7-Day Reflections Before Christmas (Day Seven)

Where is your "Flock"? 

What is Your Calling?

The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. Luke 2:20 (NLT)


Just as the shepherds had their own place of assignment two thousand years ago, God has put each one of us in a place where He called us in this generation.  For us followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are given gifts where He wants us to use for His people to help each other. Do you know what gift He has given you through the Holy Spirit? If you don't know yet, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal it to you and go use it as He leads.

Romans 12:4-8

Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

1 Corinthians 12:4-11

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.

A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge.The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages,while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.

Dear friends,

Today is the last day of this time of reflections before Christmas. I pray that those who joined me in this journey will keep on seeking and longing for more of God.  The Savior has been born to us. He loves us and reaches out to us, every single day. You are Oh-sO-lOved! 

Have a Merry and Blessed Christmas! Let's make the Celebrant, the Lord Jesus Christ be the center of our celebration!

With lOve,

Odette

7-Day Reflections Before Christmas ( Day Six)

Have you heard the shepherds' story?

What impact did it do to you?

All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. Luke 2:18-1(NLT)

MATTHEW 13:14-17

This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says,

‘When you hear what I say,

you will not understand.

When you see what I do,

you will not comprehend.

For the hearts of these people are hardened,

and their ears cannot hear,

and they have closed their eyes—

so their eyes cannot see,

and their ears cannot hear,

and their hearts cannot understand,

and they cannot turn to me

and let me heal them.’

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.

7-Day Reflections Before Christmas ( Day Five)

WHAT ARE YOU RELENTLESSLY PURSUING?

THE LIGHT HAS COME!

COME AND WORSHIP!

Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” 

                                                                                                     Matthew 2:1-2 (NLT)

John 8:12

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

Isaiah 9:2-7

The people who walk in darkness

will see a great light.

For those who live in a land of deep darkness,

a light will shine.

You will enlarge the nation of Israel,

and its people will rejoice.

They will rejoice before you

as people rejoice at the harvest

and like warriors dividing the plunder.

For you will break the yoke of their slavery

and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders.

You will break the oppressor’s rod,

just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian.

The boots of the warrior

and the uniforms bloodstained by war

will all be burned.

They will be fuel for the fire.

For a child is born to us,

a son is given to us.

The government will rest on his shoulders.

And he will be called:

Wonderful Counselor,Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

His government and its peace

will never end.

He will rule with fairness and justice 

from the throne of his ancestor David

for all eternity.

The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies

will make this happen!

7-Day Reflections Before Christmas ( Day Four)

WHAT'S YOUR STORY?
YOUR STORY MATTERS!

After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. Luke 2:17 (NLT)

MATTHEW 28:18-20

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

7-Day Reflections Before Christmas( Day Three)

Quo vadis? Where are you going?

What have you found today?

What have you seen today?

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.      Luke 2:15-16 (ESV)

John 1:1-5 (ESV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:14 (ESV)

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 

7-Day Reflections Before Christmas ( Day Two)

FOR THOSE WHO BELIEVE

AND 

RECEIVE!

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 

John 1:12-13 (ESV)

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—

praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in highest heaven,

and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

Luke 2:13-14

Psalm 96 (ESV)

Worship in the Splendor of Holiness

1 Oh sing to the Lord a new song;

sing to the Lord, all the earth!

2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name;

tell of his salvation from day to day.

3 Declare his glory among the nations,

his marvelous works among all the peoples!

4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;

he is to be feared above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,

but the Lord made the heavens.

6 Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

7  Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,

ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!

8  Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;

bring an offering, and come into his courts!

9  Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;

tremble before him, all the earth!

10  Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!

Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;

he will judge the peoples with equity.”

11  Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;

let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

12  let the field exult, and everything in it!

Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy

13 before the Lord, for he comes,

for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world in righteousness,

and the peoples in his faithfulness.

7-Day Reflections Before Christmas ( Day One)

Good news! 

This is the day of salvation!

We are invited to come to the Lord Jesus Christ today...

Seize the day!

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  John 3:16 (NLT)

And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.

The Shepherds and Angels

That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in highest heaven,

and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.

When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. ”Luke 2:6-20 (NLT)

reDesigned, reLaunching, reTelling the stOry

This devotional book is available in ebook, paperback and hardcover at amazon.com,barnesandnoble.com, xulonpress.com, christianbook.com

I am always reminded and fascinated about the story of the Samaritan woman whom Jesus met in the well. After her encounter with the Lord, she rushed to the community and told them who she met. I want to be like the Samaritan woman, telling my encounter with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and His faithfulness through the years.


Through the grace of God, this book was published in April 2015. I had a soft launch to my circle of influence within my family and friends and featured it on this blog. During the last year, I was led to make some changes and one of them is to partner with my husband to redesign the cover replacing the one made by the publisher. I feel more satisfied and full of joy knowing that this book is a fruit of the combined gifts that the Lord Jesus Christ has entrusted to both myself and my husband.


This devotional book is a testimony, a collection of 40 personal stories of God's love and faithfulness. My prayer is that it will encourage you, if you haven't yet, to spend quiet time each day for 40 days seeking God's presence and listening to His voice. It has always been my passion to pursue God's presence through carving time every morning each day praising, worshipping, reading His Word, the Bible and enjoying His presence. Those precious moments are the times I find true treasures, wisdom and most of all experiencing the power of God's unfailing love. I pray that the invitation to spend the next 40 days as you read the devotional will not end there, but it will just be a beginning of continuous daily lifestyle of spending special moments with God.  Part of the book is called "Fragmentation," a time to reflect on your own story and write down your introspection. For those who already have the time of daily devotion in ink, my prayer is that the message of this book to go deeper into God's vision for your life will be an inspiration to go and take the next steps to fulfilling it as the Holy Spirit leads you.


The purpose of writing the personal stories is to give glory and honor to the Only One and True God who so loved us and gave His One and Only Son for us (For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 NIV). He is into every detail, every fragment of our lives.


To you who decided to read on, if you are seeking to know God and have a longing in your heart to experience His love, my prayer is that my story shared in this book which is a small fragment of God's big story will inspire you and encourage you to draw to Him closer and closer as He reaches out with His love for you. May you open the door of your heart as He knocks to meet with you.


You are a fragment of a big story! You are O-sO-lOved!

Prompting Popping

Isaiah 30:21 "Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the way; walk in it."

Crisp colors of leaves,

oranges, maroons, browns, reds fading in. 

Lush of greens gradually fading off, 

soon will be unseen 

except for the evergreens.  

What a lovely scene!

 Fall is in. 

A new season. 

Just like those trees standing still in submission to nature's marvel of change, I am in a new season of my own journey at this time. For six years, I homeschooled my child.  I stayed home full time. It was a season of purging, pruning, molding, of God showing me my self, my inner self. I was confronted by the truth, battled with doubts and fears, living on the edge.  But through it all, God faithfully held me like a mother holding her fragile baby. It was a season of fortifying and witnessing of God's blessings.

Now, my son is in public school. Letting go was difficult. It was a test of trust for me. After six years of being homeschooled, he longed for a company of other kids. I felt like I was on a tug-of-war being pulled in two different directions. Should I continue with homeschooling or let him learn independence and structure in a traditional school setting. Dilemma. My son and I shared treasured moments.  We laughed, we cried, we worked and played hard. We had our fights, arguing who's right. We made memories forever etched in our hearts.  And now we are both in a new season. He loves riding the school bus. He loves meeting new people. New things, widening his horizon. It was a hard decision to let go and let God. But God's loving whisper, leading, guiding, assuring, comforting, showing the way, prompting popping in my ears telling me to be still.

In this season of change, I am in the waiting mode just like how a still tree quietly embracing the beauty happening in the changing colors of its leaves.