WELLNESS NOTES
“He will be called Immanuel.” Matthew 1:23
“The name Immanuel means God with us.” Isaiah 7:14
December is the month to look at the birth of Jesus ‘which means God with us’. As we look toward Christmas we are bombarded by the hype of buying (without the focus of giving); the media frenzy that makes us feel guilty if we are not trying to outdo those around us; and the focus on greed that began earlier than November. Little in what we see or hear encourages us to see or feel God With Us. As Christians, maybe we just need frequent reminders to keep the Christ in our Christmas. (how about sticky notes around our environment with “God is With Us”!!)
Before I began to write this article I was watching Dr. OZ who had as his guest, Joel Osteen, talking about the power of prayer. They spoke of the miracles of the power of prayer in healing and the strength that comes from looking to God as our source of power and guidance. Isn’t prayer the ultimate “God With Us” experience? These two popular men spoke of the power prayer has and the importance of ‘believing we are worth healing and worth what we ask of God’. Isn’t strengthening our prayer life one of the best ways we can ‘Keep Christ in our Christmas’ and realize the wonderful gift we have received of “God With Us”?
Make December our month to strengthen our spirit through increasing our prayer life. Centering our prayers on the positive power that comes from lifting our praise , our fears, our joys, and our desires to the one who came to our life as our greatest gift, may make this time of year one filled with energy and amazing miracles. Believing that God is indeed with us, that we are here to fulfill a purpose, and that someone needs the gifts we are given to share in this world, will give our Holiday time a sense of power. We can go above the noise and greed and secular hype to find our spot of serenity, peace, and renewed strength. Let this power carry us into the New Year with a resolve to be more welcoming, more worshipful, and more caring, as we discover Christ’s transforming love, and serve others.
God be with us as we celebrate Christmas
Alice Stephenson BSN,RN,PN
Parish Nurse Consultant
Cell: 602-290-0164