The Twelfth Day of Christmas.. the Ultimate Hope!

Well, we have gone through 11 days of Christmas, and if I was anything like a good blogger, this would have been done by now, but please forgive me for celebrating Christmas a little too much and neglecting my blog. But here's to all those folks who truly inspire us. It was my pleasure researching all of them.

So I leave you now with the ultimate story of Hope, and as usual, it came through tragic circumstances! yes it is the Easter Story. For I believe that as much as we celebrate Christs birth, it was NOT the child who saved us. It was NOT the baby in the manger who went on that cross. and it was NOT the Holy infant so tender and mild who rose again, never to die again, so that we may do the same. It was the grown UP baby who did all of these things.

I love the fact that one church actually takes their old Christmas tree and makes it out into a cross to be used at Easter. Wonderful!

Without further ado, here is the Easter story in two versions. One is the familiar version, and one is a delightful version for kids.

Hope springs eternal.

The Eleventh Day of Christmas.. Just Friends??

I move on here in my personal tales of inspiration by moving from family to friends. And, like my family, I will not mention names here, to honor my friends privacy, but they know who they are.

Branch Rickey once said that "there is quality in quantity" meaning that the more you have of something the better the chance that you will have a quality item among the lot. Well normally I would agree with that but in my case, its more like.."the cream rises to the top", or "you have to dig through a lot of dirt to get to the Diamonds" I do not posses a lot of friends, but the ones I do have stand out like an Everest in Kansas.

If ever people were a source of love and inspiration to me, it is my select circle of friends. Average ordinary people with the usual struggles and frustrations, but who live life with victory and triumph. Still struggling, but always overcoming and winning the little battles,waiting for the day when the ultimate victory will be obtained.

These people love me for who I am, and I do not have to struggle to impress them, or to win their favor. they have the courage and the confidence to look at me, and how I treat people and my character, and are as drawn to that, as I am to them. Nothing to me is more inspiring than to have people who you can be free to be yourself, warts and all, weaknesses and all, and to know that they will still be your friends.

And the most important thing we can take from this post is that while it is great to have people in your lives like this, It is equally important that we strive to BECOME this kind of person to others. to Be a friend like that.

Perhaps the reason I do not have a wide circle of friends is that I take that word seriously. co workers are cool, and may old acquaintances may be forgot and never brought to mind, but it is my friends that I cherish because that's exactly who they are. real friends in every sense of the word. Perfect?? hardly. loved?? Definitely.

I wish I could mention your names, but as Spurgeon said so wisely "carve your name on hearts, not on marble" And you all did. Happy New Year to you all.