Just for a moment, imagine that you are God, Creator of our world. Perhaps you began your work by creating the sun, and then moved on to the rivers and streams, plants and animals. Next, you made man in your image to enjoy the creation with you and to keep you company. Now you want to help man understand his place in the creation and so you prepare to send your only Son to earth. So how would you orchestrate the birth of God’s Son? If this most important of all births were left to ME to plan, I would begin by picking parents that were highly educated and wealthy enough to provide all the best things in life. Without question, the earthly parents of God’s Son must be of sterling character and have flawless reputations. I would place them to live in a city with all the amenities; good schools, cultural opportunities and the very best medical care. The child would be born in a top hospital, attended by the finest doctors available. His birth announcement would be trumpeted worldwide through every available media. How strange that God chose a very different path. In the Bible book called Matthew, we learn that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born to parents that weren't even married yet! Talk about having a bad reputation! They were not known for being wealthy or highly educated, either. God's son was born in a barn, without a single doctor to attend. His birth was announced by angels, but in the middle of the night to a few shepherds encamped on a lonely hillside. Then Jesus was taken back to his parents' hometown, Nazareth, which was not well thought of in that day. Doesn't sound like a very promising beginning for the Savior of the world, does it? So what does all of this mean for you and me? As children of God, we are told to model our lives after the Son of God, Jesus Christ. If Jesus had been born into a life of wealth, comfort and privilege, it would be so easy for us to say, "I have nothing in common with Jesus. His life was easy, but mine is hard. He had everything, while I have so little." But God our Creator knows us well. He sent us a Savior that we can relate to. Jesus Christ was entrusted to a humble family of lowly means. He grew up in an undistinguished town and had little formal education. His short life was a typical mix of both joys and sorrows. So when the burdens of life become too heavy for you, look to Jesus Christ for strength, wisdom and inspiration. He really does understand.

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A number of years ago, I was given the opportunity to spend some time visiting the local women's jail. It was a privilege to encourage the ladies there, and share with them my faith in God. Have you ever been inside a jail? It’s an unsettling feeling to walk down that hallway, and hear the bars clang shut behind you. You realize that, once you are inside, you can't get out unless someone else decides to let you out! The women in this jail were locked up for a number of different reasons, but all their troubles boiled down to one thing – they broke the law. They were paying the consequence for something they’d done wrong. Many were sorry for their mistakes, but they still had to pay the price. At the end of my jail visits, I had only to push a button on the wall. A guard would quickly come to open the door and let me walk free. I can tell you truly, the guard never had to push me out the cell door! I was always more than happy to walk back out into the freedom and light! My jail house visits made me recall a passage of scripture found in the Bible book called Romans. It says simply "The Lord Jesus Christ came to set us free from sin." The truth is, we’ve all sinned. Many of us are, in essence, held prisoner by our sins and the poor life choices they lead to. We may try to deny the obvious at times. However, each of us is painfully aware that we deserve to suffer the consequences of our mistakes. But thanks be to God our loving Father, Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins through His death. Our obligation is to merely accept this free gift by faith. Understand though, God doesn't drag us out into freedom and light. He doesn’t force us to lay down our sins and the pain they cause. He simply opens the jail house door and says, "I’ve pardoned your sin, would you like to come out?" The choice to walk through that prison door, or remain in sin, is ours alone. I pray each of us will choose freedom and light!

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My husband and I are nature lovers. We love to camp in the woods and go hiking. I love to putter around in my rose garden, and my husband has a small plot for wildflowers and another for banana trees he is very proud of. You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a single flower that I wouldn't like to have for my yard! But what we seem to enjoy the most are the birds. We have three feeders mounted right outside of our window and they attract so many lovely birds. We see quite a few hummingbirds, some cardinals, a blue jay or two and even a few woodpeckers. My personal favorites are the yellow finches. Their brilliant colors make them especially fun to watch as they dart back and forth. Of course, our feeders also draw less attractive visitors such as blackbirds and sparrows. Their coloring is far more drab. They don't stand out, or draw our attention, and we don't spend as much time watching them. But you know what? God does. In the Bible book called Matthew, Jesus Christ is quoted as saying that God our Father notices when even the smallest sparrow falls to earth. It would seem that those dull looking sparrows are just as important to God as the brightly colored hummingbirds, orioles and finches. God keeps a close eye on every part of His creation. He cares about each tiny creature. So what does that mean for you and for me? Well, if God keeps his eye on each humble sparrow, doesn’t it stand to reason that He cares even more deeply for each of us, the children He created in His own image? Now in our weakness, we may tend to lavish attention only on the pretty people, the powerful people, the famous people. But I take great comfort in knowing that God my Father cares for me and watches over me day and night. So next time you see a flock of sparrows overhead, or a bunch of pesky old crows hanging around where you live, remember that God is mindful of each one, and He cares deeply for you too!

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I have two jars on my kitchen counter that look exactly alike. They came out of the same box of a dozen jars that I bought at the store. They have the same shiny gold lids, both are made of glass, and are stamped with the imprint of an apple on the side. But while they may look exactly alike on the outside, these twin jars are actually very different. If you stood in my kitchen and took the lid off of the first jar and peeked inside, you would soon discover that it’s filled with honey, honey with a rich golden color, sweet smell and even sweeter taste. But if you took the lid off of the second jar, you would quickly learn that it contains something entirely different! It looks to be filled with muddy water at first glance, but has a pungent bitter smell and, should you be brave enough to give it a try, an overpowering taste. This second jar is filled with vinegar. So why do I keep these twin jars on my counter? They remind me of a verse in the Old Testament Bible book called First Samuel that says, "The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." I'm encouraged by this verse to spend more time keeping my heart clean and pure and acceptable to the Lord. These wise words also help me worry a bit less about what other people think of the way I look, where I live, where I went to school, or what family or caste I come from. Likewise, I’m encouraged to look beyond these outward appearances and into the hearts of the people I meet. In the English language there is a common expression that perhaps sums up this thought best. The saying goes, "Beauty is only skin deep." If you have trouble remembering this simple wisdom, as I sometimes do, perhaps you should also place a pair of pretty little jars where you will see them each and every day.

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The next time you have a few spare moments let me suggest you conduct a simple experiment that will change forever the way you look at life. Begin with a small container of some sort. Something you have there in your home. A large cup, perhaps a medium sized can, even a small bucket will do. Do you have something in mind? Great! Now, take the container outside and fill it to the brim with some stones, stones about half the size of your hand. You probably won’t be able to get many into your small container, but squeeze in as many as you can. When you have it as full as possible, look around for some tiny pebbles. Can you fit some of those in? You probably can drop a few in between the larger stones. Shake the container from time to time so that the pebbles will work their way down between the larger rocks. Does the container look full now? Is there room for anything more? No? Allright! Next I want you to look for some sand. Do you have any around the house or in your yard? Scoop the sand up with your hands and pour it over the stones and pebbles. You may be surprised by how much sifts between the rocks and fills up the remaining space. When you can’t get any more sand into the container, get yourself some water. Slowly pour water into the container along with the stones, pebbles and sand. Once again, I think you will be surprised by how much water it takes to fill up a container that already looks quite full. Now think about our little experiment in reverse. What would happen if we put the water in first and then the stones? Can you picture it in your mind’s eye? You’d make an awful mess because most of the water would slop out onto the floor as you dropped in the stones. What about the sand? What would happen if you put the sand in first? Sadly, many of us take this second, backward approach to life. We should fill up our time taking care of the important things of life; vital matters such as our relationship with God and with each other. Instead, we fill up our lives with the small details; what we will wear, where we will live, what we will eat. In the Bible book called Mathew, Jesus Christ is quoted saying, "Do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." So what will you do this day? Will you take care of the truly important matters of life, or the simply urgent? The choice is yours to make.

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