Mini's Debut - "Words of Hope"

It's official.....Mini's first article was published today!  I have been so excited all week I could hardly wait!  Mini was typical Mini and was completely laid back about the whole thing :) 

 

So here is Hope aka Mini with her new column "Words of Hope."

So, as promised I am going to try and copy and paste the 1st article of her column here....forgive me if I don't do a great job of it.  If you are local, please pick up a copy and let the powers that be at the paper know you appreciate this type of news.

 

It’s that time of year again! Beginning at exactly 12:00 a.m. on the day following Thanksgiving, America begins decking some halls and rocking around those Christmas trees. Everyone leaps into action to provide the perfect gifts for their loved ones and make their homes look festive. However, the true reason for the season often gets lost amid the hustle and bustle of Black Friday sales and holiday baking.  Christmas time is the time of year chosen to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. THAT’S a reason to celebrate!

The birth of Jesus is seen most vividly in Luke, chapters 1 and 2.  We all know the basics of the story. Three wise men, Mary and Joseph, and a baby that is swaddled in cloth are common icons of the Christmas nativity scenes, but do we really ever think about this story?

 Mary was a teenage girl, historically between the ages of 13 and 16, and she was engaged to a man named Joseph. An angel came to Mary and told her that she is favored and is to be expecting a baby boy who is the “Son of the Most High”. As a teenage girl, Mary had the faith to accept that she is going to be ridiculed and accused of things that were not true in order to deliver this baby. She had faith that God knew what He was doing, and trusted that He’d get her through the tough spots. She knew that becoming pregnant BEFORE getting married was a HUGE no-no, but she took on the challenge anyway. Even though Mary was “impregnated by the Holy Spirit”, people obviously weren’t going to believe that. She also knew that a certain Mr. Joseph wasn’t going to be too happy. In fact, Joseph tried to divorce Mary. Things got pretty tough! Thankfully however, an angel of the Lord appeared before Joseph and caught him up on what was going down. If you ask me, Joseph should have been filled in a little sooner, but what do I know?

As we come to the close of our story, Mary and Joseph were on the move when Mary suddenly went into labor. Since there was no room for them in the inns (you’d think they would make room!), Mary delivered Jesus in a stable and placed him in a manger. Finally, our Savior is born! The one who will tear the veil between heaven and Earth and bring us back to our Father is here! This, my friends, is the Christmas story.

As you can see, the Christmas story is not only important to remember the birth of our Savior, but also to remember the faith and trust of Mary. We all need to strive to have the faith and obedience that Mary had so that God can use us for a greater purpose. Even if we can’t exactly see what that purpose is at the moment, God knows. Obedience is key in order for us to grow even deeper in our relationship with Him. My absolute favorite verse to keep this in mind is Luke 1:38. This verse is Mary accepting God’s challenge. It says “I am my Lord’s servant. May your words to me be fulfilled.” Let us all remember this not just during the holidays, but throughout the year. Have a blessed Christmas!

Thank you all for letting me brag a bit.  We are just so proud to have been blessed with such a wonderful daughter.  I am thrilled that through this column many of you will come to know her heart as we do as well as hopefully lead you closer to God.