love came down at christmas

Huggies asked us to say what Christmas means to us. This is my bit:

Christmas is a time to remember and celebrate the time when it all began - God, the big huge creator of the universe came to be with us in the form of a tiny little baby, born to a poor family in a nothing village. He came and experienced pain, sadness, joy and frustration just like we do. Through his teaching and miracles he showed us a bit about what the world is going to be like someday when he renews the whole of creation and gets rid of evil once and for all. And most importantly he came to die as a sacrifice for us, to fix up all the mess that we have gotten ourselves into (or, ‘sin’) so that we can live in relationship with him.* He came because he loves us that much.

So for me, I guess the reason that Christmas gets me so excited and giggly is because of love. What God began on Christmas, 2000ish years ago, is HUGE. He loves me, he loves all of us, SOOO much. He chose to die for me. And I guess a great way of celebrating/recognising that is to use it as a time to think about how we love other people: do we love them the way God loves them? (Or just when it is convenient? or easy? sometimes it is a lot easier to think about what is best for me.)

When I sing or hear Christmas songs, the bits that move me the most are always the bits about love, and sacrifice. Cos when I think of Christmas, I think about the events that Jesus' birth set in motion - when I think of Christmas, I think of the cross.

See also:
my christmas rant
emmanuel

*confused? check out www.gotquestions.org

it's that special day again....

22 and a half today!!

ooh yea.

check me out!

i don't have the company car; i ain't swinging at two below par......but i know how to drive cars! and i know that two below par is a golf thing.

22 and a half!
22 and a half!

that is the same as 22 and 6 twelfths. or 22 and two quarters. the possibilities are endless!

well, i guess now that i am so old i should say something responsible.

um.
- always brush your teeth or you will have to pay lots of money for fillings and root canals.
- ask questions.
- never run across the road. and if you have to, at least look both ways first.
- don't carry boxes that are too heavy and lose your grip on them just as you trip over the curb. it will end in tears. and broken boxes. so don't do it. (and if you do, make up a cool story. something to do with dragons usually works for me.)
- sometimes kazoos are not helpful. always check if it is helpful before doing it.

22 and a half!

it's okay, i don't expect gifts.
just your emails telling me how wonderful i am.
thank you.




ps. happy birthday Jakob!! welcome to two-year-old-hood :)


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Welcome to the world, Baby Girl!

YAYAYAY! Ben and Teri had a beautiful baby girl this morning. And she is healthy and safe and has brown hair, like mum and dad. Congratulations!!
Congratulations Jakob, you have a new little sister! Now you get to be a big brother, and look after her real good. It's gonna be awesome!

Welcome to the world, baby girl! We are so glad that you are here :) You are loved by so many people. God has big plans for your life. I can't wait to get to know you as you grow into a beautiful young woman. Yay you! Yay God!