Last week, I shared some of the sayings that I heard on a regular basis while growing up in the south.  (Here’s the link to that post!)  I not only grew up in the south, but I also grew up – country and here are a few more that I heard regularly:

1.)  He’s Barking up the wrong tree! Sometime we are wrong, but we just won’t admit it.  We are like a dog barking up a tree – the coon might have gone up that tree, but it isn’t there anymore, so that is a wasted bark!  If you’re wrong accept it, admit it and move on – life is too short!

2.)  Don’t bite off more than you can chew! Do what you can and do it the best that you can, but don’t take on more than you can handle, because, if you do, then everyone will end up suffering!  Don’t ignore responsibility, do your fair share and then some, but realize that you don’t have to do it all and what doesn’t get done won’t be the end of the world!

3.)  She got the short end of the stick! Life is not fair and anyone who says that it is, is lying or delusional!  The truth is:  There are two ends:  The long end and the short end and someone gets the long end and someone gets the short end, just be thankful that you got an end and use your end to give glory to God!

4.)  I ain’t seen her in a coon’s age! When the “old folks” (that term was not disrespectful, but honorable where I grew up!) used to say this, I knew they were saying:  I ain’t seen her in a long, long time!  Raccoons actually live between 12 and 20 years if they are lucky, but the truth is:  “Time flies!”, so make the most of everyday by living it to do what God created you to do and to be the very best you that you can be!

5.)  He’s getting too big for his britches! This is not talking about physical weight gain.  This is talking about someone getting full of themselves and thinking that they are much more than they really are!  We are all tempted with this temptation at some time or another.  Be very careful, because giving in to this one can really cost you, and I’m talking about a whole lot more than “split britches!”

Hope you enjoyed these, I still catch myself saying some of these every now and then!  There are a lot more from when and where I grew up, I’ll share some more in a few weeks.  God Bless, G3! 24/7! and as my PaPa would say:  “Good Day!”

Yesterday I shared a message based on some wise ideas about gift giving provided by the wise men!  (This passage can be found in Matthew 2:1-15!)  Here are three ideas right out of that passage that can help each of us to have a better and more productive Christmas!

1.)  Wise Gift Giving Follows The Leadership Of God! The Wise Men followed the star and it led them exactly where they needed to be.  Where do you think that star came from?  GPS is nothing new with God – He created that a long time ago.  It came standard on a Wise Man’s Camel!  This Christmas take some time to talk with your Creator about your Christmas list – who is on it and what they will be getting.  Follow His leadership and you can’t go wrong!

2.)  Wise Gift Giving Is Joyful! In verse 10 we read:  “When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy!” This is talking about much more than happy!  Don’t let the giving and receiving of gifts be a drag.  Get into it with the right heart and attitude.  Through your gift giving this Christmas, seek to bring glory to God, blessing to others and joy to yourself!

3.)  Wise Gift Giving Is Sacrificial! The Wise Men travelled a great distance to present the King with their gifts.  They not only sacrificed their resources, but most certainly their time, energy and agenda!  A wise gift is going to cost you something.  It may not cost a lot of money.  Some of the most meaningful gifts that I have ever received have not been worth very much from a financial perspective, but they have been and are extremely valuable to me, because someone made a sacrifice to bless me with something that let’s me know that I am special to them and their life. These very special gifts keep giving by helping me to know that my life really does matter, which makes me feel special and that is one of the greatest gifts of all!

Put these wise ideas into practice and you will be amazed at what a difference they will make in your Christmas!

It’s almost crunch time!  Have you made your list of people who you respect and love?  Have you checked it twice?  Have you gotten everyone on your list a little something special to let them know of your appreciation and love for them?  Was getting it done fun and filled with joy?  Are you excited about sharing with the special people in your life, the way that you think and thought about them?  Or, are you still rushing around, trying to figure out what they might give you, so that you can at least try to come close to matching values?  Are you leaving people out, that should be included – you know, the ones that are not getting you anything, so why should you get them something?  Are you just dreading this Christmas thing with a capital “BAH HUMBUG!” attitude?

We mess up the whole Christmas thing, by forgetting what it is really all about!  Christmas is a celebration of the greatest gift ever given – the gift of Divinity wrapped in humanity.  The gift of God’s son Jesus given to you and me, so that we might have a way into eternal relationship that changes everything!  Have you ever stopped and thought that “gift giving” is God’s creation?  Think about all that God has given to you and me and one of the most amazing gifts that He has given us, is the gift of being able to give ourselves!  Get this – in our giving, God is allowing us to do what He does!  This is one of the great beauties of Christmas that we often miss and mess up!

We’ve missed the point on both sides of the spectrum!  On the one hand, we have people who give extravagant gifts with the wrong motivation.  And on the other hand we have people who don’t give gifts at all, under the false pretense that this is not really the point of Christmas.

Life is a gift that God has given to each one of us.  What we choose to do with our lives, could and should be a gift back to God.  The sad reality is that many of us, do what we want, all the while dressing it up with religious excuses and self-righteous analogies, which shift the blame off of us and onto God and our supposed growing relationship with Him.  (Ouch – I know that hurts and so do you – if you’re honest!)

Incarnation – The gift of God becoming man should challenge and change us, but all to often, rather than challenge and change, it confounds and confuses us!  We get so caught up in trying to be something that we are not and trying to make excuses for it, that we miss the real growing and living of life.  This is best seen at Christmas time with our warped up idea of giving and receiving.

We should give gifts.  Gifts are not bad, but we need to make sure that the gifts we give are given with and in the right spirit.  Given in the same spirit of our God, Who has given us the gift of life and life everlasting.  Don’t miss the point here – the gift is not near as important as the spirit and attitude of the giving and receiving.

Giving at it’s best is simply an expression of love, appreciation and affirmation!  The gift does not have to be grand or expensive to accomplish its purpose, it just has to come from the right place (our heart), with the right attitude (our love).

Don’t allow others to mess you up this Christmas!  Ask God to help you to make your list and then ask God to help you to choose the gifts for those on your list.  By the way, if you’ve never been shopping with God, then you are really missing an experience!  Now go get it done and enjoy it.  It’s supposed to be fun and filled with joy, so stop the fret, don’t regret and have some fun participating in one of the great creations of God!