What’s for dinner? That famous phrase can make a woman’s heart beat just a little faster. What’s for dinner? What’s for dinner? What is for dinner? Hmmm…

When my husband and I first got married, our favorite box at Christmas was the box from his grandmother. It was filled with her home-canned jars of pickles, popcorn balls, cookies, and strawberry jam. 

As I progressed in my canning, I made my own batch of strawberry jam. I knew this was the most coveted by my husband, and the few jars we got from his grandmother didn’t last us all year. Knowing we could easily eat two full batches of a jam in a year, I decided to save time and make one large batch with all the berries.

As for me and my household, we will serve the Lᴏʀᴅ (Joshua 24:15).

What does it mean to be the spiritual leader of my home? Do I have to reach a certain level of spiritual maturity before I qualify? What if my wife is more spiritual than I am? Shouldn’t she be the spiritual leader?

Maybe you’re motivated to make some changes in your life in the new year, and you’ve set yourself a long list of goals. But that list of things you’re trying to change can feel overwhelming! We become depleted after exerting the self-regulation it takes to make a change. This is called “goal fatigue.”

Perhaps you can relate.

Christmas is a time for believing.

Children believe they’ll receive the gifts on their wish lists.

Adults believe they can bring everything together—gifts, dinner, family—on Christmas Day.

The desperate, the suffering, the hopeful believe they’ll receive a miracle.

But it’s not always easy to believe. 

Beloved author Stormie Omartian imagines the night of Jesus’ birth and the experience of the shepherds as they came before their Messiah (Luke 2)…

* * *

Turning off the main street, the shepherds could see that the rays from the star fell over a portion of the inn. Upon entering the courtyard of the inn, they were surprised that the light was directly over the stable. They looked at one another in amazement.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze on June 22, 2015.

The author of a new book about Israel’s role in biblical prophecy said in a recent interview that he believes there are five signs in the modern era that convince him that the end times could be nearing.

“There are at least five things that get my attention,” Dr. Ed Hindson, coauthor of the new book Target Israel, told TheBlaze before citing the five contemporary clues that he believes can be found in the Bible.

You will fill me with joy in your presence. —Psalm 16:11 (ɴɪᴠ)

My all-time favorite movie is one that most people typically associate with the Christmas season. But not me! I watch It’s a Wonderful Life all through the year. I’ve probably seen it more than 300 times! 

Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? (Matthew 26:53).

If you are like many people, when you think of angels, your mind immediately thinks about the figure often placed on the top of a Christmas tree. Perhaps we are inclined to respond this way because the Christmas story in Luke 2 mentions angels who spoke to the shepherds. 

Whether you are filled with magical wonder or dread, one thing is for certain: 

Ready or not, Christmas is going to happen.

So it’s time to dig through your basement, garage, spare closet, or under the bed and gather together:

Get all this stuff in one place so that when you have to go into elf mode, you’re not running all over the house.