A heart-warming set of Christmas tales to entertain and enrich the holiday season. Light of the World - Natasha Duncan-Drake Kit and Sam have been together now for six years and three years ago they renovated and moved into Sam's parent's old house in a small village. Sam wants to revive the family tradition of a huge Christmas party, so what's his reclusive vampire husband to do, but say yes and try and melt into the shadows. Winter's Curse - Sophie Duncan Pippin is worried about her father who is deathly ill. She knows him as Papa C, the rest of the world calls him Father Christmas. Something is very wrong and dark magic is involved. Their only hope is a strange, dangerous woman who frightens Pippin, but she will do anything to save her father.
This Christmas, Lily finds everything she was always looking for, right here on Clayton Avenue. When Lily Fairchild runs into her high school sweetheart twenty years after breaking his heart, feelings she thought were long gone come flooding back. A busy single mother with twins about to graduate high school she isn’t sure if there’s room for anyone else in her life. Neil Roberts is back in Holly Oak just in time for the holiday and can’t believe his luck when he runs into Lily. Gorgeous as ever he is ready to pick up right where they left off, but soon realizes that it may take a little convincing. When his own children surprise him with a visit, will this complicate things more or will their families blend together, seamlessly? If dear Rose and Aunt Betty have anything to do with it, they may get a second chance for Christmas after all. If you like second chances, the one that got away, he falls first, medical settings, matchmaking, small towns, tons of family togetherness, baking, bookshop cats and cute dachshunds you will love The Light of Christmas.
"Christmas! 'Tis the season for kindling the fire of hospitality in the hall, the genial fire of charity in the heart."No holiday has the power to captivate our senses or dominate our memories quite like Christmas. And perhaps no contemporary artist has the power to captivate our imaginations quite like Thomas Kinkade. His tranquil, light-infused paintings evoke a world where love, faith, family, and home provide guiding lights for life. In this enchanting book, Kinkade's luminous paintings are accompanied by inspired and joyful words about Christmas from some of history's greatest writers, poets, and thinkers. The Light of Christmas will shine as a family tradition for years to come. Copyright 2005 Thomas Kinkade, The Thomas Kinkade Company, Inc., Morgan Hill, CA
When Alexander helps an old man instead of going to see the annual lighting of the Christmas torch, he does not realize the reward his kindness will bring.
Not all Christmas ornaments sparkle on tree branches. Some are fragile. Easily broken. And joy often disappears like melting snowflakes. We are just like those ornaments and snowflakes. But there is a healing light that can be found at Christmas.
Mattie J. T. Stepanek lived and died a child, but he had the spirit of a giant. Affected by a rare and fatal neuromuscular disease, Mattie lived almost fourteen years but in that time became a poet, best-selling author, peace activist, and a prominent voice for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Before his death in June 2004, his five volumes of Heartsongs poetry sold more than a million copies. Reflections of a Peacemaker: A Portrait Through Heartsongs is the final collection of Heartsongs that Mattie was working on when he died. It includes the last poem Mattie penned along with a special collection of unpublished poetry, photographs, and artwork spanning the decade from when he began writing Heartsongs at age three. Culled from the thousands of poems, essays, and journal entries Mattie left behind, the entries in Reflections of a Peacemaker create a portrait of Mattie in his own words. In these poems he explores disability, despair, and death but also the gifts he finds in nature, prayer, peace, and his belief in something "bigger and better than the here and now." The poems are grouped by theme such as playful, stormy, sacred, and final Heartsongs, with each section introduced by a personal tribute from the likes of Maya Angelou, Oprah Winfrey, Larry King, and former President Jimmy Carter. In the words of Mattie's mother, Jeni Stepanek, who has published Reflections of a Peacemaker at her son's request, "In reading these poems we enter Mattie's world and gain insight through a child who somehow balanced pain and fear with optimism and faith."
In this novel in Thomas Kinkade’s Cape Light series, ’tis the season to celebrate with friends. Some are old, some are new…and some are totally unexpected. It’s the happiest time of year, but the Christmas spirit is lost on Lillian Warwick. Her beloved Ezra’s failing health requires the help of an aide. Estrella Salazar quickly wins Ezra’s admiration, but drives Lillian absolutely crazy. When a brutal storm forces Estrella’s family to take shelter under Lillian’s roof, her humbuggery is pushed to its limits. Amanda Harding, a recent graduate and accomplished musician, reluctantly comes home to Cape Light and hopes to find a seat in a big-city symphony. In the meantime, the job of music director at Reverend Ben’s church seems good enough. Unfortunately, she must share her practice space with Gabriel Bailey, the rough-around-the-edges craftsman. But something rare and wonderful flourishes between them. When Amanda is offered an opportunity to perform far from Cape Light, Gabriel encourages her to pursue it. But must she choose between her music and losing Gabriel forever? As Christmas nears, Lillian and Amanda both hearken to the sound of their favorite carols, but soon learn that sometimes the sweetest songs of Christmas are still waiting to be sung...
DigiCat presents to you a meticulously edited Christmas Classics collection. This ebook has been designed and formatted to the highest digital standards and adjusted for readability on all devices. Content: The Holy Night (Selma Lagerlöf) The Gift of the Magi (O. Henry) A Merry Christmas & Other Christmas Stories (Louisa May Alcott) A Letter from Santa Claus (Mark Twain) Silent Night The Night After Christmas The Child Born at Bethlehem The Adoration of the Shepherds The Visit of the Wise Men As Joseph Was A-Walking The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Beatrix Potter) Where Love Is, God Is (Leo Tolstoy) The Three Kings (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) A Christmas Carol (Samuel Taylor Coleridge) Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (L. Frank Baum) Christmas At Sea (Robert Louis Stevenson) The Savior Must Have Been A Docile Gentleman (Emily Dickinson) The Heavenly Christmas Tree (Fyodor Dostoevsky) The Little City of Hope (F. Marion Crawford) The First Christmas Of New England (Harriet Beecher Stowe) Christmas in the Olden Time (Walter Scott) Christmas In India (Rudyard Kipling) A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens) The Twelve Days of Christmas The Wonderful Wizard of OZ (L. Frank Baum) Ring Out, Wild Bells (Alfred Lord Tennyson) Little Lord Fauntleroy (Frances Hodgson Burnett) Black Beauty (Anna Sewell) The Christmas Child (Hesba Stretton) Granny's Wonderful Chair (Frances Browne) The Romance of a Christmas Card (Kate Douglas Wiggin) Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame) The Wonderful Life - Story of the life and death of our Lord (Hesba Stretton) The Christmas Angel (A. Brown) Christmas at Thompson Hall (Anthony Trollope) Christmas Every Day (William Dean Howells) The Lost Word (Henry van Dyke) The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (E. T. A. Hoffmann) The Little Match Girl The Elves and the Shoemaker Mother Holle The Star Talers Snow-White...
This anthology of holiday material provides you with a complete collection of resources for drama, worship, and young people. It includes a wide range of resources from across the denominational spectrum. Copying privileges are included for all six segments. Come! See What God Has Done is a Thanksgiving children's event designed to heighten awareness of God's many blessings. Six learning centers -- each including posters, projects, a guided experience, follow-up activities, and a closing prayer -- focus on such topics as families, nature, our religious heritage, and our bodies. Intended for kindergarten through sixth grade, this is an ideal activity for your church school and can be held during a single session. A Chrismon Service portrays the drama of redemption through symbols of Jesus in the form of Christmas ornaments. (The word "Chrismon" is a combination of the words "Christ" and "monogram.") As appropriate scripture passages are read, each symbol is presented and explained; worshipers participate in the service by hanging them on the Chrismon tree. Eighteen designs are included so that you can make your own Chrismons based on such symbols as the Epiphany star, the Christmas rose, and the angel. The ABC's Of Christmas offers four easy programs for Christmas worship, celebrating angels, bells, colors, and gifts. Each incorporates scripture, carols, and simple props together with dramatic readings to create a meaningful worship experience that will linger in the memory long after Christmastime passes. The Angels' Point Of View is a play in two acts that looks at Jesus' conception, birth, and flight into Egypt from their perspective. Originally developed for a junior high Sunday school class, this piece is excellent for older youth and can be performed in a variety of settings. There are thirteen speaking roles, and complete directions for assembling props, costume, and scenery are included. In Search Of Christmas is a light, contemporary drama that intersperses a series of brief dialogues between a husband and wife, two teenagers, and others illustrating how we can lose the real meaning of Christmas with faith-affirming conversations among individuals who have kept the season's true spirit of joy and giving. Roles can be doubled up for the small congregation, and only a few basic props are needed. Last Year In Bethlehem: The Story Of Eli The Shepherd reminds us that the story of Christ's birth is more than a holiday tradition. It combines a dramatic monologue with hymns and candlelight for a moving Christmas Eve worship experience. On the first anniversary of the first Christmas, a gruff but friendly shepherd tells of the night that changed his life. Suggestions for costuming, makeup, and staging are included, along with historical background on shepherds during Jesus' time. O Holy Night brings together scripture, song, and poetic readings to create a touching Christmas Eve worship service that can involve several participants without requiring lengthy rehearsal. It is an especially attractive option for smaller churches without many resources, but this enchanting service will be a glorious experience for any congregation.
Three minutes is all it takes to change your day for the better. The rich yet uncomplicated daily reflections in Messages of Light for Advent and Christmas 2022 will guide you from the first Sunday of Advent through Epiphany. With practical, everyday wisdom, Fr. Michael White and Tom Corcoran—authors of the bestselling and award-winning Rebuilt—will help you focus on the season of light in the darkest days of winter. You will learn to accept Christ’s light in your own life by embracing the truth and peace he offers, sharing his light with others, and preparing yourself to celebrate the great feast of Christmas. Each day you’ll read a verse or two of scripture, a short reflection, and a simple prayer prompt that will help you draw closer to God. While each devotion can be completed in about three minutes, you’ll reap the comfort and inspiration they bring throughout the day. The book is affordably priced for bulk purchases by Catholic parishes, schools, and other institutions.
