January 3 – The 9th Day of Christmas

This year, for the first time ever, I got to have THREE Kings for my Nativity.  I finally have 3 grand-boys who represented the Magi.  I had waited a long, long time for three boys.  We are rather a girl-heavy family.  :)  Good times.

PLUS – I actually-truly-delightfully-joyfully got THREE new grandbébés this year.

Three in one year!!!  I mean – that is a wildly amazing bunch of generousness straight from heaven, I tell ya!

Now, please note, my husband took these photographs.  I think he focused so much on the babies that my poor, good-looking son-in-law, Dave, was cut out.  There were like 12 pics just like this and Dave is headless in every shot!  Haha!

Malakai, or Kai, as we generally call him (which means rejoicing – and he has brought so much of it), was born last January, quite early and just as Christmas had been packed away and was the BEST way to start the year ever!  Then, as spring broke in the Rockies, the dazzling Bailey Sophia arrived and just tripled the stunning beauty emanating from Rocky and Jovan’s little house, being their 3rd girl and all.  Finally, just 9 days before Christmas, the highly anticipated Evangeline Lilly made her debut and there they all were for our Christmas: three fresh, beautiful, bright-eyed, adventurous, lovely babies – gifts under our tree to last our whole lives long.  Our heritage is being increased at an astonishing rate!

Please note how GOOD all these people look (Jovan, Tredessa AND Dave) for just having had babies this year!  :)

Hmmmm…

Interesting, very interesting:  the 3rd of our new-babies was born 9 days before Christmas.  Then, these three babies bring our total to nine grandbebes.  I really did not plan all these threes and nines.  I promise.  I am just sitting here cracking myself up…as I hear the Twilight Zone theme song in my head.  Haha.  Anyhoo…

Nonetheless – here is what I want you to know on the 9th Day of Christmas ~

I really feel led to encourage you on this message:

Deuteronomy 31.6, 8 NIV  “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you…  The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Hebrews 13.5b NIV   “God has said, ‘Never will I leave you;  never will I forsake you.’”

And finally, in case you need to hear this three times:

Isaiah 42.16 NIV  “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.”

 And this is what I heard for you, friends and familia and readers passing by – even if by your own decisions and actions you are in a place of chaos and despair, even if you know you’re on a rocky cliff or a wilderness of your own making, you are not abandoned!  It does not matter one iota WHY you are there or HOW you got there.  Just know that even though you ARE there, God has not forsaken you, not lost track of where you are.  He will NEVER leave you.  Because HE is faithful and HE is a God of His Word.  If it were based on us, we’d all be sunk, seriously!  Sunk!  But He is God and He is faithful!

He is so faithful that even if we make our bed in hell, even there you can reach out and find Him…Don’t believe me?  Psalm 139.7-10  “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths [Sheol-the place of the dead], you are there.  If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

WHERE could we possibly go that His faithfulness could not find us?  He will never-ever-ever leave you.  This is Good News, it is joy unspeakable.  Are you suddenly aware?  Did you just realize He has been waiting for you to notice that He has not let you out of His sights?

Be at peace, welcome His Presence.  It’s going to be Ok.  Let the merry continue brightly.