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Respite For the Weary
All too often, we go about our days with our hearts closed up. We're all business. We're in a hurry. We're stressed. Pause for a moment to spend time with the Joy Giver? Not an option because there's just too much to do.
In my soon-to-be-released children's book Christmas Morning, a little girl delightfully opens one gift after the other. Each gift takes her on a wonder-filled adventure which is portrayed through the whimsical illustrations. The third gift, wrapped in vibrant paper, is one of my favorites. The little girl reaches in and pulls out a..."happy little music box."
When the little girl opens it, music like she has never heard before begins to play. It's so melodious and inviting, she can't help but rise up and dance all around her living room. She is filled to overflowing with JOY! This opened-up music box and the dancing little girl is meant to symbolize the joy that Jesus brings to all those who know him as Savior.
All too often, we go about our days with our hearts closed up. We're all business. We're in a hurry. We're stressed. Pause for a moment to spend time with the Joy Giver? Not an option because there's just too much to do.
But listen to what Jesus says in his word about joy:
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11
A joyful heart is good medicine... Proverbs 17:22
These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. John 15:11
Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music. Psalm 98:4
For you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. Psalm 63:7
I think one of God's greatest desires is to see his children worship him with a heart that's full to overflowing with joy. His joy is not merely a fun emotion. Nor is it based on circumstance; rather, it's rooted in knowing God and believing in his promises, no matter the circumstance. There is both depth and height to this fruit of the Spirit!
What song can you listen to today that rhythmically proclaims God's truths? Do you need to be reminded of his goodness? his love? his presence? his power? Pick a song, turn it on, and rise up! This choice song may be the very medicine you need!
Become the little girl in this story. Open up the vibrant music box. Get off the fast track, take some un-wasted time, and dance.
...For the joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10
Have you ever been given news that stops you in your tracks? Your world is turned upside down and you're not sure how to cope? In this place, and in the moments, minutes, months, and years following, God wants to wrap you in his peace.
A long time ago when I was in college, I had a baby blue comforter that covered my twin bed in my dorm room. In my opinion, this down comforter was the best bedspread ever! I loved it so much that I kept it for years. It moved with me from my dorm room to my first apartment, to my first home with my new husband, and then to our next home together with our four children! I remember wrapping my little ones up in it, holding them close, embracing them with all the love I had in me.
This is why this second gift in my children's book Christmas Morning is so sweet to me. The little girl in the story delightfully unwraps a bright blue package with a shiny white bow and finds... a soft blue blanket. And as I mentioned in my previous post , each of the seven tangible gifts in the story are meant to represent different intangible realities that we have been freely given in Christ.
The blue blanket is: the blanket of peace.
Have you ever been given news that stops you in your tracks? Your world is turned upside down and you're not sure how to cope? In this place, and in the moments, minutes, months, and years following, God wants to wrap you in his peace. The way I held my little ones in the soft blue comforter is the way that your heavenly Father wants to hold you, now and always.
Allow God's word to speak into this truth. Read these verses slowly; unwrap his gift:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. John 14:27
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts you. Isaiah 26:3
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:13-14
Therefore since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God though our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1
For he himself is our peace... Ephesians 2:14
Unlike my down comforter that finally fell apart (feathers everywhere) after a decade of good use, God's "blanket of peace," will never wear thin. It's eternal, but it's meant for today. It's other-worldly, but it's meant to help us in this world.
Envision yourself wrapped up in God's strong, caring arms. In this safe place, pour out your heart. Weep. Be held. Be loved.
For there is no real rest for the soul, except for the indwelling presence of God's perfect peace.
All too often we strive to put tangible crowns on our heads--crowns of beauty, fame and fortune. These headpieces only weigh us down. In stark contrast, the crown that Jesus gives us lifts our chin...
In my soon-to-release children's book Christmas Morning, a little girl opens one gift after another, and each one of these presents take her on an exciting and whimsical adventure in her very own living room. These tangible gifts are meant to symbolize deeper intangible truths that we all have in Christ.
The first gift the little girl opens is a crown. This is not an ordinary crown --the kind that eventually gets lost in the bottom of a dress-up container. Rather, it symbolizes the crown that we are given through our faith in Christ. When the little girl puts it on her head, a thrill runs all the way down to her toes and then her living room is teeming with LIFE--a vibrant tree, birds, butterflies and bunnies appear. She freely sings, skips, hops and does cartwheels all around the room! When all of these things eventually disappear, the thrill that the crown gives her does not.
May I remind you that if you believe in Jesus, he has given you a CROWN OF LIFE? All too often we strive to put tangible crowns on our heads--crowns of beauty, fame and fortune. These headpieces only weigh us down. In stark contrast, the crown that Jesus gives us lifts our chin and causes us to walk lightheartedly as his winsome ambassadors. Who wouldn't want this crown? Well, we have it! Jesus gave it to us!
LET'S PUT ON OUR CROWN OF LIFE, and by faith, let's freely walk (sing, skip, hop, and do cartwheels) because of these biblical truths:
Psalm 103:4
(Bless the Lord)...who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy.
Psalm 8:4-5
What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.
Isaiah 61:3
(The Spirit of the Lord is upon me)...to grant those who mourn in Zion--to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
John 10:10
...I came that they might have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10
Galatians 5:1
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Like the little girl in the story, we can say with delight, "My chin is up, because I'm wearing his crown."
When my illustrator (and daughter-in-law) Acacia and I were having one of our meetings concerning the artwork that would go on each page of Christmas Morning, she suggested that we should put in some Easter eggs in the book. Not quite following her lingo, I took this literally and was wondering to myself why in the world would we put Easter eggs in a Christmas book?!
Acacia then explained it to me...
Oh!! Easter eggs--little hidden items on the illustrated pages! I loved the idea. So...there are small treasures with sentimental value sprinkled throughout Christmas Morning. I will list them here so you can join in the fun with word-explanations now, and then hopefully later with the completed illustrated book in hand:
The redbird in the window. Redbirds have a significant meaning to me. Long ago (meaning, decades ago!), on a snowy afternoon in January, God used this small brilliant red winged-creature to speak of his great love to me personally. At that time in my life, my faith-walk was riddled with doubt and insecurity. One afternoon, I cried out to God, wondering if he even knew where I was. His sweet way of answering me was to send a redbird directly in front of my window. When it landed on a bush covered with snow, I felt seen and heard. God was not far away! He cared! Not only did he know where I was, but he also knew what would grab my heart. The redbirds (cardinals) continue to fly my direction to this day. God is faithful and good.
The little white doggy. This wonderfully illustrated dog in Christmas Morning is a tribute to our late cairn terrier. She belonged to my youngest daughter Emmy, but she was also my constant companion once Emmy went to college. Juliet, aka Baby "J", will always hold a special place in our hearts. It was a sad day for all the Baxter clan when we had to put her to sleep about a year ago. She "lives on" in such a fun and adventurous way throughout the pages of this Christmas story.
The pictures on the wall and over the fireplace. There are two framed pictures on one of the pages in the book. One of these pictures is meant to represent my four young grandchildren: Hally, Ada, Simon, and Isaiah. The second picture is of a beautiful oak tree sitting in a grassy field. This illustration is bittersweet because it represents the tree that was planted at my other little grandson's burial site. Brave Rutherford Baxter was delivered (by Acacia, the illustrator) at 36 weeks without a heartbeat last October. I'm thankful to have this picture of a strong vibrant tree in the book, drawn by his mother, in her son's, my grandson's, honor. The third framed picture in the book sits over the fireplace and it is also in Brave's honor. It is an illustration of a deer leaping over a fence which is meant to represent the beautiful leap that Brave has made from earth to heaven--a leap that all who believe in Jesus will be given as an eternal gift: from death to Life! Thank you Jesus!
Easter eggs in a Christmas book! What a novel idea. Each of these little treasures mentioned above have contributed both depth and sentiment in the pages of Christmas Morning. I hope you will enjoy them as well when the book comes out in the early fall.
Stay tuned for the opening of the Christmas gifts--one by one...in my next post.
My heart continues to break over the tragic loss of life caused by the flooding in TX. Every thought I have is turned to prayer for the parents who are grieving their little girls.
Words cannot fully express the pain of losing a child, no matter the age. I've had a taste of this kind of heartache when I briefly held my grandson who was born without a heartbeat at 36 weeks. I will always miss him.
My prayer is that the truth in this "song of lament" will be of some comfort to anyone who is struggling with the real, raw, and immense emotions that accompany grief.
Right now, I am thinking of the parents of the little girls from Camp Mystic in Texas.
Hear the Lord whisper, "I'm holding you both."
I'm Holding You Both
O my
O, my God
O, my God, no!
A heart of sorrow, tears of pain-
This, my God, is more than a sting.
Where's the victory?
Where's the hope?
I'm holding onto life,
I'm holding onto life,
I'm holding onto Life,
I'm holding onto Christ...
He gently whispers, "I'm holding you both."
A heart of sadness, tears remain,
An earthly loss for a heavenly gain??
And this is the story that You wrote?!
I'm holding onto life,
I'm holding onto life,
I'm holding onto Life,
I'm holding onto Christ...
He sweetly whispers, "I'm holding you both."
A heart of aching, tears make stains,
Tears of anguish well up again-
I'm trusting, trusting - but help me cope!
I'm holding onto life,
I'm holding onto life,
I'm holding onto Life,
I'm holding onto Christ...
He softly whispers, "I'm holding you both."
A heart of longing, tears untamed,
Release, hold on, release again-
God, assure me she's dancing to the song you wrote:
"I'm holding onto Life,
I'm holding onto Life,
I'm holding onto Life,
I'm holding onto Christ!"
As you sing to me, "I'm holding you both."
O my
O, my God
O my God, help me say... "Yes."
Have you ever wondered what God's favorite colors are? Greens and Blues? Reds and yellows? Maybe its all the colors of the rainbow? Or maybe its every single color, with every shade and hue. After all, he created each one with his perfect imagination!
From the beginning of Christmas Morning, I was asking God himself to pick his choice colors for the pages of this children's book. I personally see in black-and-white words, so my creativity in the world of art is close to nothing. I knew this story needed God's divine touch in order for it to come to life.
As I was praying this specific request, I also "happened to be" in the book of Exodus in my daily Bible reading plan. And it is in these pages that I found three (if not four) of his "favorite" colors! Over and over again, God chose these colors:
You shall make the tabernacle with the tent curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns... Exodus 26:1
And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen...Exodus 26:31
You shall make a screen for the entrance of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen... Exodus 26:36
Contextually, God is instructing Moses how to decorate the tent of meeting--a place where his presence would reside among his chosen people while they wandered in the wilderness for forty years. Figuratively, my heart's desire is for God's beautiful truth to reside on every page of Christmas Morning.
So there you have it! Blue and purple and scarlet became my color scheme, hand picked by the Divine Decorator himself! And to add to it, the fine twined linen is the white line that is intentionally drawn throughout most all the pages of Christmas Morning. (I wrote about the meaning of this white line in my previous post: https://www.respitefortheweary.com/post/the-making-of-christmas-morning-backstory-and-the-white-line. .
Here is one more fun and awesome fact-- another word was repeated in these same chapters of Exodus:
They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Exodus 25:10
You shall make a table of acacia wood. Exodus 25:23
You shall make upright frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood. Exodus 26:15
Now, can I remind you that my illustrator's name is Acacia? I don't believe in coincidences. I do believe in God's intimate and intentional instruction toward his dependent and faith-filled children. Acacia, who also happens to be my daughter-in-law, is the person who God has appointed to bring Christmas Morning to life through his sweet and holy touch. I am amazed at how he is working through her!
God is in this book. His glory is what I want to come out of every page, every word, and every stroke of color.
I could go on and on, but instead, I will stop here and say, "Stay tuned."
There is more to come in the making of Christmas Morning...
A long time ago, I wrote a story called Christmas Morning for my four young kids. At that time, their ages ranged between 4 and 9. Today, they are young adults between 28 to 33! When I wrote this story, it was one of those times when the words flowed from my pen in one sitting. I loved the story then, and I still love it now.
In a nutshell, Christmas Morning is about a little girl who wakes up on Christmas morning and then excitedly opens one gift after another. Each of these tangible gifts symbolize the intangible realities that we all have as Christ followers. It's a simple story with deep meaning; therefore, this book is for both the child and the parent.
Periodically over the years, I would pull Christmas Morning out of my cabinet and attempt to have it published. I also sought out different artists, but in God's wisdom and timing, the answer to both the publication and illustration of it was "No...not yet." That is, until my son Davis met and married his beautiful Jesus lovin' wife Acacia, who also happens to be an artist. When I asked Acacia about potentially illustrating Christmas Morning, she drew a picture of how she envisioned the little girl in the story. When I saw her picture, I immediately knew that I had "met the little girl" that I had been waiting to meet for the past 25 years. God is good, exceedingly, abundantly good.
So, Acacia was hired! She and I have been working together on this project for almost a year now. We meet every Monday morning via facetime. (She lives in North Carolina and I'm in Tennessee.) Our hopeful goal is to be completely finished and ready for the world to see it by September 1, 2025.
In the meantime, my plan is to share different features that are within the book, the first one being the white line which can be found on almost every page.
What does the white line mean? Simply put, the whimsical white line which swirls around the little girl as well as her presents is meant to portray the deeper and divine mystery that each gift holds. It helps make the invisible God visible, showing that he is wonderfully at work behind-the-scenes. Scripture says in 2 Corinthians 3:17, Now the Lord is Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. The white line symbolizes this freedom, found in Christ alone.
Ironically, I am now reading book after book to my four young grandchildren. This activity is by far my most favorite thing that I do with them, just as it was with my own kids all those years ago. One thing they (my kids back then and my grandkids now) love to do is to trace lines with their little fingers on any illustrated page of a book. Whether it's a windy road, or a train track up a hill, or a kite in the air, they each take turns following the lines with their fingers. My heart's desire and hopeful prayer is that the white lines on the pages of Christmas Morning will be traced by thousands of little fingers, and that each and every one of these children will eventually understand the line’s depth of meaning: that the Spirit of the living God is wonderfully at work all around them.
Stay tuned… The next post will be about the book’s specific color scheme and why!
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Luke 24:25
Dear Lord,
Please give us understanding as we read your divine word. Open our minds to receive both the height and depth of the beautiful truths found in Scripture. Give us a longing to know more of your "love story" each day, as well as a desire to live it out. In Jesus' Name, Amen.