Month: December 2025

It’s New Year’s Eve. I was never much of a party animal on this night. I could never understand why folks would drink and celebrate so hard into the wee hours, and then spend the first day of the new year feeling sick with an awful hangover.

I do recognize reasons to appreciate this day. You’ve made it through another year. You came through all of the adversity that fate threw at you these past twelve months, and you survived it. You can and should feel victorious and optimistic. The fact you are still here should also make you feel grateful and humbled that a merciful God has looked after you and continues to work for your good.

So go ahead. Break out the noisemakers and the confetti. You were loved and protected in 2025. Just know that, if you live a Godly life, the celebration never has to end.

I was scrolling through the celebrity obituaries of 2025. The biggest ones which caught my eye were Robert Redford and Gene Hackman. It’s always sad to hear of the passing of famous people because they have left a legacy behind through some of their famous movies or songs. I will always remember Redford as the charming con man in The Sting and the swashbuckling cowboy in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Hackman will always be the underdog basketball coach in Hoosiers.

Ever wonder how you will be remembered? What kind of legacy will you leave for those who know you best? We will all leave a legacy, good or bad. We will be remembered. Your family and friends will tell stories about you for years.

You still have time to make sure those stories are good ones.

Was 2025 a good year for you? How will you remember it? Will it bring back happy, positive memories? Or painful, sad times of crisis?

In reality, most of us have many good and bad experiences in the average year, but we tend to remember the bad times and dwell on them. We tend to take our blessings for granted. I guess, deep down inside, we feel a good life should be the norm. We’re entitled to it. Adversity makes life unfair.

Maybe the key to a joyful 2026 is to adjust our thinking to the realization that life itself is a gift. Adversity is inevitable and everyone endures it. Focusing on the positives, even the very simple ones, will help you remember every year as a good one.

Nobody gets through this life without adversity. Sooner or later, we all have troubles to deal with. Difficulties usually take us by surprise and occur suddenly. They may be big problems, they may be little problems, but they are still problems, and if you don’t already have them, rest assured they are coming.

The worst thing you can do is try to run away from them. Face them head on. Admit and confess your weaknesses and faults. Commit to setting things right one step at a time. Whether that be taking care of your health, grieving the loss of a loved one, relationship stress, financial worries, whatever. The road to peace and security may be a long one, but you can’t get there unless you start the journey.

Have confidence in yourself. Trust that God loves you and is working for your benefit. You will get through it.

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

“And she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.”

“The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be my God, the Rock, my Savior!”

I am so grateful to you for subscribing to my blog, and taking the time to read my daily posts. I try very hard to keep them brief and to make them meaningful and helpful so that I don’t waste your time. My goal is to be just a little ray of sunshine and hope in your day. Your comments and responses are always welcome and I often learn much from reading them. I love to hear your stories and experiences.

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My Christmas wish for you is that you will feel the love of Jesus in your life every single day. That you stay secure in the knowledge that you are never alone. That living a good, moral life is worthwhile. And that you are surrounded by blessings that you can see and acknowledge.

From the bottom of my heart, Merry Christmas to you and your family. The Savior of the world is born!

When I was growing up, our Christmas tree was decorated with various bulbs and tinsel. But over the years, the decorations evolved. Our tree this Christmas is loaded with keepsake ornaments. There are souvenirs from our most memorable vacations. There are small photographs of our children at various stages of life. There are kissing penguins and dancing reindeer, little curios we brought home from all over the world. Some of the items are gifts from precious friends.

Bulbs and tinsel are beautiful, but when I look at our tree now, I see a collection of the incredible blessings of my life. I truly hope you see the same in your home.

I’ve been noticing that each year fewer and fewer people are decorating their houses and lawns for Christmas. Maybe folks are just too busy. Or maybe they are just not feeling it. There’s so much stress and worry and negativity in our world today, it’s becoming more difficult to get into the Christmas spirit.

As a child, decorating the house and yard was a tradition everyone looked forward to. You could drive down any street and admire the colorful lights, the manger scenes, the inflatables and statues. Some homeowners would go all out, but everyone did at least a little something.

Christmas is, of course, Christian-based. Sadly, our culture is moving in a direction that erodes Christian values. Maybe the growing cynicism about God and Jesus is a factor in the lack of decoration. Makes me appreciate those manger scenes all the more.

I have a very simple mind, so I guess I appreciate when genius comes from simple things. Which is why I have always been fascinated by the toilet. It performs such an important function, yet it requires no power. It simply uses gravity and basic physics to operate.

The flush toilet was invented by Sir John Harrington in 1596. He had no electricity to work with. He had only the forces of nature known at the time. Yet his concept was so brilliant it is still used today, more than four hundred years later! One day, when you are really, really bored, lift the cover off of your toilet tank and watch the flush operate. It is so innovative and yet so fundamental in its simplicity. How resourceful was Sir John to figure out how to create this?

It just goes to show you can take the simple circumstances around you and turn them into something positive and helpful to others. It just takes a little thought and creativity. It’s time to flush away those negative feelings.

We care so much about what other people think about us. Deep down inside, we know it doesn’t really matter, but still we seek approval and praise from our peers. I guess receiving compliments and acknowledgement makes us feel as though we fit in. That we are doing something right. That we’re normal. We’re not alone.

Sadly, seeking to fit in often takes us in a direction further away from God. At some level we are aware this. We’re not gullible or ignorant. We are conscious of our actions. We make a decision between self-esteem and humility. All too often we conclude that pleasing God is not enough. We want the acceptance of others.

God knew we would struggle with this. After all, He created us. That’s why He sent a Savior to redeem us. When you have Jesus, you don’t need the approval of anyone else. We all know this in our heart. If only we could find the courage to live it.