by Emily Howsden | Dec 31, 2018
The impending New Year brings much reflection. For some, 2018 was the hardest, most-trying and sorrow-filled year of their lives. For others, 2018 was filled with joy, new life, adventure and goodness.
I find that each New Year Eve I am inspired to tackle the things that fell by the wayside in the past year.
Sometimes that means making more health-conscious choices when eating, or a more consistent fitness routine. These things always seem to find their way on my list of New Year’s resolutions.
Other things on my list this year include taking the time to practice self-care. As a new mom, I have found that more often than not my general care can fall to the wayside as I focus all of my efforts on my sweet five month old.
This isn’t just because I’m a new mom, though. I will admit that even before the arrival of my son, I didn’t do my best when it comes to going to bed at a reasonable time, reading more, limiting my screen time and taking time to practice proper care techniques.
I love all of the reflections the New Year brings. I think if we would take the time to evaluate ourselves on a daily basis, like we do at the end of the year, we could more efficiently meet goals and overall be happier.
I was listening to a sermon the other night with my husband on our way back home after being with family for a week for Christmas. Ed Stetzer spoke about urgently sharing the Good News.
He talked about a time when he and his wife were in an Uber, and the driver was tastefully-yet-relentlessly trying to tell them about Jesus and what He has done for us. Stetzer even admitted to trying to redirect the conversation many times, with no success.
This made me think—Why is what the Uber driver was doing such a rarity among Christ followers, including myself?
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you are surrounded by mostly strangers and you do something out of the ordinary because “I’m never going to see these people again, what does it matter if I embarrass myself?”
Maybe you haven’t, but I can assure you that I have. I’m NOT about to say that you should only share Jesus with people who you have no chance of seeing again, but what I AM saying is that sharing the Gospel with strangers should be one of the easier things we as Christians do.
We should urgently tell the lost world about the hope of Jesus Christ, to both strangers and the people we claim to know and love. It shouldn’t be another thing that ends up on our list of resolutions next to weight loss and skin care routines.
Don’t let 2019 be another year that you failed to do the one thing that we as Christians are called to do. This is what I’m telling myself as I look forward to 2019. This year, boldly proclaim the Gospel to the lost world like you never have before. Take hold of your life and live it purposefully and fearlessly proclaiming the Gospel.
I can assure you that at the end of 2019, you won’t regret having a part in the eternal life of those with whom you share the Gospel.
Happy New Year’s Eve!
by Emily Howsden | Dec 17, 2018
We hear the same Christmas carols, year after year, to the point where we barely have to engage our brains to recite the familiar choruses.
Most everyone has their favorite carol, and mine just happens to be “O Holy Night.”
Recently, at the Christmas chapel for the BGCO (Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma), we had the privilege of singing my favorite Christmas carol together as a form of worship.
We were encouraged to really examine the words that we so often sing without giving a second thought, and this made me all the more excited because the lyrics to “O Holy Night” are why the song is my favorite.
The lyrics are powerful and filled with a poetic Gospel presentation and reminders of what kind of people God has called us to be, a lifestyle which we should follow.
I encourage you to read the lyrics below and meditate on them for a moment…
O holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of our dear Savior’s birth.
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, O night when Christ was born;
O night divine, O night, O night Divine.
Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother;
And in His name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! O praise His Name forever,
His power and glory evermore proclaim.
His power and glory evermore proclaim.
Possibly my favorite lines of the entire song are “Long lay the world in sin and error pining, till he appeared and the soul felt its worth. A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.”
I feel like these lines directly apply to the world today. Long have we laid in sin and error, pining for something more.
You see it everywhere you go—in advertising, in casual conversation and perhaps even in your own dreams. We are created to want something more, but that something isn’t anything with monetary value. That something, or rather someone, is Jesus.
When He appeared for the first time, “the soul felt its worth,” and again, when He appears for the second coming, what a glorious day it will be for those who call themselves Christians when we join with Him in Heaven.
Until that day, we have “a thrill of hope,” that we should be screaming from the mountain tops. The weary world needs the hope of a Savior, who has promised us as believers eternal life. When we proclaim the Gospel to the weary world, we give them something to rejoice about, a new found hope in Him as our Lord and savior!
A new and glorious morn is coming, my friends. As we urgently flock to the stores to ensure we find just the right Christmas gift, or as we flock to our homes to make sure we are in time for the Christmas celebration, we should flock to share the good news of the Gospel to the weary world that is waiting for Good News about which they can rejoice.
I challenge you, look at the lyrics of your favorite Christmas carol and wait for God to open your eyes to a new way of life. You won’t regret it!
by Emily Howsden | Dec 10, 2018
TIS THE SEASON FOR ONLINE SHOPPING—Fa la la la la, la la la la. I don’t know about you all, but I don’t participate in Black Friday. However, one of my favorite days of the year is, you guessed it, Cyber Monday.
In years past, you could say that I did 50 percent of my Christmas shopping online, and the other 50 percent I would find on miscellaneous retail websites. That isn’t the case this year.
This year I did 98 percent of my shopping exclusively online. My husband and I bought for 14 total people, some being a “couple gift,” and two things TOTAL, out of all of those, were purchased in-store, only after I had done online research and discovered that, indeed, the in-store price was comparable, and convenient.
Did you catch the last word of that last sentence? CONVENIENT. That is why I do what I do — especially now that I have a five-month-old who is super susceptible to all the germs. Online shopping is the most convenient way for me to buy things for the people I love.
Let me tell you more reasons why I am the way I am:
- Rather than loading up my son’s diaper bag with extra diapers, extra outfits, all the food he might need, and extra layers (because it’s winter), instead, he can do whatever he pleases from the comfort of our home. No need to disturb naptime and be that poor soul in the store who has a screaming baby (I feel for those moms), when I can simply open up my laptop and have the world at my fingertips.
- I mentioned all it takes to get a baby out of the house in the dead of winter. What I didn’t mention is the meandering that I do once inside the store, all while said baby, whom I’ve packed most of his earthly belongings, has a very real internal timer of the amount of time he will be happy while in his car seat inside the cart. My child is extremely happy and doesn’t really have a problem with his car seat. However, even he has his limits, and heaven forbid I be in the store and not have what I wanted to buy picked out when said limit is reached. Let’s just say I have spent time in a store with my nearly 15-pound son in one arm while pushing the shopping cart with the other hand, and I was actively sweating by the time I finished.
- No lines. In fact, that may be my favorite thing about online shopping. There is virtually no waiting! If something is in stock online, it will say in-stock. I don’t have to search several aisles to try to find said item. And what do they tell you when you are in a store and you need to purchase an item that isn’t in-stock in the store? “You can purchase this online, and we’ll ship it to you.” HELLO. Proof that you should have stayed home in your pajamas and done your shopping that way.
- Another thing I enjoy about online shopping is the lack of human interaction. Call me antisocial, BUT, do you have a story about a crazy interaction with another customer, an employee at the store, or any other human? I can’t begin to recall the maddness I’ve experienced while Christmas shopping in stores. People are usually at their worst in stores this time of year. Save yourself the stress and potential repenting to God later, and just shop online without having to confront other people.
- You don’t have to drive all over kingdom come. If you’re anything like me, rarely ever do you find what you need for everyone on your list in one place. Shopping online saves gas money and keeps your blood pressure low because you don’t have to deal with holiday traffic jams.
I could go on for days about why I prefer online shopping rather than in store. The pros and cons list is almost 200 to 1. There are exceptions however, like: Archaic websites that don’t offer free shipping (Thank you Amazon Prime); mom and pop or local stores that offer a pleasing experience, which is half of the reason you shop local anyway; some unique items to your city or town may not be online; and then the best reason to ever shop in a store is sometimes you can go to a store and the store tells you what you need, i.e. any shopping trip to Target or Hobby Lobby. But those are special occasions, and generally best enjoyed sans husband or baby.
I’m not going to try to put a biblical spin on this subject, because the truth of the matter is that it’s 100 percent consumerist based. I will, however, encourage you while you are buying Christmas gifts (hopefully from the comfort of your couch), to think about those who don’t have the luxury to buy their loved ones gifts this Christmas.
Think about someone who you could buy a gift for that may not have anyone to share the holiday with, or a child whose parents can’t afford gifts this year, or just think about spending time with someone who might enjoy your presence rather an a present. If you must buy gifts for anyone this Christmas, consider these people first.
Happy shopping!
by Emily Howsden | Dec 3, 2018
Over the weekend, President George H. W. Bush died at the age of 94. Previously, I didn’t know much about President Bush, considering the fact that he was president before I was born. But after doing some studying, and seeing the reactions of people, liberal and conservative, what a legacy he left.
I was listening to a radio show this morning that said H. W. served the United States of America for most of his life, starting when he served in World War II as a pilot. He flew 58 combat missions for the Navy, and was shot down in 1944. He survived the plane crash as a 20-year-old aviator and earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for his efforts.
Then, he attended Yale University, and was first basemen and captain on the university baseball team. I heard someone say about that fact, “Could he be any more American?” It also was reported that H.W. was the first president to throw out the first pitch at a Major League Baseball game from the pitcher’s mound.
He lost not once but twice when running for Senate after moving his family to Texas and working in oil related jobs. He did a lot of work in oil, founding many companies, to put it lightly. Shortly after his defeat in the senate race, H.W. was appointed by President Nixon as an ambassador to the United Nations, and later he would become chairman of the Republican National Committee.
H.W. served in the CIA, and then finally announced his candidacy for president, but later announced his support for Reagan. Some may not know that he served as President for eight hours when President Reagan was shot.
According to Britannica.com, some of his biggest Presidential accomplishments included the end of the Cold War. “Bush’s presidency coincided with world events of large proportion, including the collapse of communism in eastern Europe and the Soviet Union and the reunification of Germany. In November 1990 Bush met with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in Paris and signed a mutual nonaggression pact, a symbolic conclusion to the Cold War. They also signed treaties sharply reducing the number of weapons that the two superpowers had stockpiled over the decades of Cold War hostility.”
I heard also that he went skydiving for his 75th, 80th, 85th and even 90th birthdays. What??
But what grabbed my attention most out of all of his accomplishments as the leader of our nation, was a note that he wrote. This note was one that he wrote to Bill Clinton, who took over as President in 1992.
Clinton defeated H. W. in the Presidential election. He was his opposite, his competition, and someone who in today’s version of politics, Bush would likely slander and spew hate towards. But in fact, it was quite the opposite. Here is what he said to President Clinton in a letter dated January 20, 1993:
“Dear Bill,
When I walked into this office just now I felt the same sense of wonder and respect that I felt years ago. I know you will feel that, too.
I wish you great happiness here. I never felt the loneliness some Presidents have described.
There will be very tough times, made even more difficult by criticism you may not think is fair. I’m not a very good one to give advice; but just don’t let the critics discourage you or push you off course.
You will be our President when you read this note. I wish you well. I wish your family well.
Your success now is our country’s success. I am rooting hard for you. Good Luck—George”
In an article by the Washington Post it says, “Years later, Clinton did the same for his own successor, George W. Bush. Clinton wrote in his memoir that he ‘wanted to be gracious and encouraging, as George Bush had been to me.’”
H. W. displayed the character I think the leader of the free world should display. He was respectful and gentlemanly. He was an American hero, a husband, father, grandfather and more. Our country is privileged to call him a President, and I respect any man who treats someone whom they lost to with such dignity and respect.
Attitude reflects leadership, to quote the great movie “Remember the Titans.”
I think because our leadership isn’t quite like it was with H.W., that is one reason our nation is more divided that it has ever been. I hope our country can return someday to behaving like H.W. did in his final statement to Clinton, “Your success now is our country’s success. I am rooting hard for you.”
Rest in Peace, Mr. President.
by Emily Howsden | Nov 26, 2018
If you could travel anywhere in the world, in general or ever for the holidays, where would you go?
There is so much to do and see out there in the world. I’ve had the privilege to do some traveling in my lifetime, and I always find that the journey I take while travelling leaves me a more informed person.
I’ve been to both U.S. coasts, many times. I’ve been to Central America, Canada, the Caribbean, Europe and all over the great state of Oklahoma. Which brings me to my favorite place to travel.
That’s right, my favorite place to travel is home. No matter where I am in the world, no matter how historic or how breath-taking it may be, it will never be as special as Verdigris, Oklahoma, because that’s where my family is.
I love nothing more than the drive to my parents’ house, with all of the familiar scenes from my adolescence. Except these days, I always play a game to see what part of my home has changed since I last visited.
Verdigris is a small town that is northeast of Tulsa. There is a Dollar General, a Sonic, a Daylight Donuts, Casey’s General store, and QuickTrip—basically the businesses that are in every small town in Oklahoma. Most of these things, minus the Daylight Donuts and Quick Trip, have been new additions since I graduated high school and moved away for college.
The old high school parking lot, where my car used to get stuck if it rained too much because it was a glorified field, has since been paved and made into a real parking lot. I wonder if Kody Bartley sees that parking lot and rues the day that he got mud all over his dress pants and dress shirt just because he helped me and my sister Abby get unstuck?
Our football stadium, where I played many soccer games—and skinned many knees because in the early springtime in Oklahoma, Bermuda grass is glorified dirt—has since received a major facelift with turf and a real track.
We used to run around the old football field in circles and only experienced running on a track when we went to track meets, because our school didn’t have one yet.
There are now covered walk-ways from building to building at my old high school, which is laughable when I consider the days I got drenched running to classes across campus in the rain.
But despite all the quirks and shortcomings, Verdigris is my home. As I traveled back home over Thanksgiving, I wondered how Joseph and Mary felt as they traveled back to Bethlehem so many years ago?
Did Joseph feel nostalgic? Did he hope they didn’t run into too many people that he used to know? Did they know that they were about to become parents to a baby who would one day save the world?
There is one place that we will all go and call home one day because of that very baby. It will be the biggest homecoming the world has ever known. This homecoming will be accompanied by choirs of angels and trumpets sounds. That is the one place that I know I’ll love going more than Verdigris, Oklahoma.
I hope you don’t miss this homecoming. There are a few things you can do to reserve your spot there. First, admit that you’re a sinner and you have fallen short of the Glory of God. Second, trust that Jesus is your Lord and Savior. Finally, proclaim this Good News from the mountaintops and go make disciples of your fellow man.
What a glorious day it will be when we all get to Heaven. I hope I see you there, old friend.