"As the deer pants for the water brooks,

  So my soul pants for You, O God.

 My soul thirsts for God,

  for the Living God;

 When shall I come and appear before God?"

         Psalm 42:1,2

What a beautiful verse to remind me of what this Advent is truly about, the coming and preparation of my self, of my soul for the coming birth of Jesus. In this time before Christmas, my soul truly longs for Him, the One who was born to save us from our sins. How I truly long for "the Living God" because in Him and because of Him, we each truly have Eternal Life. In this time let us not get caught up in the commercialism of Christmas where we have let society get us caught up in the "I want this" or "I have all these gifts to buy for all these people." This is not a time to think that we must have our house and yard decorated with lights and decorations full to overflowing, and we have all seen the houses that have so many lights on them and lighted decorations where it is brighter than the sun, or to feel obligated to send out hundreds of cards, or to buy gifts for the mail person and the person who delivers the paper or to have a spare gift just in case. We have all already received the most Precious gift, the gift of Christ Himself. Let us reflect on that thought. This is a time for families to open their hearts to receive the Baby who was born in a manger.

Blessings and Prayers,

Sharon