Christmas At the Vicarage 2019

Here are some Christmas hi-lites from the Vicarage!

joseph elon lillie's avatarNotes From the Vicarage

My dreams for Notes From the Vicarage were so big when I started. I had this vision of giving the blogosphere a glimpse into the life of a ministry family that is unique in its makeup and experience (at least it seems that way to me). One of the drawbacks of ministerial life however has gotten in the way. BUSYNESS!

So much has happened since August and contending with all of it has taken up so much time that there was little time left over to write about it. But now that the holidays are over…or almost over, I am coming back to this template to try again to open a portal into our world.

Christmas at the Vicarage was a small affair. That is Christmas Day was a small affair. The Christmas season was as big as ever. We had several parties to attend. There was Christmas shopping and…

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Evening Meditation 12-28-19

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
    love and faithfulness go before you.
15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you,
    who walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice in your name all day long;
    they celebrate your righteousness.
17 For you are their glory and strength,
    and by your favor you exalt our horn.[d]
18 Indeed, our shield[e] belongs to the Lord,
    our king to the Holy One of Israel. Psalm 89: 14-18

How does one celebrate God’s righteousness?

Mid Afternoon Meditation 12-27-19

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
    love and faithfulness go before you.
15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you,
    who walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice in your name all day long;
    they celebrate your righteousness.
17 For you are their glory and strength,
    and by your favor you exalt our horn.[d]
18 Indeed, our shield[e] belongs to the Lord,
    our king to the Holy One of Israel. Psalm 89: 14-18

How do you practice the discipline of rejoicing?

Share Your World From 12-23-19

Now that the Christmas Hubub has subsided, I am finding some time to SHARE MY WORLD. This is the blogging challenge where Melanie asks us all questions and in answering them we share our worlds. You can click the link in caps above  to see how the world has answered. My answers are below in red.

SantaSYW

Do dogs ‘talk’ (communicate) with their own species?   (credit to Marilyn of Serendipity)   And not just on Christmas Eve, as the old legend says all animals do.   I know that Ziggy ‘speaks’ husky (apparently) even though he’s not a husky, he’s a terrier/Chihuahua mix.   The movie the other night proved it, as there were huskies in the show, and when they barked, Ziggy got excited and stared at the TV screen with his head cocked to one side, and barked at the screen.  

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/72843/how-talking-animals-became-christmas-legend

I know my dogs talk with the Priest’s dog who lives in the yard behind us. Everytime “Buster” comes out he begins to bark and my dogs answer from their window.


Have you ever had to work on Christmas Day? Yes. Hazard of the profession I am afraid.

If someone gifts you something that you immediately loathe, do you pretend to really like it anyway or are you brutally honest about your opinion? I try never to be “brutally” honest. That almost never pays. With a gift I usually thank the giver and move on.

Which popular drink, found during the Christmas season most often, is called “milk punch?” Egg nog?

How many ghosts show up during “A Christmas Carol?” I think the right answer is four, but something tells me I may be wrong.

Are you all about the holly and jolly or more about remembering the alleged ‘true’ meaning of Christmas? Whether Christ was born in December or not is rather unimportant to me. He and His accomplishment in changing lives has become the only thing worth celebrating in the world. Everything else is quickly fading. 

Please share a memory or thought about the holiday season if you’d like, whatever kind of celebration you may observe. 

cardinals

Great Gramma Reads to Dani.

Evening Meditation 12-26-19

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
    love and faithfulness go before you.
15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you,
    who walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice in your name all day long;
    they celebrate your righteousness.
17 For you are their glory and strength,
    and by your favor you exalt our horn.[d]
18 Indeed, our shield[e] belongs to the Lord,
    our king to the Holy One of Israel. Psalm 89: 14-18

What does it mean to walk in the light of God’s presence?