The Christmas Star #devotional by Becky Van Vleet

 The Christmas Star

During the Christmas season, it’s hard to go anywhere without seeing stars. They’re

perched atop Christmas trees, hang from street lamps, knitted on sweaters, displayed 

on buildings, included in advertisements, printed in books and magazines, a part 

of nativity scenes…well, they’re just about everywhere.

Did you know the closest star to earth is about 25,300,000,000,000 miles, or 

about 4.35 light-years away? This means that the movement of stars happens 

more than four years before we tually see it. What about the star of Bethlehem 

mentioned in the book of Matthew, chapter two? How could this scientific 

phenomenon have worked for the Magi to see the star and follow it? The star 

leading the Magi must have been thought about beforehand. Yes, precisely it was.

The three kings hadn’t just noticed the star a few months before Christmas. They 

had been tracking it for a couple of years before following it to Bethlehem.

On the fourth day of Creation, God had planned for one particular star to 

be a part of the Christmas story. He later used this one special star as a guiding 

light for the Magi to find the baby Jesus. And since that first Christmas, more than 

2,000 years ago, we still have that guiding light—Jesus.

As we celebrate this Christmas season, we’ll certainly enjoy presents, good food, 

company, and all kinds of festivities. Nothing wrong with this. But perhaps our 

main focus should be upon the guiding light of Christ and His blessings throughout 

the whole year. Jesus proclaimed, “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12 NKJV) 

Christ’s light embodies hope, grace, goodness, salvation, and God’s revelation for 

mankind.

What is God revealing to you about finding this light and staying close to Him?

Becky Van Vleet is a retired teacher and principal and award-winning multi-genre author. She has been published in Guideposts, The Country Register, and Christian Devotions Ministry. Her children’s picture books are the recipients of the 2020 Excellence in Editing award as well as the Purple Dragonfly award in 2020 and 2021. She and her husband make their home close to Colorado Springs where she enjoys gardening, hiking, oil painting, power walking, and spending time with her family, especially reading books to her grandchildren.

Becky is the author of Unintended Hero, a true story about her father’s battles, experiences, and adventures in WWII aboard the USS Denver. She is passionate about sharing the values from the Greatest Generation and enjoys speaking to high school classes about patriotism.

A member of ACFW and Allauthor, Becky has devoted her website to creating and preserving family memories and sharing family stories for the next generations through her monthly blogs. 

You can find her at: https://beckyvanvleet.com. She would love to hear from you, especially if you have a family story to share!

 

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Christmas Cowboy: A Mulbury Boys Novel (Hope Eternal Ranch Romance) by Elana Johnson

 

Christmas Cowboy: 

A Mulbury Boys Novel 

(Hope Eternal Ranch Romance)

September 11, 2020

by Elana Johnson (Author)

He needs to start a new story for his life. She's dealing with a lot of family issues. Can Slate and Jill find solace in each other at Hope Eternal Ranch?

Slate Sanders has been out of prison for a couple of months now. He keeps his head down and his mouth shut around the ranch, and not just because he's only a temporary cowboy. He's not sure what to participate in, because he's still trying to figure out who he is post-prison.

When he encounters Jill Kyle on the beach one morning, he can't help but go see what she's raging about. He's worried for her safety, and it's not until he gets closer that he realizes she works on the same ranch as him.

Jill has just learned about her mother's devastating illness, and she's ready to take all of her frustrations out on the beach, the ocean, and the Lord. As Jill and Slate connect over things lost, things gained, and an uncertain future, they both heal in unexpected ways. Jill didn't think she'd ever find someone to settle down with, and Slate has never had a serious relationship in his life.

But together, they seem to make sense in a world where nothing does.

With Christmas on the horizon, can Slate and Jill find themselves, create a new story for their future, and let go of the past before their heartache pushes them apart? Cowboys looking for a second chance at life, love, and happiness.

My thoughts:  Christmas Cowboy is a Christmas story set in  the south west--Arizona.  

Both the hero and the heroine struggle with depression and are trying to find themselves. 

 Despite her issues, Jill is a flirt,  and the hero just can't resist her even though he 

definitely has valid issues why he should avoid a relationship.   Some of the story 

seems a little contrived but over all it was a good read.  I was given a copy free as 

part of a 12 Days of Christmas promotion by select authors.  No review was required. 

An Interview with Brad Hambrick, Author of Overcoming Addiction

 

​An Interview with Brad Hambrick, Author of Overcoming Addiction The road to change is a difficult, whether your circumstances were caused by your own choices or instead are a result of the actions and decisions of others. While nothing makes the journey “easy,” walking it out one step at a time with the support of your peers and a biblical community makes it achievable.​ In the support group curriculum Overcoming Addiction: 9 Steps toward Freedom, counselor Brad Hambrick provides participants with a safe and stable place to name what’s happening and turn to God. For those who are ready to admit that the use of alcohol and/or drugs has taken over their life in a significant way, Overcoming Addiction provides a 9-step framework to help readers reclaim their life and experience the freedom God wants for them. Hambrick helps those struggling with addiction find hope as they learn to be honest with God, themselves, and others.   Q: In what setting was Overcoming Addiction designed to be used? How is it different from typical counseling resources?  Overcoming Addiction and Navigating Destructive Relationships (which released at the same time) were written as a counseling curriculum, meaning they were written to facilitate a journey rather than educate on a subject. When a book is written for education purposes, it starts with definitions and the history of the subject, then concepts related to the main subject are addressed one chapter at a time. However, when you approach a subject as a counseling curriculum, you start at the beginning of an individual’s journey and incrementally address what is necessary to take the next step. For Overcoming Addiction, that means I started with helping the reader garner the motivation and commitment to change. Commitment to change is foundational to overcoming addiction, so as the reader is invited to assess their life and devise a plan to address their addiction, a continual effort is made to maintain motivation. As curriculum, both books are designed so that people who complete their journey can use these books to lead a group-based counseling ministry at their church. We call this model G4 (learn more at summitchurch.com/G4). While these books can be used as a structure for personal growth or individual counseling, they provide a counselee the opportunity, when he or she is ready, to use their growth to help others in their church and community find comparable freedom. Q: What is a G4 peer support and recovery group ministry and how does it differ from other support groups such as Celebrate Recovery or AA?    In developing G4, my goal was to draw from the best of AA and Celebrate Recovery, while tailoring G4 to allow for broader ministry within a local church. AA and Celebrate Recovery focus primarily on addiction. When they care for other struggles, they do so within an addiction paradigm. While their success rate indicates this can be effective, the fit between addiction and other life struggles can, at times, be strained.   The biggest difference between G4 and AA or Celebrate Recovery, is that instead of using one 12-step model we use two 9-step models; one model for responsibility-based struggles and another for suffering-based struggles. Both theologically and therapeutically, this is a significant difference. It means when your struggle doesn’t emerge from your choices and values, that you aren’t made to feel responsible for it in order to find freedom from it.   Curriculum-based group counseling is highly effective, and an excellent way maximize lay-helpers’ ability to use their life experience to help others. Having a large group time before breaking into subject specific groups allows people to acclimate to the helping environment and provides a context to communicate the core values of the ministry.   My hope is that those who have benefited from AA and Celebrate Recovery will find that G4 honors what they found helpful while seeing how G4 is more tailored to the local church. For those who have concerns about the theological differences that exist with 12 step programs, I think they will find G4 curriculum to be Bible-based and gospel-centered in a way that alleviates these concerns.   Q: Does Overcoming Addiction address all types of addiction, or does it focus on certain kinds of addiction?   Overcoming Addiction focuses on substance-related addictions: alcohol, misused prescription meds, and drugs. It does not focus on more behavioral addictions like pornography (a future release, False Love, will address sexual addiction and pornography) and gambling.   While many of the practical steps of pursuing freedom are the same, the early steps of assessing how the addiction is impacting your life and the lives of your loved ones are different. This is an example of how G4 curriculum strive to be subject-specific, so that less pressure is on the lay group facilitator to transfer general principles to specific life struggles.   Q: Each of the curriculum-based books is based on a 9-step program. Are there any steps that may not be traditionally covered in biblical counseling literature? Can you give us examples specifically related to Overcoming Addictions?   Absolutely. The difference in Overcoming Addiction and other biblical counseling literature is in design, not content. The unique part of Overcoming Addiction is how it’s laid out. Overcoming Addiction starts where recovery begins, helping the reader decide if change is “worth it.” It is highly interactive, inviting readers to grow in a sober self-awareness that perpetually nurtures their commitment to change.   Overcoming Addiction is also designed to facilitate a group-based counseling experience so that even if the reader initially goes through the material with an individual counselor, that person can (if they choose) start a ministry at their church with what helped change their life.   The major themes of taking responsibility for our choices, what our choices reveal about our heart, the centrality of repentance toward God, the need for confession toward those our choices harmed, practical steps toward change rooted in community, and a call to live a life on mission are central to Overcoming Addiction.

Q: If the entire journey of overcoming addiction could be reduced to a single step, what would it be and why?   The one-step model of overcoming addition is, “Be honest with God, self, and others.” We spend an entire section of Step 1 unpacking the point, “You can’t be a good addict without being a good liar.” If you’ve never experienced addiction, that statement might sound offensive. If you have, you smirk knowing how true it is and that someone with the courage to say it has enough grit to help you on the hard journey ahead.   As you get deeper into addiction, you get better and better at covering your tracks and deceiving other people. You believe your own lie that, “Things aren’t that bad.” You learn to hide your actions from family and healthy friends. You avoid God and the thought of God in every way you can.   Honesty may sound simple and not complicated, but it may be the hardest part of recovery. It requires courage, facing your sense of shame, and admitting who you’ve hurt and who you’ve lied to. When we are willing to be honest, it lays the foundation for genuine repentance and change.   Q: What can churches do to address life-dominating struggles such as addiction in a way that is effective and lay-based but at the same time helps a struggler avoid viewing their struggle as their identity?   There is an adage of AA that reveals why many churches are skittish toward recovery ministries: “Once an addict, always an addict.” Christians believe that change is more possible than this phrase implies. We don’t think “addict” should be a believer’s primary or permanent identity.   Before we explore the alternative, let’s explain why this phrase emerged in AA. AA groups are independent of any larger institution or community, so when someone graduates from AA, they move from supported to isolated. For all of us, not just addicts, when we go from supported to isolated, life gets worse. AA members got tired of seeing their friends relapse after graduating from AA, so the saying, “Once an addict, always an addict,” was coined to encourage members to remain in a context of support.   Overcoming Addiction and other G4 curriculum address this concern by emphasizing how people graduate. In Step 8 and Step 9, participants are instructed to begin building community in the standard discipleship structures of their church. The baton is passed from G4 to small groups (or whatever a church calls its discipleship context).   At G4, we often say, “G4 needs the church, and the church needs G4.” What we mean is that without the church, G4 would create a struggle-based identity, but without G4, the life-dominating struggles addressed there can overwhelm a small group. We encourage G4 graduates to take the level of authenticity they learned at G4 and “raise the temperature” of discipleship throughout the church.   Q: Why is it so important to have a group of Christians supporting you on your journey to overcome addiction?   Why is it important to have a friend to work out with at the gym? Why is it important to have a cohort of students to go through a Ph.D. program with? When you’re doing something hard, the benefits of having people working toward the same goal—who know what you’re facing—is immensely beneficial.   This is also true for addiction, maybe even more so than the examples I just mentioned. Addicts often feel immense shame. They know they’ve hurt and let down many people. They know the “answer” seems painfully obvious to everyone: just stop it. They don’t feel like anyone understands how hard that is.   That’s why a group is so helpful for overcoming addiction. In group, people find others who they know “get it.” They can identify with each other’s struggle to do is essential and obvious. When a sense of community emerges, they don’t want to let each other down. On days when they might not continue for their own good, they persevere for their brothers and sisters they don’t want to let down. That’s powerful.   Q: Is there a timeline for completing the curriculum or is being part of a G4 group an ongoing process for an individual in order to not fall back into addictive patterns?   When Overcoming Addiction is implemented as part of a G4 ministry, it is an open group model. That means anyone can join at any time and each person in the group may be at a different point on their journey.   A G4 participant can take the time they need to complete their journey. Nine steps don’t equate to nine weeks or nine months. The goal of Overcoming Addiction isn’t primarily understanding, but implementation. Participants are not encouraged to move to the next step until they have achieved the objectives of that step. That is a better measure of progress than the ability to “pass a quiz” on that step’s content.

About the Author

Brad Hambrick, ThM, EdD, serves as the Pastor of Counseling at The Summit Church in Durham, NC. He also serves as Assistant Professor of Biblical Counseling at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and is a council member of the Biblical Counseling Coalition   He has authored several books, including God's Attributes: Rest for Life Struggles, Making Sense of Forgiveness, Angry with God, and the Church Based-Counseling series. Hambrick also served as general editor for the Becoming a Church that Cares Well for the Abused curriculum.   Hambrick, his wife, Sallie, and their two sons live in Raleigh, NC.   Learn more about Brad Hambrick and follow his blog and podcasts at bradhambrick.com. He can also be found on Facebook (brad.hambrick.5), X (@bradhambrick) and Instagram (@bradhambrick)

Welcome to the Falling for a Humbug Cowboy Celebration Tour! #Giveaway

 

About the Book

Book: Falling for a Humbug Cowboy (Vargas Ranch Book 5)

Author: Karen Baney

Genre: Contemporary Christian Cowboy Romance

Release date: November 5, 2024

Book: Falling for a Humbug Cowboy (Vargas Ranch Book 5)

Author: Karen Baney

Genre: Contemporary Christian Cowboy Romance

Release date: November 5, 2024

She’s the happiest person he’s ever met. His world has turned upside and he’s in no mood for Christmas. Will these coworkers find middle ground as they head into the holidays?

Reeling from a shocking family secret, Drake Vargas heads into the holiday season grumpier than he’s ever been. He can’t seem to get his footing and his new barista is way too much sunshine for him.

Candi Kaine loves Christmas! Nothing can stop her sunny disposition. As she starts a new job at Vargas Ranch, she’s determined to fix the grumpy, hipster cowboy who just happens to be her boss. Nothing will deter her from making sure he experiences a very Merry Christmas.

Will Drake find his joy again or has Candi Kaine finally met her match?

 My thoughts: Falling for a Humbug Cowboy is a cute Christmas themed romance that really doesn't have anything to do with cowboys whatsoever. The heroine is fun, funny, and easy to fall in love with, although sometimes her outgoing personality shocked me. The hero was struggling through a revelation about his family that he didn't know, and it upset his world to the point of ostracizing his family and considering quitting his job and starting a new life someplace else.  He was greatly depressed by the news as well.   I've read a lot of books with the same scene recently and I like to think that I would handle that sort of news better than the characters in the books that I've read but I can't say that for sure. Their reaction seemed over the top dramatic to me.   However, there was a lot of fun moments in this story, a fast romance, and I absolutely loved the Christmas village and what they did to display it.  This book deals with depression and if you or someone you know is suffering from depression during the holidays this might be a good book for them to read. There's a fun romance, with lots of drama, and some laugh out loud moments.  A good Christmas themed block from you or for someone who likes to read for Christmas.  I was giving a copy free and all opinions are my own.

Click here to get your copy!

 

About the Author

Karen Baney is passionate about writing stories full of flawed characters. She enjoys weaving together stories of second chances, redemption, and overcoming personal trials. As a transplant to Arizona, she loves researching the state’s history and finding ways to seamlessly incorporate real history and real settings into her novels. In addition to writing and speaking, Karen works as a Software Development Manager for a Christian ministry.

Her faith plays an important role both in her life and in her writing. Karen and her husband, Jim, make their home in Gilbert, Arizona, with their two dogs, Bella and Daisy. Both Jim and Karen are active at Rock Point Church in Queen Creek, Arizona.

More from Karen

Inspiring My Christmas Mood by Karen Baney

In Falling for a Humbug Cowboy, I had a lot of fun incorporating classic holiday songs (and the occasional Christmas story) into scenes to add flavor and sometimes intensify the character’s feelings.

It was purely accidental at first. I love classic Christmas songs and during the holiday season my hubby and I listen to a lot of Holiday Traditions on Sirius XM.

So, when I described a scene where Candi helps Drake decorate the dining hall, I just wrote that she switched the overhead music to a Christmas station and belted out Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. The next thing I know, I’m three song mentions in. So, I decided to make deliberate use of songs.

When I was struggling to get in the mood to write a Christmas novel in the dead of summer (108+ in July in Arizona!), I loaded up my phone with several playlists. One of the first songs was Feliz Navidad and I knew I had to find a way to use it. It would be the perfect song to show off Candi’s fun personality and draw Drake out of his humbug mood.

I hope you enjoy this Christmas playlist from the novel with a few sneak peaks of how I used the songs:

• Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer – Candi belts out the tune while working.
• White Christmas by Bing Crosby – Candi “crooned along with Bing Crosby, making a nice duet”.
• The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole – causes Drake to picture holding Candi close, swaying to the music.
• Holly Jolly Christmas by Burl Ives – playing while Drake helps Candi with a rush of customers.
• Feliz Navidad – Candi dances around Drake until she gets him to dance and sing along.
• I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm by Dean Martin – Candi notices the not-so-humbug cowboy walking away, ratcheting up her interest.
• Christmas in Your Eyes by Travis Shaw – playing during a special moment between Drake and Candi.
• It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas by Michael Bublé – Candi’s lunch with a friend.
• Mele Kalikimaka – Driving to Flagstaff together to play in the snow.
• All I want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey – sets the stage for Drake’s proposal on July 25th (Christmas in July).

What’s your favorite Christmas song? By a specific artist or any artist? Please share in the comments, I’d love to know. 

Blog Stops

The Lofty Pages, December 11

lakesidelivingsite, December 12

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 13

A Reader’s Brain, December 14 (Author Interview)

Holly’s Book Corner, December 14

Texas Book-aholic, December 15

Locks, Hooks and Books, December 16

Back Porch Reads, December 17 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, December 18

Lighthouse Academy, December 19

Devoted To Hope, December 20

Simple Harvest Reads, December 21 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)

For Him and My Family, December 22

Labor Not in Vain, December 23

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, December 24 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, December 24

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Karen is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card and a signed copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf54116

Missed Moments #devotional by Julie Arduini

Missed Moments

Julie Arduini

 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33, KJV

When our family moved 300 miles away from our hometown and everyone we knew, my mom was a recent widow. I’ll never forget the pain etched on her face as she told my husband if we completed the move it would be the same as having two deaths in a close time frame.

We made that move because we knew it was God’s plan for us. Being obedient wasn’t easy. In fact, it was one of the hardest things He has asked us to do. We promised as long as Mom was able, she would be invited to all our events, and we would be there for whatever she needed.

Like any proud Grandma, she took us for our word. One holiday stands out, Easter. Our church held a Passion Play that my husband and the kids were very involved in. Mom loved attending. That particular year, she had been part of a mentorship program at her church. The closing ceremony was Easter Sunday. That meant we were in one state scheduled for the Passion Play while Mom was in another state, completing her obligation.

She let me know that ceremony wasn’t going to stop her. She was going to join us for Easter dinner. Five hours and 300 miles away. Mathematically my husband and I couldn’t make the trip work in our heads, but she was determined.

She didn’t want to miss a moment.

True to her promise, she was at our table ready to eat Easter dinner.

I asked, “How did you make such good time? You went to church for the program and drove here all in one shot?”

She had a sheepish look as if we caught her hand in the cookie jar before dinner. Turns out yes, she did make excellent time. The police thought so as well, when they caught her speeding.

How bad was she speeding?

My mother drove eighty-eight in a fifty-five-mile zone.

The cost? Three hundred dollars, two marks I think on her license, and the inability to focus on Easter and memories because she was kicking herself for breaking the law and getting caught.

How does this have anything to do with Christmas?

Missed moments. Mom was so afraid of missing something that she actually did because she literally sped through the day.

We enter the Christmas season with great expectations. With the newest apps and reminders we’re confident we can do all the shopping, bake all the cookies, send all the cards, wrap all the presents and yet be all in, fully present for Jesus. It is all about Him, after all.

What usually happens? Gifts don’t arrive on time. Parties and concerts pop up last minute. We make additional trips to buy ingredients for cookies we’re in no mood to make. The season turns into a chore, and the celebration of Christ’s birth falls to the wayside.

Missed moments.

Sometimes the younger generation’s lingo makes sense. FOMO, Fear Of Missing Out, is a real thing. There is something about Christmas that increases personal expectations and goals. We don’t want good, we want perfect.

And we fall short.

I’ve been to events where the focus was on the theme and napkins, and the elaborate favors. Napkins end in the garbage. Themes are forgotten. Favors get misplaced. How about the memories? I remember hosting mom events where there was no agenda. We just let the kids play and we chatted. There is so much I remember about those times because I concentrated on the people, not the event.

This Christmas, don’t speed through the season in an attempt to avoid missing out. Maybe buy cookies or wait to send cards in the new year. Make time to read an Advent devotional. Pray while you drive instead of listening to a Christmas playlist you’ve heard in stores since October. Those are the moments to live for.  It’s the least we can do for that Holy Child who grew up to die for us and our sins.

Have a blessed Christmas!

Julie Arduini writes small-town romances featuring Christian surrender themes and chocolate mentions. She’s the author of the series SURRENDERING HEARTS (Anchored Hearts, Repairing Hearts, +four more). Her other romance series is SURRENDERING TIME (Entrusted, Entangled, Engaged). She also co-wrote a YA/Women’s Fiction series with her daughter, SURRENDERING STINKIN’ THINKIN’ (You’re Beautiful, You’re Amazing, You’re Brilliant). Her stand-alone romances include MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN and RESTORING CHRISTMAS. In 2025 she joins Leah Atwood, Robin Bayne, JoAnn Durgin, and Dawn Kinzer with the small-town romance series Dogwood Creek Matchmakers. Julie maintains a blog at juliearduini.com and Substack. She resides in Ohio with her husband and daughter. Learn more by visiting her at http://linktr.ee/JulieArduini.