens outshines a a red nose. And you want to talk about gifts? God gave us a priceless one. Let’s keep the focus on Christ. Read this poem with expression! When you get to “knock,” knock on something hard so they hear the sound of knocking. Flatten your palms to make the sound of “walking.” Let the …

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Practical Planning Before the Holidays

If you’re like me, the holidays can sneak up on you, and before you know it, they are dragging you and your family around by your shirt collars. By the time New Years hits, you need rest before you can even think about resolutions. I’m not a planner, but a few years back, God led me to start being more intentional about how to keep the Lord front and center during the holidays. To rethink some of our traditions, to pray through necessities of time and money, service and giving. As a result, this handout was born. I can’t think …

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A Christmas Blessing

Today we celebrate the day God came to be Immanuel – God with us. May we enjoy the messiness of loving and raising our families.  May we find peace as we pray for those walking a different path. May we experience joy in the midst of grief. May God equip us to mother our families well. May we be in awe of His love for us so we may love others well. We pray God’s richest blessings on you and your families this Christmas Day. Merry Christmas! The M.O.M. Initiative Team

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How Christmas Means New Beginnings for Moms, Mentors and Ministry Leaders

In two more days, we will be celebrating the most momentous moment in history. God became a man, dwelt among us, and with a relentless love, He came to a cradle, but His goal was the cross. All for you and all for me. So that we could have a new start in life. A new beginning. I remember my first Christmas after I became a Christian. It was the first time I really got it! The first time I understood what Christmas was about. It’s a chance for new beginnings. A fresh start. Free from sin, free from self, …

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Light and Dark…The Dawning

It took thousands of years and it had been 400 years since God’s Word came through a prophet. And that is what Advent is for — anticipating. But not for gifts to be unwrapped. No, for The Gift already given. The gift heralded by angels and all creation trembles at the truth. God came down.  He came on a dark ordinary night, but His coming is the dawn. The dawn promised hundreds of years earlier. The people walking in darkness     have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness     a light has dawned.    …

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The Indescribable Gift of Christmas

  What gift have people from around the globe longed for since the beginning of time, arrived exactly as predicted over two-thousand years ago, is not able to be bought or manipulated with money, given to us freely but paid for by the death of the innocent life of a King, wanted by all but rejected by most?   Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! 2 Corinthians 9:15    Jesus Christ the Messiah, Lamb of God, the Way, the Truth, the Life, Rabbi, Son of the Most High is our Gift!   Why is this gift a big …

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Having A Happy Birthday Jesus Party: In Your House And In Your Community

I love December. There’s so much to celebrate as well as so much to do, but one of the most fun things we’ve done over the years is to have a Happy Birthday Jesus Party. What, you’ve never heard of that? That’s ok. It’s actually something we started doing in our Kids Ministry at church and over the years we have expanded it from what we do on Sunday mornings at church to the homes and neighborhoods of the families we serve. I would love to take a few minutes to tell you about having a Happy Birthday Jesus Party: …

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