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Christ at the Heart of Christmas

/ Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

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Backstory:
Like most people, I have always loved the Christmas season. I remember the excitement I felt as a child at that time of year. I am the youngest of my parents' 3 daughters. We would come down the stairs and into the living room, usually oldest to youngest on Christmas morning to see what Santa brought for us. But some years I remember that my parents let me go first and that was always super exciting for me. For most children, Christmas is mostly about the presents Santa brings them. But as I have grown older, I have found a better meaning in Christmas than just the presents. There have been a couple years like last year for instance when I haven’t been very excited about the Christmas season. But most years I am more than ready to decorate my home for Christmas.

Christ at the Heart of Christmas

Growing up in a great Christian family, I always loved Christmas, but mostly because of what Santa brought me every year,
I think that most children are more focused on the presents than on the reason why this time of year is so dear.
I think that’s only natural for children, but as an adult my mindset has changed to something more sincere,
And now I want to talk about what Christmas means to me as I have put my mind into gear.

Instead of focusing on gifts, I like to focus more on who the Christmas season is about,
Christmas is supposed to be about the birth of my Savior, but sometimes in this material world, this important birth we seem to leave out.
I love to put up my Christmas tree and decorations probably because of the memories this reminds me of beyond all doubt,
I also love the feeling of love and kindness that we all feel this time of year when it feels like sometimes with kindness the world has been in a drought.

Yes I am human and I also get excited when people give me presents at Christmastime,
I think that feeling is normal and is not a crime.
But if that’s all I focus on then I should probably listen to the beautiful sounds of a bell chime,
For the “most wonderful time of the year” should be more about the birth of my Savior than about what I can get for a dime.

I love reading Christmas stories around this time of year about people being more kind,
They help me feel my mind unwind.
Then I feel better about the future of mankind,
But the greatest Christmas story ever told helps my mind and body feel more aligned.

Because Jesus was born and lived on the earth, the world around us can feel more peaceful,
Even when the world is all crazy and all we feel around us is evil.
During Christmastime and all year round we can be happier people,
And because of Jesus we can feel more cheerful.

The Takeaway: We all like getting gifts, especially at Christmastime. But we should focus more on the wonderful gift of our Savior and how we can be more like Him. We should learn from His example and try to emulate Him.

My Legacy in Christ

/ Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

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Backstory:
For years now since 2020 my family has had an online chat most weeks on Sundays. One of my family members tells us a challenge they want us to work on. It can be anything. We have had some good challenges. My Mom told us for her challenge once that she wanted us to start writing our personal autobiography. Her granddaughter had to do that for a school assignment so she thought it would be great for everyone to work on our own. So this made me think, “What would I want to be remembered for by future generations? Who would I want to be remembered for being?” I want to explore this more but I have a few ideas. We all just have this one life to live. Not very many people will know us so we need to make our mark on those we love and know in this life. So, what do I want my mark to be?

My Legacy in Christ

How do I want to be remembered when I am gone from this life?
Will the people I loved when I am gone remember a person who was in constant strife?
Will I be remembered as being a good and loving wife?
Because of my influence on my loved ones, will my death cut their heart like a knife?

We are only given this one life and we need to make the best of it,
So when I am gone, one thing I want to be remembered for is that I tried my best not to quit.
Also, that I had a lot of grit,
And hopefully that when I could do something to make a difference, I didn’t just sit.

I have been blessed with many wonderful people in my life who have made a difference on me,
Especially my loved ones who have passed on, their influence on me I can truly see.
I think we need to realize while we are here together how important we are to each other and this is definitely a key,
For we never know when our last day on this earth will be.

I want to be remembered as a Christ-like woman who wanted to make a worthy difference on people,
That I never looked down on anyone and that I treated everyone as my equal.
I hope that because of my influence the lives of those around me were peaceful,
And that being around me made everyone cheerful.

Let’s all ask ourselves, if you were writing your life down for those who will come after you,
What would you want to be remembered for from your unique view?
Would you want to be remembered as not having a clue?
Or as someone who stuck to those around them like glue?

The Takeaway: The experiences we have in life should teach us lessons. Our mark and legacy we leave on this world should be positive. We should be thinking everyday how we can leave this world a more positive place to live and how we want to be remembered.

The Reach of a Simple Prayer

/ Christine Maynor / Leave a comment

Thank you for subscribing-may these words bring a quiet moment of peace and reflection to your day.

Picture: by Curated Lifestyle on Unsplash.com

Backstory:
I have been thinking lately about how much prayer to my Heavenly Father has been important to me. It is like a lifeline to me or like a life vest if I was drowning. Some days when I get discouraged, prayer is one of the only things that help me get through my day. Growing up in a religious family, prayer was always important to us. I remember praying as a family in the morning and at night, also at mealtimes and other times as well. That is probably why I have such a strong belief in the power of prayer now as an adult. Here’s a story from my childhood about prayer.

The Reach of a Simple Prayer

Once there was a young girl named Christine of around 5 years old,
She had a great family and for her they were worth more than gold.
She loved her 2 big sisters and her parents,
She and her family together had great moments.

One day they all went to an animal shelter,
They wanted a dog and things got better and better.
They saw and played with the cutest and most furry puppy ever,
Especially through the eyes of Christine she wanted that puppy forever.

But there were other people ahead of them for the puppy in line,
And her parents reassured her that if they didn’t get that puppy then everything would be fine.
Christine really wanted that puppy in all her little girl heart,
Her parents had taught her to pray and she thought that would be a good place to start.

So during family prayer that night,
Christine asked if they could get that puppy with all of her might.
Then her family got a call a while later that the puppy was theirs,
Christine was so happy that her face was full of tears.

She knew that her Heavenly Father would come through,
And this was evidence of that from her little girl view.
This moment started her belief in prayer as a real power,
And she knew that her Heavenly Father listened to her no matter the hour.

The Takeaway: We have moments in our lives that help shape our beliefs and our faith. This story started my strong belief that my Heavenly Father is always there for me and will hear and answer my prayers. As an adult, I have learned that sometimes they aren’t answered in the way I want but they are answered anyway.