The best story ever told

As a teacher at a Christian school, one of the perks that I look forward to each week is staff devotions. I coach a vocal club that meets at the same time, so I don't always get to attend but when I do I'm  encouraged in my walk with the Lord. This past week, our Superintendent was discussing the Christmas story and kept referring to it as "the best story ever told." I left staff devotions and went to teach my last few classes before Christmas break, but I couldn't get those words out of my head- the best story ever told.
I have heard the Christmas story so many times. I have read the words, acted out the events in church pagents, heard it at every Christmas celebration growing up and in several school chapels. Sadly, the best story ever told has become all too common to me. For the past two weeks, my constant prayer has been for a fresh look on the Christmas story. I want a new appreciation and awe for the awesome gift of Jesus.
I love how the Lord answers prayers. He is so good. I've been reading Matthew 1-5 and Luke 1-2 every day this week with new eyes. I've been so moved by Zechariah's prophecy in Luke 1. Zechariah was the father to John the Baptist and a priest at the Temple. When Gabriel, an angel of the Lord, told Zechariah that his wife Elizabeth was pregnant, he was full of disbelief. Elizabeth was barren and very old. Gabriel said that the boy was to be called John and would prepare the way for the Lord. Asking for a sign to confirm this prediction, Zechariah was punished for his unbelief. Because he did not believe Gabriel's words, he would be silent until the baby was born.
This part of the story alone is amazing to me. A pregnancy is a LONG, drawn-out, slow-moving process. When I was pregnant with Ainsley, I felt like many months moved at a snail's pace. Imagine being completely unable to speak for the entire nine (really more like ten) months! He couldn't speak to his wife and tell her everything that happened or at least explain why he could no longer speak. Some scholars believe that Zechariah was also deaf during this time as well. All for a lack of faith, something of which I am guilty all too often.
Of course, Elizabeth is pregnant and she does give birth to John the Baptist. The next verses in the story bring to tears. The baby is born and Zechariah is finally able to speak. I've thought through what I would have said after forty weeks of silence. I would explain the whole angel striking me mute story and all of the thoughts I've had over the past months. But, Zechariah didn't say any of that. He praised God and prophesied about the long-awaited Emmanuel. His first words were of praise and gratitude.
"Blessed by the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace." Luke 1:67-79
I'm not sure how to read those words and not be completely arrested by the truth they represent. Jesus, the horn of salvation, sent in human form, to pay the penalty for my sins so that I might find a light in my darkness. All this out of his tender mercy and love for his children. Amazing. Humbling. Awesome. 
I love how God answers prayers. It is with fresh eyes and an overwhelmed heart that I celebrate Christmas this year.

Thankful Thursday- 11.3.11

Thankful for some extra sleep Tuesday morning thanks to parent/teacher conferences not starting until 9 and the husband who took care of the lady.

Thankful for newly discovered pistachio gelato from Grahams. YUM.

Thankful for my parents who let the lady and me hide out at their place last Saturday when our street was taken over by zombies.

Thankful for music! Coldplay's newest record has been on repeat in the car. Track 7 always causes Ainsley to start dancing in the backseat. I am also thankful for the laughter Ainsley's dance moves bring to our family.

Thankful that Ainsley is finally joining me in my love for books. Yesterday I found her like this in her bedroom:

Lunch Break Thankful Thursday

I am a worker bee this week. I am currently in my lunch break at the writing conference I've attended the past three days. I have listened, learned, contemplated, and marveled. I love conferences like this because I return to my classroom renewed.
To start off this Thankful Thursday list, I must say that I am so very thankful for the opportunity to grow as a teacher. I pray that I never feel satisfied with my performance in the classroom. I want to be better.
-I am also thankful today (and every day) for my Mama. She spent yesterday in Elgin watching Ainsley so I could attend the conference. Seriously???? This woman is too much. With Nana, Ainsley played "cupcakes," took a long bath, practiced her walking, watched "Martha Speaks," and hopefully missed her Mama.
-Joel and I are spending our week sipping on Alterra's Sulawesi roast. Yum.
-One of the teachers attending the conference with me is inspiring to me. This woman cannot stop talking about the Lord's work in her life. In every conversation we have had these past three days, she is practically bursting to tell me how much she loves Jesus and how salvation has transformed her life. I am so thankful for her and the influence she has had on my faith in such a short amount of time.

It's back to the seminar for me. Watch out, class; Mrs. Smith is returning to you armed with mini-lessons and rubrics!

Thankful Thursdays- 9.28.11

Today is National Coffee Day and Thursday- double reasons to be full of joy and gratitude. A concise list will have to do for this late edition of Thankful Thursday. 

-This week I read and graded thirty short stories from my eighth grade class. Entertaining, inspiring, and memorable to say the least. 

-I finally tried out that recipe for apple cider bread that I found weeks ago. If I made the bread again, I would change a few things, but I'm proud of myself for attempting the bread. 

-Every day this week, Joel has made me coffee to take to work. This man is too much. 

-I'm so thankful for God's transforming work in my life. He is so good. 

-In just a few weeks I get to see my family in Milwaukee. So, so happy. 

Thankful Thursdays- 9.22.11

Another Thursday and another opportunity to be filled with gratitude for the blessings from the Lord I've experienced this week. I've been excited for this Thursday and have been looking for moments to put in my list. As always, God has been good this week.
Today I am thankful for...
-Brief breaks in parenting. Yesterday, Ainsley took a four hour nap! Not only did I get to fit in a much needed snooze, but then I worked on lesson plans with blessed silence. When she woke up, she and I were both ready to play.
-Chapel at HCA. This week was a spiritual emphasis week at my school so we sat in an extra amount of chapels. Yesterday we focused on Proverbs 3:5-6 which I have heard so many times that the power behind its message sometimes gets lost on me. BUT, as I was listening to the scripture being read, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed at the truth behind the words. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." I love when the Lord speaks so clearly through His Word.
-Small group. So very thankful for my small group.
-4 pounds of Alterra coffee came in the mail yesterday. Happy day.
-Date night tomorrow!!!!!
-And to finish up today's list, I am thankful for a daughter with LOTS of personality. Yesterday we were at the grocery store and Uptown Girls started to play. The lady started laughing and dancing in the cart, drawing attention from all the other shoppers in the produce section. Wish you could have been there...

Thankful Thursdays- 9.15.11

For two years now, Joel and I have met once a week with a wonderful small group. Each year the group has looked a little different with new couples joining and old couples filtering out, but for these last two years the group has really been a blessing for us. We always leave our Tuesday night meetings feeling loved and challenged. Our leaders, Trei and Amy, have been such mentors to us. I am very, very thankful for the influence they have had on our marriage and on our spiritual health.
We are now beginning a third year in this group. A lovely new couple has joined and we are studying  pulpit curriculum about becoming stronger disciples of the Lord. This week, our homework was to answer some questions about what area we each desire to grow in our walks with God. I have decided that the aspect of my faith that needs the most attention is gratitude. I used to think of myself as a grateful person- positive thinking, open minded. Lately, though, I feel discontented and truly cranky. I am so far from grateful when I have received so much from the Lord. Foolish, I know.
In thinking of new ways to voice my gratitude I thought that I could add a new element to my blog- Thankful Thursdays. Perhaps "Thankful Thursdays" stinks of cheesiness and English teacher- cliches but I can't help myself. I heart alliteration. SO, Thankful Thursdays will be a weekly opportunity for me to be thankful for the blessings from the Lord I have experienced...starting today.

Today, I am thankful for:
-Coffee dates with old friends. Truth and grace flow nearly as free as the java.
-Yesterday Ainsley took 2 naps. Ahhhhh.
-Last night over late night dinner, Joel and I had a really wonderful chat.
-Timely reminders from God's word. My friend Christina has this amazing gift of knowing the perfect verse to shed light on whatever my mind is consumed with at that moment. I've been processing Hebrews 6:10 since Tuesday, thanks to my sweet friend. I love when the Lord uses someone to speak directly to me.
-To continue, I am thankful for the promises found in Hebrews 6:10-12. God will not overlook the work I do for Him even if no one else sees it.  There is so much joy in knowing that when I am serving my family by doing laundry or preparing dinner, the Lord see my work and is blessed.

A small start to Thankful Thursdays. Baby steps.