December Eighth

I was excited to get to finally watch Julie and Julia tonight. I read the book earlier this year, and I have to say, the movie was much more positive and filled with joy. The book had so much angst and was more or less a chronicle of Julie's highly normal but less than perfect life. In the movie, the same was true, but they portrayed Julia Child as a positive bright light, and who made lemonade out of all the lemons in her life, so it made the depressed Julie lighter just by cooking her way through the book. There was alot of love, and a very few objectionable words, so all in all it was an enjoyable way to spend the evening. And of course, you know I have to relate it to todays devotional.


Col. 3:16
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom and and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to the Lord.

How can you let the word of Christ dwell in you?
How do you admonish one another?
What does singing do to our hearts?

It would have been good advice if Julie had known this scripture. I know that when I get out of focus, I start to microscopicly tune in to my wants, my feelings and my selfish desires and think of me, me, me. I begin to sink and wallow in self pity and most of the time it ends in a melt down of sorts. This happened to Julie several times. Yet Julia seemed to always have a smile, and a secret delight in who she was, but more importantly, she was the delight of her husband Paul. She was so grateful for his love and throughout the movie she never got over the fact that he fell in love with her.
We have an even better lover. One who is the lover of our very soul; our creator who gave his live for ours. One who will never leave, fail, change or abandon us. He loves us more than any man ever could or would be willing to do. We are the delight of his life, the apple of his eye, and the joy of his heart. There is nothing we can do that would cause him to leave us. That should bring us so much joy.

When I remember this, I am delighted in him. But when forget, I get filled with angst and 'when the momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!' So my goal is to be so filled up with him, that I cannot be filled with anything else, including angst. One of the ways I can do that is to sing to him, listen to his music and have it flowing in and through me. I read this idea in another devotional, and today I think it is especially appropriate:

Adopt a song. It can be a Christmas song, or a hymn or praise song. You can do it as a family or individually. Choose ne that will be yours this holiday season, to help you focus on him. Sing it to yourself frequently, When you get aggravated with each other, sing it to break the tension. Or when something is difficult, sing it to add a little levity to the situation. Let it help to remind you to be thankful for each other. Let the music of Christmas set your heart on him and remind you to be grateful and content in every situation. I hope it will change my heart forever. I am planning to use the song idea throughout the year and change it monthly or weekly if I feel the need. I think it will help me have more joy in the journey and be content in whatever circumstance I find myself in. Hope it helps you too!

Don't forget to check out our book, 'The 12 Days of Christmas' at www.12daysbook.com