General Chat

Good morning :-)

Yes, lovely flowers from a friend. How thoughtful. :-D

MARY must have breathed a sigh of relief when she first caught sight of Bethlehem. As they mounted the hillsides, passing by olive groves—among the last of the crops to be harvested—Mary and Joseph may well have thought about the history of this little village. It was too insignificant to be numbered among Judah’s cities, just as Micah the prophet had said; yet it was the birthplace of Boaz, Naomi, and later David, all more than a thousand years earlier.



Micah 5:2 But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah,
who are one of the little clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to rule in Israel,
whose origin is from of old,
from ancient days.


Thinking of those who are finding Christmas shopping stressful. Cx :-)

Hello all

That was a lovely thought of your friend to send flowers to you Cynthia.

Yesterday we had our great niece and her little friend for a few hours. Chloe and Rosie are both 4 and sooooo excited for Father Christmas' visit. Hubby and I enjoyed our own special Nativity, complete with a baby Jesus and the bright shiny star who led the shepherds and the wise men to the stable in Bethlehem.
Chloe said they brought gifts of Gold, Frankenstein??? and Myrrh.... aww, so sweet!!

Both girls are in reception class of village school and it was good to know they had a traditional Nativity play for parents/grandparents. We had a private performance!!

O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.

Thinking of all the excited children and stressed-out parents today. xxx

Good morning :-)


The nativity sounds wonderful - memories to cherish. :-)



MARY and Joseph found the village to be crowded. Others had arrived to register before them, so there was no space for them at the lodging room. They had no choice but to settle down for the night in a stable. We can just imagine Joseph’s concern as he saw his wife suffering a sharp discomfort she had never known, which then intensified. Here, of all places, her birth pangs had begun.


Luke 2:6 While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.




Praying for all who are about to give birth over the Christmas season. Cx :-)

Just popping on to wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas and to spare a thought for all who are lonely, distressed or suffering.

With Christmas Day so near, we give thanks for the gift of family and friends and remember all who are alone or depressed at this Christmas time.

Remembering those most in need of comfort and joy this night. xxx

For unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given:
and the government shall be upon his shoulder:
and his name shall be called
Wonderful, Counseller,
The mighty God,
The everlasting Father,
The Prince of Peace.


A very Happy and Blessed Christmas to you all. Cx <3

God bless you "mi amor" xx

Merry Christmas to you Cynthia and kandj <3

To all who visit this thread God Bless x

Hello all HAPPY CHRISTMAS WISHES.

Jesus' birth is a sign of new hope.
May the wonder of his presence and
The thought of him being with us
Light up our hearts and minds.
Bringing us all a joyous blessing
This Christmas, and always. Amen.

May this Christmas Day bring peace and happiness to everyone. xxx

Good morning :-)


I do hope that everyone had a peaceful and Happy Christmas. We went to our son's and were able to spend about 4 hours with them, which was wonderful. I didn't expect to be able to be there for so long. A lovely meal and good company. <3

Our Midnight Service was up in numbers and our local RC church, which is only small, had congregations of over 500. I have been reading of a friend's former church on FB and their Christmas congregations numbered over 2,500. When you think of the large amount of churches, of all denominations in this country, it is very uplifting. And people think the faith is dying out. Ha. :-D

Today is St. Stephen's Day.................


Stephen was one of the first deacons of the Christian Church. He was the first Christian martyr.

An excellent and well trusted orator, his preaching style was so effective that many Jews became worried about his success. They accused him of blasphemy and he was made to stand trial.

At the supreme Jewish law court, the Sanhedrin, Stephen recounted the many mercies that God had given the children of Israel, and the ungrateful way in which they had repaid Him. He accused them of murdering Jesus, whose coming, he said, had been foretold by Moses. This angered the crowd and he was dragged out onto the streets. He was then stoned to death according to the law at that time, an event witnessed by St Paul. It is believed he died around the year 34CE.

St. Stephen is mentioned in the carol 'Good King Wenceslas'.


Have a relaxing day everyone.....Love, Cx :-)

Hello all

A very happy family day spent here yesterday. Noisy and hectic with extended family calling for Christmas Eve buffet lunch and with four hyper excited/overtired little ones (2-6yrs old) we were all worn out but blessed to see everyone and share lots of hugs.

Our daughter, son in law and two grandchildren are now in Heathrow waiting for a flight to New York, all soooo excited, they will return back home to Durham 31 Dec.

St Stephen's Day is traditionally known also as Boxing Day and the origin is not entirely clear. It is thought to have been dated back to the Middle Ages.
Some say the Boxing Day name comes from the idea of getting rid of all the boxes from Christmas Day presents. Others feel the Boxing Day name started when servants who worked Christmas Day were presented with a box of good things to take home and share with their families, the day following Christmas Day.
Another idea is that churches opened the boxes where parishioners gave donations for the poor of the parish at Christmas Day services. All ideas are very interesting.

I have lots of clearing up to do today and then a relaxing day is planned for us two.

Happy St Stephen's/Boxing Day to you all, whatever you have planned for today. xx

I am so pleased that you were able to spend a good amount of time with your family Cynthia and that you enjoyed time with your family Kandj. We spent a very happy day with daughter, sil, and their two teenagers, plus six of sil's family. Good food and good company - what could be better?

Being blessed with a close loving family myself, my heart goes out to those whose family life is not so happy and to those who have no family. Special thoughts for them at this Christmastide.

Good morning.. :-)

Lovely to see some friends dropping by on here :-)

Today is the feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

St. John the Apostle, the son of Zebedee and Salome, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. John's older brother was St. James the Great, another one of Jesus' Twelve Apostles. Jesus referred to the brothers as "Boanerges," meaning "sons of thunder."

John is believed to be the longest living apostle and the only one not to die a martyr's death.

John and Peter were the only two apostles sent by Jesus to make preparations for the final Passover meal, the Last Supper. During the meal, St. John sat next to Jesus, leaning on him rather than lying along the couches.

John was the only one of the Twelve Apostles who did not forsake the Saviour in the hour of His Passion. He stood faithfully at the cross when the Saviour made him the guardian of His Mother.

John is known as the author of the Gospel of John and four other books in the New Testament - the three Epistles of John and the Book of Revelation. In the Gospel of John, the phrase "the disciple whom Jesus loved," or "the Beloved Disciple" is used five times, but is not used in any other New Testament accounts of Jesus.

The Collect for today :

MERCIFUL Lord, we beseech thee to cast thy bright beams of light upon thy Church, that it being enlightened by the doctrine of thy blessed Apostle and Evangelist Saint John may so walk in the light of thy truth, that it may at length attain to the light of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen



Remembering those who have asked for prayer Cx :-)

Hello all

Sharing an inspirational quote with all today.

Happiness keeps you sweet. Trials keep you strong.
Sorrows keep you human. Failures keep you humble, and
God keep you going.

Thinking of all those people who have been flooded out of their homes. xxx

Good morning :-)


Lots of special days in the Christian calendar at the moment. Hard on the heels of Christmas came St. Stephen's Day, followed by St. John's Day.

Today is Holy Innocents Day - the day we recall the biblical recount of infanticide by Herod the Great, the Roman-appointed King of the Jews. According to the Gospel of Matthew, Herod ordered the execution of all young male children in the vicinity of Bethlehem, so as to avoid the loss of his throne to a newborn King of the Jews whose birth had been announced to him by the Magi. (We will look at the Magi on 6th January). The number of infants killed is not stated. The Holy Innocents, although Jewish, have been claimed as martyrs for Christianity.


Righteous God,
your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ dwelt among us
and shared our grief and our pain.

We pray for the children of our world,
that they may grow up knowing love and security.
We pray for all children who suffer physical or mental abuse.

We pray for all communities in our world
who live with the memories of massacre and gross cruelty.

We pray for all who are corrupted by power
and who regard human life as cheap.
We pray for parents who have suffered the death of a child.

We pray for parents and guardians,
that they may be given grace to care for the children
entrusted to them.

As we celebrate the coming of the Christ-child,
we rejoice in the fellowship of the Holy Innocents
and commit the children of this community,
our nation and our world to you,
our righteous God.


Cx :-)

Hello all

The Feast of the Holy Innocent, when the church remembers the small boys in the neighbourhood of Bethlehem put to death on Herod's orders.

We think of unborn and new born babies today and give thanks for the skills of the NHS doctors and nurses who care for Mums-to-be and their babies each day. xxx

Good morning :-)

‘A lot has happened in the last week. Some have spent time travelling, maybe to the places that we grew up in to visit family and old friends. Gifts and greetings have been exchanged, carols have been sung to remind us of the birth of the Christ child. Now many are going back to work and a sense of 'normality' is beginning to be felt again in our lives.

Father God,
sometimes we forget that the Christmas story did not end in the stable but continued as Jesus grew into a man, almost unnoticed by the world apart from his appearance at the temple, his spiritual home on earth.

As we close the pages of one year and begin the next chapter of our lives may we grow in faith, in wisdom and closer to you each and every day, to your praise and glory. Amen


Love to all Cx :-)

Hello all

Amen to your prayer Cynthia. It is hard to think that this is the month of December when it is so mild and the bulbs I planted out in Autumn are showing through already. Even Mother Nature seems to be very confused just now.

Our Festive Season is...........
A time of blessings and happiness.
A time of caroling and songs.
A time of giving thanks.
A time for giving presents.
A time of good cheer and friendship.
A time time of love for all.
A time for helping others.
But most of all it is a time to stop
and thank God for all that we have.

I feel so sorry for all the people whose homes are filled with river water. They must have had a dreadful Christmas and are now facing more upset in the New Year.

Heavenly Father
Hear our prayer for all who are affected by the floods
and for all who are working to bring relief in all the chaos.
Amen.

Good morning :-)

We are at that strange state of having Christmas behind us and the New Year ahead of us.....these words may help us to settle....


Take time to think...
It is the source of power.
Take time to play...
It is the secret of perpetual youth.
Take time to laugh...
It is the music of the soul.
Take time to pray...
It is the greatest power on Earth.


It is my daughter's birthday today so it is all systems go! <3


Remembering friends in prayer. Cx :-)

Hello all

Happy Birthday wishes to your daughter Cynthia. I hope you all have a good day.

How quickly this year has gone by. We have felt blessed to keep hubby out of hospital for this Christmas. Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.

I am tempted to begin to take some of the Christmas decorations down but hubby likes the tree lights, so I will leave them for a little while longer.

In this limbo-time between Christmas and the New Year, I feel this verse in
Scripture is worthy of sharing.
"Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of peace".

Remembering all Ministers, Priests, Pastors, working and retired, who have served in bringing God's wisdom and compassion into our Communities. xxx