Sunday, December 16, 2007

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket 3rd Sunday in Advent - The Shepherd’s Candle MEG

This child, this babe wrapped in swaddling clothes who was both The Shepherd and The Lamb, was born in the shadow of the cross.

"And in that region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And the angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them...And they went with haste, and found...the babe lying in the manger... And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen...(Luke 2:8-9, 16, 20)"

The Savior had been born. The Messiah, the Christ, had come into the world. The One who carried the hopes of all mankind had arrived. Indeed the shepherds probably understood very little of the glorious meaning of His coming. But there was a certain kinship between the shepherds and Jesus. This child was the Great Shepherd who came to give His life for His sheep, yes, to give His life for the sins of the world. This child, this babe wrapped in swaddling clothes who was both The Shepherd and The Lamb, was born in the shadow of the cross.

It is fitting that the announcement of the Lord’s birth should be given to shepherds. The imagery of sheep and shepherds is repeated many times in the scripture. With this in mind, the following meditations call attention to the imagery of Christ being both the Shepherd and the Lamb.

Monday – John 10:11-15 “I am the Good Shepherd…”
Tuesday – John 1:29-31 “Behold the Lamb of God…”
Wednesday – Psalm 23 The Lord is my shepherd....
Thursday – I Peter 1:18-21 …a lamb without blemish or spot…
Friday – I Peter 2:24-25 For you…have now returned to the Shepherd…Saturday –Rev 5:1-10 “…I saw a Lamb…”
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Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket Linking a photo.....

Now, THIS is totally easy to do.....I'm going to test it out. ::snort::

Hmmm....I should make this a real blog entry.....Tonight we gave out our 3rd Family Advent gift. I bougt a cool calendar which hasn't arrived. I also bought a series to read during Family Read Aloud time this winter. I've heard a lot about this series....has anyone read it? What did you think? Click the photo and it SHOULD take you to the website....I think I've figured out an EASY way to add links to photos......

This is what the website says: "The Kingdom Series novels are Biblical allegories that are set in a medieval time period. They cover the span of time from Genesis through the book of Revelation. They are full of action and adventure where swords, knights, and battles are all Biblically symbolic. The allegory teaches Godly character, the adventure captures the imagination of all ages, and the action keeps teenagers engrossed from cover to cover...even non-readers! They are GREAT read-alouds! Deep symbolism with an action story makes excellent reading for ages 8 to adult. "

Easy directions for linking a photo:
To link to a picture using Blogger:
Insert a graphic into your post.
Highlight it by clicking on it one time.
Click on the Link button on the Create Post toolbar (it's a picture of a chain link and the earth). A window will pop up asking you to type in a URL.
Type in the URL you want your graphic to link to and click OK.
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Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket Our BABIES are coming HOME....

I interrupt our busy Sunday to share the most joyous news that our babies will be home shortly. This thought caused so much excitement and emotion, that I went to their myspaces and shamelessly snatched some photos. I'm trying hard y'all not to start up those hourly/minute count downs....but we're excited!

The funny thing about babies growing up, and God calling them to different states to live, is that you dont' always know all the "little things" going on in their lives.....

For instance: Krista cut her hair - and Bre has let hers grow. Cool

Nicholas & Krista
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We made two advent wreaths at the Chapel's advent wreath workshop this year and sent them to the girls. Here is Krista with her wreath - and signs she made explaining the symbols.
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Bre - our first baby - Twenty-two years old - wow!
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Can you BELIEVE they go on and have FUN after they leave home????? Without "the family"? ::snort::
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Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket