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A Warm Cold Time of Year

Yesterday, Steve, of WVa reminded us of an any-time-of-year musical Christmas card that we passed around a couple of years ago.

Thanks, Steve. I’m going to post it again here in a link to another YouTube version of “Mary Did You Know” by Kenny Rogers and Wynonna Judd. It remains something I can listen to over and over without getting tired of it.

Source:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mN70R-3ao0U&feature=related

I also appreciate those of you who’ve joined me in acknowledging “The Cold Dark side of Christmas.”

This is a subject that my co-workers and I have been very concerned about. So here’s a link to a conversation that two of our RBC counselors, Tim and Jeff, had with author Shelly Beach about the loneliness that so many experience during the holidays.

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYAoV3h85ts

The helpformylife.org site is designed for those struggling with issues of i.e. loss, addictions and crises of faith. Here our biblical counselors, guests, and friends, acknowledge the natural factors of life as we know it– in the presence of “God with us.”

http://www.helpformylife.org/


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26 Responses to “A Warm Cold Time of Year”

  1. NDgal says:

    Bless you for bringing comfort at this sometimes lonely time of year. Because of this message, I will visit two people I know are suffering. I just got a little too caught up in my own selfishness for a while and you helped snap me out of it. Thank you.

  2. SFDBWV says:

    Once again Mart, Thank you for the song and for the conversation…

    This time of year the weather is the big problem here where I live. It is esential that we keep in contact with the elderly in our comunity.

    I manage to live in what many would consider *Mayberry* it is true. We may fight and argue, but like the extended family our community is we try to look out for each other as well as we can.

    Our church youth groups usually bring Christmas carols door to door to the shut in and old folks…

    Some of us make sure that those who are alone get a meal, and are aware that someone cares.

    Like the young woman I posted about some topics ago, one person can make a difference….It began with Christ, let it continue with me…

    I think Mary knew…..

    Steve

    9 degrees…up from yesterdays 3..

  3. poohpity says:

    I think it is so reassuring to learn that the things we go through are things that others around the world experience as well. The bible tells us that all things are common to man. I hope more people will see the help that is offered by going to counseling which has been in the past such a struggle for some. There is nothing wrong with asking for help when it is needed because I do not think God intended for us to go it alone but gave skills for caring to many good listeners (counseling).

    The warm of “Mary Did You Know” makes me think about and focus on the Deity of Christ and what it may have been like as the mother of Jesus. Wow!! I know she knew but sometimes I wonder if she totally gasped all that He was and would do for all the people of the world. God gave her the responsibility of being His parent. Mind blowing!! She was trusted with the Son of God and Man. God knew He would give her all she needed to do the job and do it well, beforehand. Again all I can say is WOW!!

  4. pegramsdell says:

    The bible tells us that The Holy Spirit will teach us all that we need to know. So, when The Holy Spirit filled her and Elizabeth, maybe they just knew or saw a vision of what God needed for them to do, the sacrifices they would have to make. IDK. maybe…..I can only imagine. Like Deb said..WOW!

  5. Rajnesh says:

    Hello everyone, Mart thanks for this blog and the clips and today’s ODB. Yes, I truly believe that the Holy Spirit is always with me, inspite of it all, inspite of my loneliness and inwardness.

  6. bubbles says:

    Thnak you so very much for this encouragement, Mart.

    The Lord used this video to bring to mind a friend who needs some extra love this year.

  7. BruceC says:

    I have already heard “Mary,Did You Know” and on dial-up I would sprout cobwebs waiting for a download. It’s is a wonderful reminder of the purpose that Christ was sent here to fulfill.

    Off topic here; but I want to thank you all for the prayers concerning my wife. She had the ultrasound and the tech was a born-again believer and we had a great talk about the Christian walk and our Lord. I know that the Lord’s hand was in this whole thing as he said he rarely works Saturdays but was scheduled for this one. And I said now we know why. It was a sign of assurance from the Lord. They found out that it is not a tumor after all; but a hard ball of muscle that may be treated by injections to soften it. I praise the Lord for what He has done. Continue to pray for us though as we have not had a very “confident” relationship with this healthcare facility over the years(along with many others that share our experiences) but they are “it” for this entire area and even with that; God can work through them. I guess what I am trying to say is that I have not much faith in them but a great deal of faith in my Lord to work through it all. We are ultimately in His hands and not in the hands of man. We haven’t been told when the injections will take place but we know He is with my wife every step of the way. God bless you all for your prayers!

    BruceC
    Soli Deo Gloria!

  8. poohpity says:

    Oh BruceC that is so very, very good to hear. I will continue to pray for you guys to be your advocates for health care and that the Lord will prepare the road ahead and give you direction. Love Deb

  9. marma says:

    BruceC: Praise God! What good news. I thank God with you for how he worked it out and that He led you and your wife in that way. I agree; while the medical world can be quite a maze, it is good to know as believers, our Lord shows us the way through it.

  10. marma says:

    Enjoyed reading the words while listening to the song. Hadn’t done that before and it gave more meaning to me. Also enjoyed listening to the conversation; we are finding that true this year, that we have to be looking out rather than in. Others all around us are feeling that loneliness, and even the little things we do make a difference, though we often don’t realize it at the time.

  11. Bob in Cornwall England says:

    Just been listening to Tim, Jeff and Shelly about loneliness.
    I have lived most of my life alone, becoming self reliant and dependent on no one.
    This state of so called “loneliness” is very difficult to reason out.
    I am content in my isolation, but in the past five years or so, God has had to take away all the “props” in my life that keep me in this state of self reliance.
    I moved to west Cornwall 10 years ago to enter into a relationship after 47 years of isolation. This lasted about a year as I didn’t have a clue how to relate to someone else. I left my best friend back “home” 250 miles away (a big distance on a small Island like ours) and now we only talk by phone a couple of times a week.
    I think the biggest thing God has done and is doing for me is to have taken away my income and source of money. That was what kept me in this self reliant state and not looking for a relationship with Him.
    Loneliness and being alone becomes a state of mind and a way of life.
    I would put it as strong as to say you become addicted to isolation and get very annoyed and grumpy when people intrude on your so called “privacy”.
    That is why I find christmas so difficult because it interupts my routine and people “seem” to go out of their way to “relate” to me when, in reality, I want to be left alone.
    As an “alone person”, as apposed to a “lonely person”, I find it very difficult to respond to someone reaching out to me.
    Pray hard and be very careful before “reaching out” to someone as you may get your hand bitten off.
    A risk worth taking?
    Indeed it is!
    Especially to a lost soul.

    Bob

  12. SFDBWV says:

    I will join with all who will praise the Lord for BruceC’s good news…

    I would also agree with Bruce in that I too, place my trust in Christ alone.

    I understand how Bob has developed into a solitary soul, and become a person of self centered routines….It is pain from the outside world, that can causes one to run away and be alone.

    But it is love that can open up the door to…trust.

    Our little towns only bar closed a few years ago when its owner died. Never to reopen again, it is becoming another rundown structure that eventually will need to be torn down.

    Even though now just an empty building, I can recall how it was a magnet to many an *alone* person. Who went to spend their time and their money just sitting among others who had no where else to be…slowly getting drunk, this place and its fellow lost souls becoming the only place they felt…not alone.

    It is funny how things become more aware to us when we are in a conversation about them…Speaking of lonely and unhappy Christmas’s. I watched a string of TV shows on The Learning Channel about people who are obsessed about decorating their homes for christmas.

    Some of these people spend 6 months a year preparing for the event. Even being troubled with neighbors who call the police and city councils who are challanged with giving approval to whether they can procede.

    But they push forward, just because they love the excitement and feeling that comes with Christmas…And especially the faces of the children and adults that drive to the front of their houses to see and appreciate their effort.

    Many take up donations for charities…

    No matter how you feel about Christmas as it is celebrated, I hope all are filled with the Peace that Christ alone came into this world in order to give to us…

    10 degrees in the mountains of West Virginia.

    Steve

  13. dja says:

    BruceC: So thankful to hear your good news. It is, indeed, a wonderful answer to all of our prayers. May the Lord give you peace as you await the treatment for injections.
    We will be having a young man at our table this Christmas who has had difficulty with his mother for many years. Because of the pain from his “upbringing” and because of his own giving in, he spent the last 10 years living a life of drugs, fights, etc. In addition, he has major health issues that he neglected over the years (diabetes)which are now very serious. He lives in a state homeless house which is closing after Christmas, and he needs to find a place to live. Where he is now (about an hour away)is in a good location. He can walk most places, he has found a very good church, and goes to numerous doctors in that area. He is very lonely. I have gone out when I can and call him almost everyday. My husband drove out on Thanksgiving to bring him to our house for dinner, and he will do the same for Christmas. His memories of holidays are terrible because of the fighting in his home.
    This young lonely man was a student of mine many years ago. I was concerned about him then, but I was a new teacher, and his parents proclaimed to be Christians and this was a Christian school, etc-he was always nervous and would back away when I would kindly put my hand out to touch him. I now know that it was a reaction to what was going on at home.

    He had a hard time after Thanksgiving and ended up in the hospital in the psych ward. I have been concerned that it may have been hard for him to be with a normal family, just having a nice dinner, chatting and laughing and enjoying one another. I am praying that Christmas day will be good for him. He eagerly accepted my invitation.

    Please pray that the Lord will comfort Jesse, and help him and his siblings to forgive and not be bound up with bitterness. Pray also, if you would, that the Lord would provide a good home for him. We don’t have the room, and we are still going through some things with our son. Also, this area is where he use to live, and it would be hard for him to be here.
    The Lord placed a love in my heart for this young man many years ago. He called me early last summer, and we have been talking ever since. The first time I told him that I loved him, there was quiet, and then he said that his mother never said that. Now we end each call with “I love you”, and sometimes, he’s the first to say it. The Lord is so good!

    17 degrees here in NEPA. I must confess, without complaining, of course, that I really like it when it’s warmer:-)
    ~Della

  14. pegramsdell says:

    Good news BruceC. Praise The Lord!

  15. Bob in Cornwall England says:

    Bruce,

    I to thank God for His intervention and grace for your wifes situation. We worry so much about things that have already been delt with by our Father. Mo Hills into Mountains, our God moves mountains!
    As for my being an “alone person” that is also a gift of God.
    Many an “alone person” in the scriptures.
    Moses, Samuel, Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Jerimiah, Jonah, Jesus of Nazereth!!

    I am not alone, I am alone in Christ, Hallelujah!!

  16. bubbles says:

    Bruce C, wonderful news about your wife!

    Bob in Cornwall, I’m sure you’ve heard this before, it’s better to be alone than to be WITH someone and WISH you were alone.

  17. Bob in Cornwall England says:

    Bubbles,
    I had a thought after I logged out!

    Not only am I alone in Christ, but with a small adjustment I am alL one in Christ.
    How good is that!

    Bob

  18. poohpity says:

    Bob, I am right there with ya. I enjoy being around people but I enjoy so much being alone with the Lord. I actually like it more as the years go on. I do not get hurt as much or hurt others. It is becoming a self protection shield. I act tuff on the outside but inside my heart, I am very open to the fiery darts that pierce my heart and soul often.

  19. Rajnesh says:

    Bob, it’s uncanny, you’ve described my life to a “T” I love being a loner. I find it a bother to answer the phone, thank goodness for answering machines…lol!

  20. Bob in Cornwall England says:

    Another thought….

    The extra L in alone to make it alL one is Love.

    We were all alone and Jesus came to make us alL one because of the Love He had for us and His Father.

    How wonderful is that!

    bob

  21. SFDBWV says:

    I hesitate to say anything at all, only because I do not want to offend any. It is peace and love that drives my actions and desires.

    Jesus was not an alone person, he had 12 disciples with Him almost constantly, that He called His friends. He did go off alone to pray or to be recharged, but He came back to His friends.

    Paul was not an alone person, He spent His Christian life in the service of building churches and preaching the Gospel to throngs of people.

    I can continue, through the list of scripture people God used, but the point is that when we get to Heaven or when we serve Christ whether now or in the 1000 year reign on earth….you will not be a loner…

    How can you spread love amognst others if you are alone, how can others see your witness if you hide it under a basket?

    How can you serve the needs of others and be alone?

    Out there among the masses of humanity is where Christ needs workers. What kind of worker are you, if you don’t show up for work?

    Steve

  22. foreverblessed says:

    Yes Bob,
    Jesus is all I need,
    Songs we sing at church have sentences like that
    So if you are alone, that must be true too.

    Psalm 105:4
    Look to the Lord and His strength
    Seek His face always

    That last line, -seek His face always-, it is something we have to remind ourselves, during the day,more and more till it is always, look up to Jesus. The more I do that, the more I am tuned into Him, the more I can sense His love for me. It is not done at once, it is a growing thing.
    Till my cup overflows…
    (Psalm 23:5)

    I vision in my memory certain old ladies (widowed), who were so lovely, so warm toward everybody. I would look forward to visiting them. And I think, I have to grow more in the love in Jesus to radiate the same love towards others so as to grow old and loving in the same way.

    (It is also true, that the love of Jesus that is in us can bring forward hostility in those who are not His yet, I often have to remind myself about that fact too).

  23. Bob in Cornwall England says:

    Steve,
    I can assure you I show up for work.

    I have friends!

    But essentially I am an alone person, so was Jesus and many others God used to do His work.
    Moses had a wife and family, but for many years he was alone and even with millions of people around him in the desert he was on his own, with God.

    Being an alone person is a state of mind.
    I am happy being alone and find it comforting. I also like being with friends and am at one with God’s people as well as with those who are not His own.

    I fully understand paul and how I am part of the body of Christ etc. and cannot function as a seperate part on my own.
    When Elijah ran away to hide and thought he was alone, God showed him there were at least 7,000 others he could turn to for support.

    We are talking here about lonelyness, but what I am saying is, there are people who like being alone, it is who they are. And to force youself upon them and “show” christian love will only offend them and cause them hurt.
    Nothing pleases me more than to spend christmas day alone, but I always accept an invite from a friend, who is alone, because he likes to be with someone at christmas.
    We are all different, and I sometimes look at your full life with a little envy, I expect you sometimes look at the quiet life that way too.
    Essentially I am me, you are you, and we both strive to be like Jesus. Even in Him we will still ourselves but clothed in His righteousness and love.

    forever your friend

    Bob

  24. Bob in Cornwall England says:

    correction again!

    Even in Him we will still BE ourselves but clothed in His righteousness and love.

  25. poohpity says:

    Some people sit at the feet of Jesus and listen and others hurry around trying to be everything to everybody and therefore have people depend on them rather than on the provisions of God sort of like Mary and Martha. Paul was alone a lot in jail where he wrote his many letters. John was alone on Patmos if there had been business all around he may not have heard from God like he did to write The Revelation. Before Paul did his ministry he spent 3 years away from all the people to spend time with God to learn. There are times for being alone and times to be out serving.

    There are people that never stop doing because that is where they gain their self worth and identity by the things they do. I believe it is good to be satisfied with just being and not using activity to feel good about yourself. Sometimes those people never ask for help when they need it or let anyone else do anything because it may not be done to their satisfaction. I think that is more of a controlling person.

  26. Rajnesh says:

    A little case and point:

    I’ve lived in this apartment complex few years now. And if a parent, upon seeing me passing by, tells their kids; there he goes – all alone – always alone – don’t be like him.

    Or: Have you heard the rumors/gossip about him? Be
    careful what you do and say on the internet – don’t be like him. Learn from his mistakes etc….

    IMO, in my most stagnant state, I’m working, I’m a vessel, I think we are all vessels.

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