The last two weeks have been tiring for the Shonamon household as both of our girls have been a little under the weather. Alice (who is already 9 months old! Where is the time going?), developed a cough and wasn’t breathing all that well and as a result we spent three nights holding her in a recliner upright and patting her back so she could breathe. Even though Justin and I were tired, we switched back and forth for the three nights to stay up with her. We do whatever we can to help our kids feel better. We ended up having to take her to the ER to get some medicine, but she is back to her happy self and sleeping well.
Sometimes I think our girls get together and plan out who will be sick at what time. I say this because just as Alice started to feel better, Kenzie (our 2 and a half year old) started to get a bad cough that would keep her up at night. I remember one night last week I went into her room to comfort her and rub her back as she fell back asleep. At one point I could hear her little hand searching for mine in the dark. I reached out to her and held her hand until she fell asleep.
I couldn’t help but think of how there are times in life where we don’t feel good, but God is there to comfort us, to hold us through the night, even when we don’t feel well. I also couldn’t help but think that there are time we feel like we are reaching out in the darkness, searching to hold God’s hand. Guess what? God is there, reaching out, holding our hand, walking through life with us, whispering, “I am here.”
What also ran through my mind is the fact that God the Father sent his son, Jesus in the form of a child. I can only imagine there were nights that Mary held baby Jesus and patted his back to comfort him and help him sleep. How amazing that Jesus came in the form of a baby, the most humble of forms, to take on our humanity and welcome us into relationship with God. How amazing? I am excited to celebrate with you all the coming of Christ at the end of December, but for now we wait, we anticipate, we practice patience for the coming of our “Long Expected Jesus.”
The season of Advent, the new year for the church, begins on Sunday, December 3rd and in preparation of the season of Advent, we are having a potluck and “hanging of the greens” this Sunday night, November 26th at 5 pm. If you are able to attend, we recommend last names A-K bring a side dish; L-R bring a dessert; S-Z bring a main dish - BUT if you're an "A" but are just dying to share your new chicken cordon bleu recipe - *please* go ahead and do that! ;). If you did not receive an email with the link to sign up, please respond to this email with what you are able to bring.
Finally, this Advent season we invite all to journey together through a devotional, Long Expected Jesus from "The Foundry" - formerly known as Nazarene Publishing House. Several of the pieces are written by friends of SCN. The first print sold out pretty quickly, but these books will be available for purchase ($6 each) at the Welcome Center, beginning Nov. 26th.
I can’t wait to see where the Lord leads us this Advent season as we anticipate the arrival and celebration of the birth of Christ. Blessings on you all and I am so THANKFUL for each and every one of you.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Cara
Contact:
Shawnee Church of the Nazarene
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