November 24, 2015 Issue #116

Having a better Christmas this year

Because I've been single more than 40 years, I have felt what you feel. I know the loneliness, disappointment, and alienation Christmas can bring. Maybe you're dreading Christmas. I used to do that.

I'd be lying if I told you I always get through this season without any trouble. It takes effort for me to keep my attitude right. But I'm no different from you, so I'm proof it can be done.

Please understand that I didn't arrive at a better Christmas overnight. It took decades for me to change my attitude. While there's no such thing as instant maturity, I hope to give you younger singles a shortcut by showing you what I learned through years of trial and error.

I'm here to tell you that you can have a more enjoyable Christmas this year. It's realistic. It's achievable, and I'm going to show you how I do it.

Take a look at having a better Christmas.

The telescope

He pulled it out to its full length.
"It's called a telescope, son.
Go outside and look around.
These things are lots of fun."

But when he found me later,
I was feeling very sad.
He asked why I was crying.
I said, "I don't like it, Dad."

"I don't like this telescope.
I don't like the thing at all.
Everything I look at
becomes very, very small."

He gently turned the toy around
put it to my eye and then
"You weren't looking the right way, son
So try the thing again.

"What makes the difference in your life,
as you will travel through it,
is not what happens to you, son,
But instead, the way you view it."

~ Jack Zavada, 2015 ~

Abe wrote our November quote

For hurting singles, this advice makes a lot of sense at Christmas time. I often find myself wondering, "What about my needs? Who cares about me?" How selfish of me! When I really think about it, I've got it pretty good.

Lots of people are hurting more than me this time of year. We each can do something to help a budget-strapped single mom. We can do something kind for a widow or widower we know. (The first Christmas alone is always the worst). We can help kids who wouldn't have a Christmas gift if it weren't for the Salvation Army.

Living alone gives you tunnel vision: You tend to think about me, myself, and I too much. We model the love of Jesus when we help someone else in need. That's what Jesus did. Lincoln was right. We can forget our own suffering when we ease someone else's.

Loneliness isn't just a Christmas thing

This battle is mostly inside your head. Your thoughts can get you in trouble, but your actions can too. Outsmarting Loneliness gives proven tips for right thinking.

You'll discover:

* The secret that busts shyness wide open;
* Why clubs and organizations will welcome you with open arms;
* The surprising truth about people who go to church;
* The right kind of hobby to pick to make friends;
* What you must know before you get a pet;
* How to recognize an "Irresponsible" before they wreck your life;
* The empowering truth about loneliness.

Choose between two formats: PDF ebook that you download directly to your computer or tablet, or Kindle ebook you download to your Kindle.

Check out all the details at Outsmarting Loneliness.

Quotations about God's greatest gift

God will prepare everything for our perfect happiness in heaven, and if it takes my dog being there, I believe he'll be there.
Billy Graham

If I am not allowed to laugh in heaven, I don't want to go there.
Martin Luther

You will not be in heaven two seconds before you cry out, why did I place so much importance on things that were so temporary? What was I thinking? Why did I waste so much time, energy and concern on what wasn't going to last?
Rick Warren

If you are a Christian, you are not a citizen of this world trying to get to heaven; you are a citizen of heaven making your way through this world.
Vance Havner

The church is not the way to heaven; the church is the sign that points to heaven.
Adrian Rogers

There are no crown-wearers in heaven who were not cross-bearers here below.
Charles Spurgeon

The nearer anyone is to heaven, the more earnestly he desires to be there, because Christ is there.
John Owen

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal.
Thomas Moore

Treat yourself to these fr'ee Christmas novels!

Here are the download pages:

Mary's Christmas Gift, a modern novel about single executive Mary Chapman, who finds herself pregnant at Christmas time, and how God steps into her life in a big way.

A Cowboy's Christmas Prayer, with over 40,000 downloads, is by far our most popular fr'eebie on the web site. It tells the 1880s story of Gretchen Norgard, a widow with a teenage son, and the broken-down cowboy who wins her heart.

Appalachian Christmas Dream, set in the early 1900s in America's coal country, features young school teacher Junie Corban and her dream to teach illiterate adults how to read and write.

Thanks for answering our survey!

As usual, you can reach me by email via our secure contact form or email me at jack@inspiration-for-singles.com. I always appreciate hearing your comments on the newsletter or web site.

A quick note on Thanksgiving. Nobody's life is perfect, even the lives of those who seem to have perfect lives. Rather than envying those folks for what they have, let's try to be grateful this year for what we do have. When you have Jesus as your Savior, you are rich in all that counts!

If you celebrate Thanksgiving where you live, have a peaceful, relaxed holiday this year. Let someone else know you're grateful for them, too.

Until December,

Jack Zavada