Thursday, December 24, 2015

Say It Anyway



There's not going to be a lot pretty pictures in this post...
...in fact, I thought I was finished with my pre-Christmas blogging.
I've got something bearing down on my heart that really needs to come out.
~
A couple of Christmases ago, I started a post entitled,
"When Your Christmas Isn't Very Merry".
I never wrote the first word after I came up with the title.
I was not brave enough to share what Christmas in the Ray house was like that year.
There's no need to even address that issue because God is working on it.
All of that mess is now becoming someone's message.
I was thinking about that unwritten post this morning and decided to change the title.
Just within the past few weeks and even as recently as yesterday,
it became so apparent to me that several family members and close friends
are facing a very difficult Christmas this year.
~
How do you say Merry Christmas to your oldest brother and and his family...
when Stage 4 cancer has been discovered after being cancer-free for six years?
Say it anyway.
~
How do you say Merry Christmas to your sister and her family...
when the possible diagnosis of kidney and pancreatic cancer in her husband is pending?
Say it anyway.
~
How do you say Merry Christmas to a precious friend, neighbor and sister in Christ...
 who has been and still is at the bedside of her 80 year old mother this week and on Christmas Eve,
after having a triple bypass...still in ICU due to abnormal heart rythm and blood pressure issues?
Say it anyway.

And just yesterday...

How do you say Merry Christmas to yet another sister and her family...
after hearing the tragic news that her husband's brother has just chosen to end his own life after suffering from many health issues and depression?
You just say it anyway.
~
Oh my friends, how do we handle times like these?
I know that God did not send us the Christ Child for parties and lights and celebrations.
He didn't come to guarantee that we would all live a comfortable life without heartache and despair.
He, himself, was born amidst uncomfortable circumstances...in a cold, damp, stinky manger...
and he already knew his own mother would have to face his own death not too far down the road.

So why did he come and why do we still celebrate?


For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ~John 3:16
~
This is why we can still wish someone a Merry Christmas in the midst of uncertainty and sorrow.
For this reason and this reason alone is why we should!
Because the tears of that little baby in the manger were for us.
 He cried for us then, and I believe he still does today...he hurts when we hurt!
He even died for us because he loves us so much!
 There's no doubt that there are many who are going through many struggles.
It is my hope and prayer that the Light of World will brighten up your Christmas,
no matter how dark it seems to be right now.

So, to you I say...
Merry Christmas!

Love and hugs,



30 comments:

  1. A great post. Yes there's a lot of hurt that seems especially painful at Christmas, but the Hope of Christ trumps it for sure. Wishing you and your family a merry Christmas, because our Hope is in Him.

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  2. Very well stated, Debby. God bless you and yours this Christmas.

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  3. Debby, thank you for this poignant post. It rings true for our family and for so many others who are hurting for reasons beyond their control. But Jesus came and because He came, we know that this present life is only a journey, not a final destination. Merry Christmas, sweet friend, and thanks for sharing your heart.

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  4. Thank you, Debby, for telling it like it is! I applaud you for encouraging people to reach out to those who are hurting this Christmas season. And I appreciate you faithfully taking the time to visit my blog and leave kind comments, despite me not having the heart to visit other blogs very often this year. For those of us with sadness in our hearts, it is comforting to remember the reason for the season. And a focus on our Savior's birth is infinitely more important than all of the holiday hoopla of parties, lights, and shopping. God bless you and your family and friends.

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  5. Oh, Debby what a beautiful post! So heart-felt and meaningful. I've had many a Christmas that I spent in bed with the covers over my head to block out the world and it's pain. I love what you said about God's is taking the mess and giving a message. How precious and I celebrate with you what God is doing in the life of your family. Awesome post! Thanks for sharing. Thanks for your sensitivity to others. You are precious, my friend.

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  6. Oh Debby! Such a precious post and so glad you wrote this!
    My heart hearts for those dear ones you know who are suffering in these days and there are those I know who are going thru hard times so Ill just say it anyway!
    Thank you and God bless you all!
    Happy Christmas!

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  7. Dear Debby, this is such a beautiful post and I am so glad you shared this today. Your wisdom and words needed to be shared and that is why God brought this to your heart to complete this year. Sadness and strife troubles the lives of many this Christmas but it doesn't change the fact that it still is Christmas and that hope may be the very reason comfort can come to heavy hearts.
    I am so sorry for your family members with cancer and all the others you know with difficult challenges. Prayers are lifted for all.

    Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and all the best in the new year! Thank you for being such an inspiration and dear blogger friend. I am so blessed to know you! xo

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  8. Well said, my own Mother in law died on Christmas day several years ago but it is still quite poignant. Christmas is always a time for rejoicing whatever the circumstances. Wishing you a Merry Christmas.

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  9. Debby,thanks so much for sharing these words. Yes,life can be hard at times,but Jesus is still Lord of all and so we can have that deep peace and joy.Have a Merry Christmas.

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  10. What wonderful words you have written.
    Merry Christmas!

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  11. Sometimes life can be ackward but instead of silence we do need to say kind words to those who are suffering. Yes, something as simple as Merry Christmas along with a smile and maybe a hug.
    A heart warming post Debby, Christmas blessings to you and family.

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  12. So sorry to read of so many sorrows. They are exactly why He came. There is so much more to life than the one we live on this earth. Merry Christmas. May your family know His richest blessings. (Thank you for addressing this. Sorrows are always a part of life even through the holidays.)

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  13. This is a precious post, Debbie. I am glad that you brought it out of the draft folder this year, for I know that there are many who need to hear its message. Life is complicated and full of heartache. That is why He came...to redeem us, to bring us to Himself, to offer life beyond this one!

    Praying for the deep needs of your family and friends...

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  14. Hello Debby, lovely words and post. I will keep your friends and family in my thoughts and prayers. Merry Christmas to you and your family. I wish you all the best in 2016, a very Happy New Year!

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  15. Merry Christmas Debby! We heard the same message in church last night. No matter what goes on in the world, Jesus has overcome! May God richly bless each one of the people you mentioned and give them sweet moments today.

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  16. I have no words except this is beautiful and so truthful...say it to all, Merry Christmas! For as we say it we are sending them love and light....so Debby thank you and Merry Christmas!

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  17. Your post is right. I know someone whose husband may be having his last Christmas with his family and wondered what to say in my card to him and his wife. I wrote that I hoped they would still have peace in their hearts in spite of his illness. He has VERY strong faith in God, and has for many years. The alternative to wishing them a Merry Christmas would have meant no card for them. Imagine if none of his church family or friends gave him a Christmas card this year. How sad that would have been for him. Families with heavy hearts need to know that we are thinking about them and that we care.

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  18. Amen, and amen. God bless you this Christmas!

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  19. I can't add a single word to yours...blessings and prayers for healing to your family. Put it all in the hands of the great I AM.

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  20. Wonderfull xmas post, Happy end Xmas week,Happy days untill New Year,
    Best regard from Belgium
    http://louisette.eklablog.com "blog my city Mons in Belgium"

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  21. Debby, this is a beautiful post. I'm so glad I didn't miss it. Christ came to save a hurting, dying world; how much we all need Him. That is the Joy behind all the tinsel and wrapping paper, One worth infinitely more than all this old earth can give.
    And what a beautiful card in your last post. Brought me to tears. Such a blessing. xo Deborah

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  22. Debby, I think you said what you had to say so eloquently. And I understand what you mean, as my brother-in-law is very sick right now, and I didn't know whether to send my mother-in-law a Christmas card this year knowing that her son is so sick. But I will send her a note just to tell her I'm thinking about her. I truly love the verse 'for God so loved the world,' and I think about it often. I'm so sorry you're going through all of this with your family and dear friend. And I hope the new year brings you much peace and joy and love. May it be a good one for me and you. :)

    love, ~Sheri

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  23. Oh, dear friend! I sit here with the tears flowing from my eyes! Only God knows how much I needed to read this tonight! I am SO thankful you shared it with me in your comment on my blog...I am just now having the chance to come over and read it, and God knew that right now would be when I needed to read it most. I love and appreciate you and your dear friendship so much, and you will never know the many times you have been such a blessing to me when you have reached out and also here on your blog. I am so sorry to read of all the pain you were experiencing that Christmas. I wonder how things turned out for all of them? I know you lost your own precious brother this year, and I have thought of you so many times and prayed for you. God bless you and comfort your dear heart this Christmas as you miss him. Thank you SO much for this...you have no idea how it touched my heart. Merry Christmas to you, dear friend.

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  24. What a beautiful, beautiful piece. I had not read it before so I just wanted you to know I read this today and that I am doing okay. Really, truly- I am. So, I will wish you a Merry Christmas, too! xo Diana

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Thank you for stopping by today! Your sweet comments are such an encouragement to me.