Christmas 2015 & New Year 2016

CLICK HERE TO READ IRWIN FAMILY NEWS 2015


Okay, so it only took me a week and a half to finish this years' Christmas Letter that it has also become this years' New Years Letter.  :)

Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to design my yearly Christmas Photo card, but I did include some recent photos in the family news.

Love to you all!

Caroline & Family 

Empowered by an email.....

I love my morning times with the Lord.  After spending some meaningful time in devotion this AM I decided to go through my email on my phone to try and weed though some of the "garbage" that filled my Inbox.  Little did I know that God still wanted to spend some time with me right then and used my email to do so.  I love how He works.  :-) 

I found an email from Group to be thought provoking.  

Why Nobody Wants to Be Around Christians Anymore Our friend Ali admitted to us that she used to be one of those "judgmental Christians." It surprised us to hear that, because we know Ali to be a loving and accepting person. She told us that, unfortunately, she wasn't always that way. "I'm a recovering judgmental Christian," Ali said. "In middle school and high school, people knew me as 'Bible girl' because I kept a Bible in my locker and hung verses there. And that would've been fine…if it weren't accompanied by my holier-than-thou attitude. When people swore in front of me, without fail I would point my finger right in their face and say, 'Language!' Sometimes I would even quote Ephesians 4:29 to them. The message I sent during those years was this: 'Clean up your act. Jesus will never love you if you live like that.' Quite often, we as Christians, can get "stuck" thinking that the only way we can "bring" people to the Lord is by being abrupt and forward. Showing we have the knowledge and we know what walking with the Lord will do to help "others" begin their walk. I don't think it is intentional for many of us, but it happens none the less. That is why I love the following quote.   "When faith becomes a relationship, the message of Jesus can shine through". It is that simple. When we walk out our faith, without judgement of others, we shine Christ love by loving people right where they are at.  Just how we have been called.

Loving the Foreigner

Wanted to share this daily devotional. So powerful to think of the influence we have with everyday living. Who are you around consistently?

Loving the Foreigner

Mildred Hoyt, “Mid” to her friends, left this world and went to rest in the arms of Jesus at the age of 97. She was born December 24, 1899. Imagine what her eyes saw, the changes that transformed this world of ours — it’s staggering if you think about it. If we were sent to another land, would we experience any greater change than Mid did during her lifetime? Two world wars, not to mention several smaller ones, the advent of cars, planes, electricity, radio, television and, yes, computers and the Internet. The list could go on for more pages than a New York City phone book

Spending time with Mid left one with a longing . . . a longing to return to a different time. A time of simplicity, a time for family and community. A time when doors were left unlocked and neighbors would drop everything and help you rebuild a barn. A time when family and faith reigned supreme.

Perhaps a similar longing prompted a group of foreigners to accompany the Israelites out of Egypt. They were non-Hebrews who followed the Hebrews’ God. So when the Hebrews left Egypt, they weren’t alone, as “many other people went up with them” (Exodus 12:38). These people just didn’t fit in Egypt anymore. They longed for a life that honored God. They had seen God’s power and wanted what he offered. They left families, homes, businesses and country.

God honored their determination by protecting them with this commandment, reminding the Israelites that they, too, had once been residents of a foreign land. God reminded them of the harsh treatment they’d endured so they would treat the others as they would want to be treated — the Golden Rule in the wilderness. Who are the foreigners today? Perhaps one is the neighbor who admires your faith and with a little encouragement would come to church with you. Perhaps another is the store clerk who notices the little cross around your neck as well as your kindness and patience. Perhaps the foreigner is someone at work whose lifestyle you would not choose, but who might be drawn to God through your gracious attitude. The challenge is to live the Golden Rule in the wilderness of life. Don’t treat the foreigners as strangers, but treat them as you would one of your friends or family. Treat the foreigners in your life to a taste of God’s love.

Taken from NIV Women’s Devotional Bible