| Realistic and transparent; yet Hollow and Plastic figures of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus graced our front yard these past few weeks. What a simple and powerful display. They are three feet tall, big enough to see them from the street, but not overwhelming the entire yard. The gardener and the sprinklers were the only things that bothered them. Until the winds came. Each day I came home, I found Mary and Joseph laying flat on the grass, isolated and alone. They were so lightweight, the winds just blew them over. Jesus didn’t move because he was safe, inside the manger. I would walk over to Mary and Joseph and move them back into their positions…right next to Jesus. Today I decided to bring the family back into the garage, their permanent residence. Mary and Joseph slid right into their respective slots on the shelf. Their space is right next to the big container of outside lights. Jesus is small enough to squeeze into that container. All tucked in for the next 335 days. Forgive Us Father that We the Church tend to lead Plastic and Hollow lives in front of others instead of leading Realistic and Transparent Ones. Ephesians 4:24,25 Forgive Us Father that Our Church may be big enough to see from the street, but typically doesn’t Overwhelm Our entire Community with Your Love. John13:35 Forgive Us Father that We the Church can be okay with just Squeezing a small Jesus into Our busy lives, and so Our walk with Him can slide onto the shelf of complacency. Romans 12:11 Maybe We Forgot that You are the One who comes and picks Us up off the ground when We are blown over by winds of pain that hit Our lives. Maybe We Forgot that Our permanent residence is in You. Not isolated and alone in a respective slot of an unknown garage. Maybe We Forgot that being tucked in Jesus’ Love is where We are kept. Designed to be containers of His Outside lights. You are graced by Him to be in the Front Yard of His Kingdom. You are seen by Him. You are not a lightweight. You are a simple and powerful display of His glory. Be His Display. All year long. 2 Corinthians 4:6 PRAY FOR: Consider joining Craig and me as we fast and pray starting January 6th for 21 days. We have joined with Jentezen Franklin in Irvine for their corporate fast for years. It is very powerful in many ways. 2019 is another opportunity for His Glory to be shown to California and this Nation! Pray specifically for His guidance and direction for our involvement in CA politics and our business. Freechapel.org PRAY FOR: Despite recent defeat in some CA elections, there are many encouraging things happening within the Church, here in CA. Pray for continued Revival and Salvations, the Holy Spirit is at work in CA!!! Electionforum.org PRAY FOR: Our son Cory as he continues to recover physically, emotionally from the shooting on March 5, 2018. Currently Cory is back working part time doing Executive Protection with high level celebrities/ billionaires. He is very glad to be able to work. He continues to go to counseling and therapy for PTSD. Pray for supernatural breakthrough from the past, successful Godly decisions for the present, plus heeding wise council and choices for his future. Cory update click here. Questions/Comments? Email me: shellynotw@gmail.com |