Stairs and pride seem to go together. You know. Pride goes before a fall. Stairs have previously been my "downfall" (no pun intended).

There is danger of my breaking an arm, patting myself on the back this afternoon. Picture a stately Southern mansion with a large staircase in the center of the entrance hall that goes to a landing, turning both to the right and the left at the top. Such is the staircase in the former mansion that houses the church offices, some rooms used for classes and others for receptions. I haven't been to the second floor in at least two years. The stairs were impossible for me to navigate. Shorter flights have been taken one step at a time, leaving me winded at the top. Today when we arrived at the church for Bible study I had something that needed to go to one of the secretaries on the second floor and I thought, "I can do this." And, I did. I walked up those stairs like a normal person, not one stair at a time, and wasn't winded at the top. Seriously, friends, that's an answer to prayer for energy and renewed strength!!

My excitement and enthusiasm for teaching and preaching continue to grow. There are some Sundays that I can't wait until the next one because I'm so excited about the series we're in. Next month I being teaching Joshua in a women's circle in our Jackson church and I'm really looking forward to that. I've also started writing daily Advent devotionals again, the ones this year based on Advent and Christmas hymns. We covet your prayers as we live each day at a time, trusting God for provision.

Life is lived one step (or stair) at a time. I would have wasted a lot less time in my life, had I embraced that fact at an earlier age.

Blessings,
Pastor Margaret