Christmas in English... it wasn't always that way

I am currently reading Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice by David Teems, and will put a full review in the books section when I finish. It is one of those biographies that you don't want to put down. Very well written. I came across this excerpt from Luke 2 and thought it would be fitting for everyone to read the Christmas story as heard for the first time in English. (John Wycliffe translated an English Bible in the 1300s but it was translated from the Latin Vulgate. Tyndale was the first to translate from the original Greek into a common English that everyone could readily understand.) Tyndale was ultimately burned at the stake as a heretic for his efforts. But much of the KJV was taken directly from his work done in the early 1500s. Thank God for inspiring his work.


"And she brought forth her fyrst begotten sonne and wrapped him in swadlynge cloothes and layed him in a manger because ther was no roume for them in the ynne. And ther were in the same region shepherdes abydinge in the felde and watching their flocke by nyght. And loo: the angell of ye [the] lorde stode harde by them and the brightnes of ye lorde shone rounde aboute them and they were soare afrayed. But the angell sayd vnto them: Be not afrayed. For beholde I bringe you tydinges of greate ioye yt shal come to all ye people: for vnto you is borne this daye in the cite [city] of David a saveoure which is Christ ye [the] lorde. And take this for a signe: ye shall fynde ye [the] chylde swadled and layed in a manger."


Luke 2:7-12 William Tyndale New Testament 1526


Everyone should know this story and without having to learn another language.

May your Christmas be filled with the celebration of Jesus Christ - God in flesh come to redeem mankind.

Holy Illuminated

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."  Psalm 119:105

Where would we be without the Word of God lighting our paths?

In the dark.

Millions of people all over the world are in the dark. I get very scared in the dark, don't you? I usually find myself standing very still until someone holds my hand and leads me to the light. That is what Patrick and I want to be, a hand leading someone from darkness to light. See, the light set me free. It opened up paths of righteousness and delivered me from a life of just standing still. In Christ, the "True Light," (John 1:9), I am enlightened to the pleasures of God. Through Him I know what God desires for me.  I have victory over darkness because the dark can not comprehend the light (John 1:5). That is power, my friends:

Direction and Defeat. 

"No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light."  Luke 11:33

Why would I want to keep this light to myself? Everyday I want to sit under its warmth. I lay out my blanket  and lay back with my basket full and feast upon every word. There is where I find peace, joy, and complete satisfaction. Just me, my Bible, and my prayers - my idea of a perfect day.  To think of not having this - I would rather die.

Those same millions that are in the dark are doing just that - dying without the light. The god of this world has blinded them, so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4). Light that I carry around without fear of it ever being extinguished. Light that I proclaim to everyone around me as the "only Way, Truth, and Life."  So, what am I going to do with my light? Head to Africa.  I am going to love and live in a world that is not my own but one that God will show me.

I will spend my life sharing my light so that others can spread out their own blanket or share a spot on mine. And together we will feast on the Word.

With My Hands Lifted High

 This is a song that I sing daily.

Join me in praising our Faithful God!

For You I Wait All The Day

December has brought, for our family, a period of waiting. We are waiting for direction. We are waiting for provision. We are waiting to leave. Wait. Wait. Wait. Every corner that I turn, every new day that I awaken what is lurking for me is wait. I am horrible at the wait. I was raised in the "get-it-now" generation.


So in my mind I am finding it hard to grasp the periods of wait that are written for us in the gospel. Wait for the word, Wait for the star, Wait for the child. How agonizing this must have been for all involved. Not the perfect smile pictured nativity that we are all fed this time of year. We are able to conveniently turn the page in the gospel of Luke and see the story unfold it all of its glory, but I know that Mary and Joseph had to wait. So, too, Patrick and I must wait. We must be ready to go at a moments notice. We can't be concerned about accommodations. We can't determine how long we will stay. We just have to patiently wait. So, what do we do in the wait?


Psalm 25:5 says, "Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; for You I wait all the day."

Jesus is in the wait

He is the light for my day, the water for my thirst, and the warm, savory, bread that nourishes my soul. If doing the will of God and accomplishing His work was enough food for Jesus (John 4:34) then it is enough for me. So, the wait is not a byproduct of the call. It is a vital part of the call. It is in the wait where trust is tested. It is in the wait where faith grows. It is in the wait where love manifests and multiplies. It is here where the foundation is laid so that all that God desires to accomplish through you can achieve its end.


Just like Mary and Joseph, who knew what God was doing through them, to the rest of the world it seemed like madness. A marriage unfit. A child conceived out of lies and deception. For them their period of wait had to have been agonizing. Oh,come Oh, come Emmanuel were the words that she cried out silently. Begging God to speed up His long awaited gift so that she could be redeemed and return back to her life with Joseph.


I, too, find myself crying out before the Lord, " I have waited my whole life for this, why do I have to wait?" "Why are the days long and the trials and temptations more than I can bear?" "Are you truly going to fulfill in me all that you have revealed and promised?" "Oh, come Oh, come Emmanuel!" It is at this point that the Holy Spirit softly speaks words of comfort over me through the word just like he did to Mary. "The Lord is with you." (Luke 1:28) That is when I take in a deep breath and can accept the challenges that are here today in the wait. The Lord is with me. 

And for Him I will wait all the day.

The Jesse Tree

"Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD." - Isaiah 11:1-2 NASB

Advent  has begun and around our house we are counting down the days until we celebrate the birth of our Savior. Last year we picked up a resource from aholyexperience.com to use during Advent.

If you subscribe to her blog, you will get a link to the Jesus Advent devotional (redistribution any other way is expressly forbidden or I would just post ours here). It has paper ornaments for your Jesse Tree (you have to make your own tree) and a family devotional for each day leading up to and including Christmas.

Our Jesse Tree with all the ornaments

I freehanded a tree on some MDF and cut it out with a jigsaw. I wanted to paint the top of the stump a lighter shade of brown, but ran out of time. Maybe I'll add that this year.

If you make a Jesse Tree, I will warn you to take into consideration how many ornaments it needs to hold. I made ours without much planning and they barely fit.

Each day, we read the devotional as a family and pick one of the kids to hang the corresponding ornament. We really enjoy it and I hope you do as well.

May your family have a wonderful Christmas season!

39 and thankful...

I turn 39 today. I live a blessed life. Thought I would share a few of the things I am thankful for. These are not ranked (since the smell of sawdust comes before the Bible...)

1. Jesus and the cross
2. Kellee and her HUGE heart
3. Eli and his compassion for others
4. Ethan and his enthusiasm
5. Emilee and her creativity
6. Elliot and his hugs
7. Evan and his big smile
8. Eden and her mischievous spirit
9. Mom for showing me God is real
10. Louis for encouraging me to pursue computers
11. Memaw's bear hugs
12. Papaw teaching me how to work
13. Dad's warm personality
14. Lena's kind nature
15. Jean's relentless pursuit of Truth
16. Bob entrusting his daughter to me
17. Friends who care
18. A long awaited baby Bentley
19. The smell of sawdust
20. The Bible in my heart language
21. Bacon, eggs and toast
22. Time spent in prayer
23. Good coffee (French pressed)
24. Hymns
25. Memories of my older brother
26. A bike ride
27. A walk with my wife
28. My Kindle
29. Building Legos with my kids
30. Hearing the prayers of my children
31. The fact that God can use us despite our brokenness
32. Family and friends near and far (but always close to our hearts)
33. Health
34. The kindness of others
35. Pumpkin pie and Cool Whip (saturated fat and hydrogenated oil, mmmmmm  good)
36. A best friend for a wife
37. Six great kids who are so understanding
38. LOVE
39. That first Sunday when the tomb was empty…

God has been good to me. Much more than I deserve.


"Indeed, You have made my days [as] handbreadths, And my age [is] as nothing before You; Certainly every man at his best state [is] but vapor." Psalm 39:5 NKJV


"You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." James 4:14b NASB

The Missionary Penny

Now you can always remember to pray for a missionary when you see a penny...