Thanks to Leah Hastings, I am starting a new series called FAMILY FUN FRIDAY. Leah approached me with the idea about doing a post on Family Fun Night, that it got me to thinking about doing a regular post called Family Fun Friday. Now of course we all now that we can have fun with our families everyday of the week, but I love the alliteration in Family Fun Friday! 

For my first post I want to give you all an idea for Christmas in July. Most businesses have some kind of Christmas in July sales. Hallmark has been running Christmas specials most of the month, so I want to share with you some of my favorite Christmas movies. There are so many to chose from, but I finally narrowed down to three. Thanks to Pure Flix who made the graphic below to help me share with you my Christmas movie suggestions plus the ultimate essentials that you will need for a Christmas movie night.

In case you are not familiar with the movies that I have suggested, I have put a synopsis of each movie below. 

"The Gift of Love"
​starring Marie Osmond and Timothy Bottoms

Played against the tapestry of early 1900's New York City, this touching tale of selflessness brings O. Henry's Christmas Valentine lovingly to the screen. A beautiful and wealth orphan (Marie Osmond) is dutifully resigned to an arranged-for marriage to a man of "socially acceptable class" (James Woods), when her heart is captured by a young Swiss immigrant (Timothy Bottoms). Within her heart she wages the struggle to fulfill her relatives' expectations, and yet to find for herself that most precious of all joys, "The Gift of Love".

I have always loved this sweet story. Yes, you pretty much know how it is going to turn out, but the journey along the way is beautiful. Sadly, they don't air this movie any more, but you can purchase it here at Amazon.

"Crown for Christmas"
by Danica McKellar and Rupert Penry-Jones

"Hearts of Christmas"
starring Emilie Ullerup and Kristoffer Polaha

Of course, there are a few things that you need for the perfect Christmas movie night.

1. A comfy spot to curl up
2. Hot Chocolate
3. Christmas cookies (Yes, I definitely recommend making Christmas cookies in July)
4. If you have a fireplace, you could turn the A/C up and light the fireplace for an extra Christmasy feel.
5. Turn off all of your electronic devices. This is definitely a must for quality family time no matter what you are doing. 

So this my first suggestion for Family Fun Friday. Enjoy the last Friday of July with a Christmas movie night!!! I would love to hear what your some of your favorite Christmas movies are, so please feel free to let me know in the comments below. Have A Wonderful Day!!!

Hi everyone! I hope you all are having a wonderful Friday! If your week has been anything like mine, then you are ready for a little R&R and what better for some Rest and Relaxation then with God's Word. The Bible is filled with so many wonderful Truths and directions on how to live are lives! This is wonderful, but sometimes I'm afraid that we look at the Bible as only an Instruction Manual or Rule Book. I've heard many people say that the Bible is just a bunch of rules that keeps us from having fun or that they don't understand the Bible for one reason or another. How sad those two statements are. Today I would like to show you that the Bible is so much more than an Instruction Manual on How to Live. The Bible can also be and should also be a Place that we can go to when we need comforting, peace, and a Place that we can go to forget about how stressful how day has been or how bad are week has been. God didn't just give us guidelines on how to live our lives when He gave us the Bible, He also gave us His love, compassion, and strength. So many times we get into trouble or we get frustrated about something, and sadly the last place we turn to is to God and the Bible if we even turn there at all. I have often wondered why that is especially when the Bible has the best answers to our problems and the peace that we need. Let me give you a personal example. When I was in college, a boy I had gone to school with passed away in his sleep. Nobody knew why it just happened. For weeks after this happened I was so shocked and shook up that I was afraid to go to sleep at night. You may think that is crazy, but that is how I felt. Every time I would lay down to go to sleep, I would think about Josh. I even tried sleeping on the couch, counting sheep, and playing relaxing music, but nothing helped. My parents tried to tell me that I needed to sleep (which I knew of course), but even with their concerned appeals nothing seemed to help. I could not go to sleep. Finally one night while I was reading my Bible, I came across a verse in Proverbs. Proverbs 3:24 to be exact. It says "When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet." I read that verse, and it this peaceful, calming feeling swept over me. I stopped reading for a few minutes and just sat there thinking about that verse. I realized that God was telling me that I can go to sleep now. There was nothing for me to worry about or be afraid of, He was there with me and would help me get a good night's sleep. That night I was finally able to go to sleep. Then the next night when I was getting ready for bed, I turned to that verse again and you know what it was still there!!! God was still telling me that I could go to sleep and He would be with me. So now whenever something is bothering me and I can't sleep, I turn to Proverbs 3:24 and I am reminded that God is with and He will give me peace so that I can sleep. That is just one example of how the Bible has calmed me and help me to relax. There are hundreds of other verses just like that one that I can turn to when I am worried, stressed, scared, sad, want to feel God's love, or whatever kind of mood I am in God has something for me in His Word to help me. And you know what? He has verses in there for you too. He is just waiting for you to spend time with Him so that He can show them to you. So what are you waiting for? Ask God to show you what He has waiting for you and you might just find that peace, comfort, solace, and relaxation that you are looking for.

Have A Wonderful Day!!!

Happy Fourth of July everyone! I hope you all are having a wonderful day with your family and friends. As you are having cook outs, shooting fireworks, or just enjoying a day off, don't forget all of those brave men and women who have fought to defend our freedoms so that we can celebrate the 4th of July. Thank you to everyone who has served our country in some way. Whether you are a service member overseas, a police officer, or fireman thank you for all that you do to protect our great country! May we never forget everyone who has fought for our country. Have a great Fourth everyone! Have A Wonderful Day!!!