Breath of Heaven - Amy Grant

Breathe of Heaven

The first time I heard this song, at a community Christmas concert a few years ago, it took my breath away. What a huge burden of responsibility Mary must have felt, to carry the Christ child. Surely she must have needed the comfort and reassurance of the Spirit constantly. I'm sure she had guardian angles around her at all times.

I believe we all have times when the burdens we have to bear seem too much. What I love about this song is the message of reaching out to God to help us do what we have to do, and even just to exist from day to day. "Help me be strong. Help me be. Help me." We have heavenly help available to us too, if only we will ask.

I Need a Silent Night

Do you ever feel like you just need to step away from all the holiday rush and take a breath?

Give This Christmas Away - Operation Christmas Child

Here's an opportunity to teach your children (and yourself) how wonderful it feels to share with those who are less fortunate. Operation Christmas Child is a project run by the Samaritan's Purse ministries to deliver Christmas gifts to needy children overseas. It's a simple thing to fill a shoebox with gifts to delight a child. Watch the video. You'll get the general idea. Then you can follow the link above to find instructions, gift suggestions, and dropoff locations.

Breath of Heaven and Heirlooms

Here are two beautiful Christmas songs from Amy Grant. The first is "Breath of Heaven," sung from Mary's point of view.



This next song is "Heirlooms." I love how it ties together families and Christ, which are "all that I come from, and all that I live for, and all that I'm going to be."


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And speaking of families (how's that for a segway), the Family Record Keeper was created by Mary Greathouse. It's one binder style book with sections to record all the important information for your family and your life. Have you ever had to look everywhere for your children's immunization records? How about trying to remember where your son is at in the scouting program? How about everyone's school schedules and work schedules and church meetings? This is the one place to track everything. It's a handy size, just 7" x 9", to fit in a purse for a visit to the doctor, or in a 72-hour kit in case of emergency. I can think of several people (like me) who could really use this as a Christmas present.

Here is what Mary says on her blog about how she came up with Family Record Keeper.

"As the mother of seven, I know just how hard it is to keep track of everyone's important records. My own calendars....wherever they are now... are covered with special events, health crises, activities and so many other things that I need access to. I got tired of pulling out seven baby books to access dates and medical records, including immunizations. Not to mention no one made a book for MY medical records as an adult.

"I got the big idea that I should have all of those records in one book that I could drag around with me or grab in an emergency. Kind of a hand sized command center. No one made such a product. And it wouldn't have room for nine people if they did. Hey! I could use a three-ring binder like my cookbooks and add all the people I needed. Plus, I could keep the book with my cookbooks where I could actually find it. Voila! The Family Record Keeper."

Click on this link for ordering information.

Heirlooms - Amy Grant

Breath of Heaven - Amy Grant

This is such a beautiful song, depicting what Mary, the mother of Jesus, might have felt. The visuals, from "The Nativity," produced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, seem to fit the music perfectly.

Amy Grant - Advent Calendar Day 4

Today's post is for Kerry.

I always thought Mary must have been a very special young woman to be chosen as the mother of the Savior. But when I first heard "Breath of Heaven" sung at our community Christmas concert a few years ago, I was struck with the thought that Mary was very young and was dealing with a huge responsibility. She must have been overwhelmed at times. But she could call on God for help. Sometimes, my prayers echo the line from the song, "Help me be strong. Help me be. Help me." And God makes me just a little stronger.




Here's another song by Amy Grant called "Heirlooms."



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