God's Minute

November 29

He ever liveth to make intercession for them.--Hebrews 7:25

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, because of Thy good hand upon us in mercy, we have been spared during another night. Help us to trust in Thee, to have no will but Thy will, and to desire to be only what Thou wouldst have us be. We pray that Thou wilt show us how large is Thy pity, how great is Thy love, and how infinite is Thy goodness; give us to feel that Thou hast called us with a holy calling; that Thou hast put us here to do Thy pleasure, and hereafter to enjoy Thee forever. Breathe into us the spirit of prayer and teachableness, and enable us to give earnest heed to the truths taught in Thy Word. We thank Thee for Thy holy Word, for Thy Church, and for all the ordinances of Thy house, and for the way of salvation through Christ. We bless Thee, our Heavenly Father, for all Thy gifts, but above all for Thine unspeakable gift, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. We rejoice in the assurance that He is now interceding for us. May the weary and heavy-laden come unto Thee and find rest for their souls. We pray that Thou wilt send forth laborers into Thy harvest. Be Thou to all Thine own as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. Speedily fill the whole earth with Thy glory. Make us all, O Christ, joyful in hope, patient in suffering, active in service and abounding in love. We ask all these blessings in the name of Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Saviour.

Amen.

Robert Stuart MacArthur, D.D.,
Boston, Massachusetts

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God's Minute

November 28

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. . . For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.--Hebrews 11:8,10

OUR Father, Who art in Heaven, we thank Thee for Thy presence in our hearts and in our home, for Thy loving kindness and Thy tender mercies. We desire to give Thee the largest possible place in our life, that Thine ideals for us may be realized and that we may fulfill our little part in Thy great plan. So humbly pray Thee to pardon anything in our lives that hinders our fellowship with Thee or our usefulness to our fellow men, and correct in our characters whatever is not Christlike. Teach us to trust Thee for all our needs, both of soul and body.

Defend us in the time of temptation, and help us to realize that we are citizens of the spiritual kingdom. Bless all our fellow-disciples the world around. Empower Thy Church that she may win great victories over evil, and at last receive us to be with Thee, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Rev. W.O. Rogers,
Terre Haute, Indiana

Children's Christmas Books

Rebecca noticed the children's Christmas books that I have arranged on my window sill and asked about them. They are, from left to right:

The Tale of the Three Trees
written by Angela Elwell Hunt
illustrated by Tim Jonke

Santa Mouse
written by Michael Brown
illustrated by Elfreida De Witt

The Christmas Box (not really a children's book, given to me by my sister in law)
written by Michael Brown

How the Grinch Stole Christmas
written and illustrated by Dr. Seuss

The Christmas Tree that God Made (a toddler book)
written and illustrated by Deborah Reinhart

A Cup of Christmas Tea
written by Tom Hegg

Merry Christmas Mom and Dad (the boys LOVED this one!)
written and illustrated by Mercer Mayer

The Story of the Nativity
written by Elizabeth Winthrop
illustrated byRuth Sanderson

Our Star of Bethlehem
written by Stephen Wagner
illustrated by Pat Stewart

The Puppy Who Wanted a Boy (another favorite when the boys were little)
written by Jane Thayer
illustrated by Lisa McCue

Miracle in a Shoebox (based on Operation Christmas Child--a project from Samaritan's Purse)
written by Franklin Graham with Estelle Condra
illustrated by Dilleen Marsh

T'was the Night Before Christmas
written by Clement Clarke Moore
illustrated by unknown

*When I took the picture today, I didn't notice that in all of Ivy's rambunctious excitement, she must've knocked down one of the books. I found A Baby's Christmas by Lucy Rigg behind a couch cushion.*

Those are as many as I could fit on the window sill. My boys are too old to crawl up into my lap to be read to now, but it makes me happy to see the beloved books displayed each year and it's fun to remember the days when we snuggled together reading, and chubby little fingers pointed to the pictures and later, to the words. It's fun, too, to think ahead to the day when a little granddaughter or grandson will climb up on the couch and pull down a favorite book from the window sill and say, "Grandma, will you read this one again?"

Related Tags: Christmas books, childrens books, favorite books

Doggy Kisses

Ivy loves visitors. So much so that, unless our guests are confirmed dog lovers who don't mind a sloppy, wet kiss and some paws on the shoulders, she is often confined to her crate when we have guests. Thankfully, she has learned to accept this, not as a punishment, but as the regular order of things so having guests in our home is never a problem. Eve is quiet and calm and friendly, so we really wouldn't need to crate her, but Ivy KNOWS when Eve is allowed out when she isn't and since she has a well developed sense of fair play, it's just easier to crate Eve, too. She doesn't mind.

Having said that, Ivy is always allowed out and about when the kids' friends are here or when our guests are true dog lovers--like last night. Our friends Mike and Sharon came for dinner last night. Both love all dogs in general and our dogs in particular. They have known Ivy since she was a little 8 week old red blurrrr and so they are used to her exuberance. Mike especially likes Ivy. He revels in her happy, joyful energy. Here are some pictures I snapped when they were here last night:

That's Ivy, belly up, rolling and wagging and licking. Eve is the polite dog, cuddled up beside him.

Related Tags: vizslas, dogs, doggy greetings