December 23, 2022

Mary, a Woman of Honor, Grit and Grace

December 23, 2022/ Darlene Brock

Honor is the respect, trust, and confidence given to a person, earned by the character exhibited through the life they lived—the outgrowth of living a life of grace not easily gained nor easily bestowed.

There is one lady that exhibited these qualities in life, one that holds a place of honor in every Christmas Nativity. Sitting calmly aside an infant in a manger placed in a stable filled with animals, I’m not really sure today’s depiction is realistic. If you had birthed a baby in essentially a barn, amidst straw and animals, you probably would not be perfectly coiffed. Joyous but weary, not only from the long trip you made nine months pregnant abreast a donkey, but also suffering through a natural birth with no epidural. I believe disheveled and spent would be a bit more accurate.

December 16, 2022

How to See Christ in the Christmas Chaos

December 16, 2022/ Darlene Brock

I was having one of those “discussions” with myself the other day, the kind where you are in an internal debate. There is no one else privy to your conversation; it is merely you talking to you. I’m one of those people whose facial expressions coincide with the dialogue taking place in my head. So, I’m sure that on this particular day anyone who had watched me, as I pushed my shopping cart through Target, would have wondered if I was having an emotional breakdown as I went from scowling to nodding my head to grinning slightly and then back to scowling.

December 09, 2022

7 Unique Holiday Traditions to Share With Your Family

December 09, 2022/ Darlene Brock

One of the very best things about the holidays is not the calorie-heavy, “guilt-free” food intake, the gifts, the family gatherings, or even the “you have outdone yourself” decorating. It’s the traditions you create for your family and then repeat each year, ensuring lasting memories in the hearts of all you love.

December 02, 2022

Can We Find a Way to Be Grateful for the Tough Stuff?

December 02, 2022/ Darlene Brock

The season of Thanksgiving is a wonderful opportunity to pause from everyday life, reflect, and list the plentiful things for which we are thankful. Many of us can easily fill a piece of paper with items that deserve our gratitude: family, friends, faith, jobs, health, homes, kindness shown in every day. I’m capable of getting on a thankful roll, adding a comfortable couch, a clean house, a new hair color, or a great pair of new boots. The reality is that we have much to be grateful for.

November 25, 2022

Thank Sarah Hale (One Strong Woman) for Thanksgiving Day

November 25, 2022/ Darlene Brock

Thanksgiving became a national holiday at the height of the Civil War … a most unlikely time to set a day aside for reflection and proclamation of one’s thankfulness. Yet President Abraham Lincoln did exactly that. Indeed, he was a brave man to declare this celebration in a season that seemed to have very little to be thankful for.