BEST CHRISTMAS EVER!

 BEST CHRISTMAS EVER ! 

       When you’ve lived as long as we have, you’ve seen a lot of Christmases!  But which was the “Best Christmas Ever!?”

Was it as an excited child with a long list for Santa?

 Childhood memories of family gatherings and grandma’s delicious pies?

As a teenager when you received the latest cool electronic gizmo?

A lonely missionary in a faraway land with very little but memories to warm you?

A newlywed with just the two of you together at Christmas time?

A parent, enjoying your children’s excitement at this time of year?

Or maybe as a grandparent, watching your child as they enjoy seeing their children’s eyes light up as they see on Christmas morning what Santa left for them under the tree?

What is it about Christmas? Is it the music? The gifts? The decorations? The treats? The glitter and the glow? or is it all of the above?

We’ve experienced Christmases with little and Christmases with plenty. Christmases in need and Christmases of service.

For us, there’s not just one Christmas that outshined the rest, rather it’s those Christmases where Christ was the focus. Why? Without Christ, there is no Christmas! Jesus Christ IS the reason for the season! Howard W. Hunter reminded us “Whatever Jesus lays his hands upon lives!” (Oct 1993 Conference) Russell M. Nelson shared this truth; “Happiness in life has little to do with the circumstances of our lives but everything to do with the Focus of our lives.”  (Oct 2016 Conference-Joy and spiritual survival)

The Nephites knew this truth and taught it to their children.

“We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we prophesy of Christ…that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.” (2Nephi 25:26)

Sheri Dew has reminded us that “The Lord knows the way because HE IS the way and is the only chance for successfully negotiating mortality."  (Conference April 1999. Our Only Chance)

Do you want to have the “Best Christmas Ever!?" – Then make Christ the Focus of this Christmas and every Christmas! As you focus on Christ, everything else in your life will come into focus and you will see more clearly than ever before and realize what the source of true happiness really is. As you stay focused on Christ, your vision will be crystal clear, and you will be empowered to see what is really most important in this life. Regardless of the current circumstances of your life, as you focus on Christ, we know you can still have “The Best Christmas Ever!” not just this Christmas but every Christmas!

Much Love and Merry Christmas!

The Grandparent Chronicles

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

YOU'VE GOT FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES !

Image
  YOU’VE GOT FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES !   Country singer Garth Brooks sings a song (written by Dewayne Blackwell and Earl Bud Lee in 1989) that was an instant hit with a cleaver tune and lyrics, he sings, “I’ve got friends in low places- where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases my blues away, and I’ll be okay.”   When I first heard that song I thought, wherever you happen to find yourself, it’s good to have friends, but wouldn’t it be better to have friends in high places? What kind of friends will you most likely find in low places? Hopefully, good ones, but most likely, not a friend with the capacity to pull you up or elevate you. In order to elevate you, wouldn’t they most likely have to be on higher ground? Friends can have a major impact on our lives- for good or bad. I’ve seen this in my own life, my children's and grandchildren’s lives as well as in the lives of countless others. I imagine that you’ve observed this impact friends can have in your own li...
Read more

A GOD OF 2nd CHANCES

Image
  A GOD OF 2 ND CHANCES & THE HONORARY CHAPLAIN TO QUEEN ELIZABETH !   He was a scruffy looking guy. My 1 st impression was that he was about to ask me for money, but no, maybe a religious zealot, he did have a large wooden cross around his neck. As our eyes made contact I was drawn to his beaming smile. I had a distinct impression that this was someone I was supposed to talk to, but I was tired, it had been a long drive and I felt justified in my feelings to avoid contact. We had just arrived at our destination in Banff, Canada in the crisp clean mountain air among the majestic Canadian Rockies for a week of exploring and relaxation; that would happen, but I sensed that there was also another purpose for my being here. As the evening progressed, I couldn’t get that man off my mind. I had experienced spiritual promptings in the past and knew that I would get no peace until I resolved to follow them. As I knelt in personal prayer that night I had a conversation with...
Read more

Cruising to 90!

Image
          Cruising to 90 ! Annette’s mother, Naomi Stone turned 90 on Dec 20, 2024. To celebrate, her children took her on a Caribbean cruise this March. Eight of her 9 children and those with companions all joined her. (see attached pictures) Naomi’s life has been however, anything but a pleasure cruise! Naomi was born number 9 of 9 children to Francis Louis Phipps and Nellie Clark. Born on Dec. 20,1934, she was 11 years younger than her next youngest sibling, so in many ways, Naomi felt like an only child. She grew up in Ogden, Utah and attended Mound Fort Jr high school where she met Dennis Stone. They soon became sweethearts and married the fall after graduation from Ogden High school on Nov. 4,1953 in the Salt Lake Temple.  On May 26,1955, their first-born Annette joined the family, followed by- Bruce, Carolyn, Dale, Denise, Renae, Sharon, Michelle and Chad. Naomi was a very busy mother raising her 9 children but still found time to serve in th...
Read more