Walk With Me

It has been a minute since my last post. I really want to share what the Lord wants to share through me and not rush or force anything, so I took some time off. I finished my first semester of seminary and am now enjoying Christmas break. With it now being two days until Christmas, I felt it time to share something that has been on my heart to hopefully encourage everyone reading this to get into the Christmas spirit. And I don’t mean the secular Christmas spirit; I mean remembering why we are here and why Jesus was born.

There’s a lot of hoo ha and t-do lists that accompany this time of year. Everywhere you go there’s traffic of cars and people. Some are impatient, some are not. Some are focused on one thing: making sure they have everything for Christmas. Friends, I want to encourage all of us to pause tonight and tomorrow and posture our hearts for Christmas day. All the food, presents, and obligations mean nothing without remembering the sacrifice Jesus made for us. This is a time to spend with family and honor our Lord and Savior for taking on the death that we deserve. His dying on the cross and saying, “It is finished” is the greatest gift of all, and that’s what we should be remembering right now.

This Christmas is looking a little differently for my family this year. We are particularly thankful for God’s provision, protection, and blessings He has shown over the last few days. My uncle, who has been having heart problems for months and trying to figure out what was wrong, was denied a procedure that would look into his arteries to check for blockage the other day. The insurance company said they were not going to pay for him to have this procedure. This led to him calling doctors all day to figure out what to do next to get this figured out. Having a conversation with him, we both remembered what the Bible says about worrying. We both went into a time of prayer to ease our hearts so we would not worry or be anxious. We had faith God would provide protection.

A couple of days later, God started to put His plan into motion. My uncle sensed something not right in church Sunday morning, so we ended up rushing to the hospital. It was a quiet ride as I was gunning it down the highway praying nothing happened before we got there. Fast forward to the next day when he was finally able to have this procedure done, we found out the widowmaker artery was 95% blocked. There was a small sliver of space where blood was flowing through that artery. The doctor said he was “holding on by a thread.” They put in a stent, and he is home now and healthy.

Through this, we have been able to share of God’s faithfulness and mercy. We do not share this story without bring glory to God for His protection through his plan. We are not sure how much time my uncle had left before the artery became completely blocked and he suffered a major heart attack, but we are in complete awe of His goodness. This has caused us to stop for a moment this Christmas and put everything we have in God’s hands.

There is a song in the Grinch movie that says one of my favorite lyrics. As the Who’s are gathered around the Christmas tree after the grinch stole their presents and decorations, they sing in unison, “Christmas day is in our grasp so long as we have hands to clasp.” Friends and family, hold your loved one’s hands this Christmas. Put down your phones, stop working, stop scrolling through social media and spend intentional time with your family and with God. Thank God for sending His Son to earth to die for us so we can have eternal life in Heaven. Honor Him by spending this time devoted to the people He has entrusted you with.

I pray we all have a great Christmas and deny the hustle and bustle that Satan tries to distract us with. What are God’s blessings in your life? Let’s glorify Him together.

Blessings and love,

Courtney

Here’s some good news:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given…Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

“But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news…Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.’” Luke 2:14

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Galatians 4:4-5

“And being found in human, He (Christ) humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name. so that at the name of Jesus evert knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:8-11