LIFE LESSON FOR TODAY, 12/11,13

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LUKE 1:30-31

30Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid,
Mary, for you have found favor with God.
 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb
and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name
Jesus.

LUKE 2:7

 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and
wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him
in a manger, because there was no room for 
them in the inn.

MATTHEW 2: 1

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,  saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The word nativity means birth.  I think of baby
Jesus when I hear the word nativity.  Research
shows that artist have been painting pictures of
the Nativity of Jesus since the 4th century.  The scriptures in the Bible tells us that Mary, Joseph,
wise men, angels, and gifts were involved in 
Jesus’ birth.  Most nativity scenes have Mary,
Joseph, Baby Jesus in a manger, wise men, and angels. The nativity scenes are also called crèche.

Nativity scenes are created worldwide.  I’ve 
have seen them displayed during the Christmas season at people’s homes, churches, and shopping
malls.



DATE 1622 PAINTING:
THE NATIVITY OF JESUS






 

DATE 1655 PAINTING:

MARY & ANGEL GABRIEL








LIFE LESSON FOR TODAY

Christmas is still my favorite holiday. The 
gifts and presents are not as meaningful
as they used to be. I ‘ve learned that
Christmas time may be depressing for 
some people. Someone may be spending
their first Christmas without their spouse 
due to death or divorce.  Another person 
may not have any family or friends to spend 
this holiday with. 



 

As long as I remember that Jesus is the reason
for the season, I’m never depressed, regardless 
of my circumstance. This is the time celebrate the
birth of my Savior and how He has blessed me in 2013!!  I celebrate my birthday, so it makes sense
for me to celebrate His birthday too. I don't care
whether or not the 25th of December is the actual
day that Jesus was born on. The point is, the celebration.




I continue my Christmas tradition of burning my frankincense and myrrh on Christmas Eve. I say
a prayer for my family, friends, people in the
world who may be having a hard time this season.
I purchased my charcoal pack from Whole Foods 
in the health & beauty section. It’s on the shelf 
with the incense. I don’t need to purchase any
more of the frankincense and myrrh resin. I
bought two bags with 50 pieces from a heath 
food store that was going out of business 5 
years ago. There is an inexpensive 3 pack kit
on eBay that includes the charcoal, frankincense,
and myrrh resin.





I had to learn the best way to burn the resin
through trial and error. I placed one charcoal
tablet on a clay pot saucer. I made sure the 
surface I placed the saucer on was heat proof. 
The charcoal would start to spark when I 
placed the flame from the match on it. I 
placed a tiny piece of frankincense or myrrh 
resin in the middle of the charcoal.  Those 
little resin pieces are very strong and I got a
headache when I tried to burn two pieces at
once. I sit back, pray, and enjoy the wonderful fragrance. The entire experience is amazing.
Try it and let me know what you think. 






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