Christmas

Couple updates:

My sister in-law had a healthy baby girl.  Her name is Lydia Noel!  It was a very complicated pregnancy and we are all relieved and thankful for her arrival.  Thanks for the prayers from many of you earlier in the month. 

My kiddos are doing awesome and my oldest daughter Ella is almost 3 and super excited for Christmas.  It is exciting for me as a Dad because she is so pumped. 

My Christmas Encouragement: Do Something to Remember Christ this Christmas.

There are a lot of organizations out there that you can use to give a gift to those who need it.  Salvation army, samaritan's purse, many other good ones, but having done some work overseas and worked with non-profits every year for the last 7 years I really appreciate Compassion and Mercy Associates.  The percentage of dollar given to dollar used for relief work is higher than any other organization, it doesn't get lost in administrative cost or travel cost for workers.  They also don't put a bandage on problems (temporary feeding and housing) but work to teach careers and teach better agricultural techniques for the communities they work in.  So if you and your family are celebrating Christmas and haven't yet done something as a family to honor Christ I suggest supporting this beauty school that helps keeps young girls out of the sex trade (many are sold by their families into brothels) and this school gives them a hope for a career and a life.  There are other work projects they do as well that you can check out here. http://www.camaservices.org/priority/ This is not something preachy, but I know how the busyness of the season can distract us from doing something as important as this and just wanted to put the reminder out there. 

This year we actually have a high school student at our church who has been passed around in foster care all his life and has never really had a true Christmas morning.  Our family and about 8 other families that all help with the student ministry and know him personally all have worked together to give him a memorable Christmas.  It is cool that he will have gifts, but the thing we are really excited for is for him to know that there are people who are surrounding him with love and support.  If your family has something you guys do to rember Christ in this season I would really enjoy hearing it.  So please share.

  -CMA