Christmas Quiz Answers!!!

Wow!!! I was very surprised at the big response I got with the Christmas quiz. I'm very glad, though, that y'all also found it an interesting quiz. I couldn't believe how many 'hollywood' answers I gave. Well, now it's your turn to see what you got!!!

I'm posting the answers down below. My mom had the biblical side of the answers somewhere, but we can't find them, so I'm going to do my best to remember... or I may not try at all.. ;-) hehe!

Q: 1. When Mary became pregnant, Mary and Joseph were:
 B. engaged

Mathew 1:18 (engaged would be the modern term for 'betrothed')

Q: 2. When Mary became pregnant
E. both B (Joseph wanted to split up) and C (Mary left Nazareth for a while)

Mathew 1:19, Luke 1:38-39

Q: 3. Who directed Mary and Joseph to go to Bethlehem?
C. Caesar (was that the early IRS??)

They were going for the Census

Q: 4. Joseph's family was originally from:
B. Bethlehem

Luke 2:4

Q: 5. For the journey to Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph (walked, rode a donkey, etc)
D. the Bible does not say

Q: 6. Who told Joseph to name the baby Jesus?

C: an angel of the Lord 

Mathew 1:21

Q: 7. What did the innkeeper say to Mary and Joseph?
D. none of the above

There is no innkeeper in the Bible. It simply says that there was no room at the inn. Luke 2:7

Q: 8. The baby Jesus was most likely born in a
D. house

This answer is based off of historical accounts of where animals were usually kept in a house, or in modern terms, a 'lean to' right next to the house with a small, long window where they could feed them and keep them warm. I imagine that having the animals inside the house helped with your heating bills! ;-) 

Q: 9. What animals were present at Jesus' birth?
D. the Bible does not say

Q: 10. What is a manger anyway?
B. a feeding trough

Q: 11. When did the baby Jesus cry?
B. whenever babies usually cry

When Jesus came to earth, He was made human. Human babies cry, so it is likely that He cried as well.

Q: 12. How many angels spoke to the shepherds?
B. one    

Just one actually spoke directly to the Shepherds, and then the rest joined him. 

Q: 13. What sign were the shepherds told to look for?
 C. a baby in a manger

Luke 2:12

Q: 14. Just what is a 'heavenly host?'
C. an army of angels

Q: 15. What song did the angels sing?
D. none of the above

"...and there appeared with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and  SAYING..." Luke 2:13

Q: 16. Who saw the star over Bethlehem?
B. the wise men

Only the wise men saw the star (see Q.13)

Q: 17. How many wise men came to see Jesus?
D. the Bible does not say

Mathew 2:1 It simply says Magi (or wise men in different translations). 'men' would indicate more than one, but it never specifies how many for sure. However, there were the three gifts.

Q: 18. What in the world are Magi?
D. astrologers

They say this because astrologers would have better noticed a new and bright star as opposed to some king from the east... or been intrigued enough to follow it!

Q: 19. When the wise men brought their gifts to Jesus, they found him in:
B. a house

Mathew 2:11

Q: 20. For about 250 years after Christ's birth, Christmas was celebrated
D. not celebrated at all

Alright! Now you can go and check you answers on the other post (I published all the comments) to see how you did! It really is funny. :-)  I'm thinking that, since I got a great response on this one, that I might do another quiz. This would be on Christmas songs. Anyone up for the challenge? 

I pray everyone had a very Merry Christmas and that y'all will have a wonderful rest of the week!! 

Christmas Quiz #1

Hello lovely readers!

As we get nearer and nearer to Christmas day, the stress level seems to hit the top of the charts as we try to rush those last Christmas gifts, finish up the last bits of wrapping, and hope you don't run out of ingredients for all the Christmas baking that you still have to do.

In all of the bustle, we tend to lose sight of the real meaning of Christmas. Even as Christians we can sometimes get 'wrapped up' (excuse the pun) with the gifts, the baking, the things to be done, etc, etc. It isn't easy to sit back and just think about that very first Christmas. That holy night when our Savior was born. can you imagine what it must have been like? What was going through the minds of those Shepherds when they saw their Messiah before them? Did they realize that He was actually going to DIE for them, or were they like the rest of the Jews, thinking He would be powerful and smite their enemies? What about the wise men? Did they really realize WHO He was? Who that babe would be when He grew up? I mean, they knew He was the Messiah, but could they have really known Who and What He would become?  And Joseph! What about Joseph? As he gazed down at the babe in Mary's arms, did doubtful thoughts run through his mind? Thoughts like, how am I going to raise the Son of God? What kind of a father can I be to him? How can I give Him the training that He needs?

Then there was Mary. The woman who had carried this child for 9 months, knowing that she was going to give birth to something so special, so wonderful. How humbled she must have felt when that Angel first told her these tidings. How in awe must she have been? Did she realize that those tiny feet had walked in Heaven? That the little voice, now making nothing  but baby noises, had once commanded Angels? Did she realize that when she was kissing his little cheek, that she was kissing the Son of God? Below is the song that asks those very questions. Mark Lowry wrote this song, and, although there have been many different versions out there, I think his is the best.


Alright, to see how well y'all know the Christmas story, I'm putting up a quiz. Now, there are a few rules that you need to follow, so please be sure to read them below. :-)

1. You must answer these off the top of your heads NO LOOKING in your bible to find the answer. Answer as honestly as you can remember and no cheating. This is just for fun, so let's try to keep it that way. :-) I promise I won't share your answers with anyone.

2. You'll need to write the answers in a comment. be sure to number each answer to the question (ex. Question #1: Who was Mary? -you would put- Answer #1: a. She was the virgin who gave birth to Jesus Christ.

3. You will then submit your comment. I WILL NOT be publishing them, just so y'all know. Otherwise it might give answers away. :-) I might decide to post them after the quiz is done, but if you don't want yours posted, please be sure to say so.

4. Spread the word about this!!! It will be fun to see your friend's and family's answers! :-)

Just so y'all know, I didn't get all of these right. So, no pressure. :-) Also, I recommend that you write your answers down somewhere else so that when I post the correct answers, you can go back and check them (in the case that your comment wasn't published). :-) Alright! So here it goes!

Question #1: When Mary became pregnant, Mary and Joseph were:
a. married            b.engaged
c. just friends       d. none of the above

Question #2:  When Mary became pregnant...
a. Joseph Married her      b. Joseph wanted to dissolve their relationship
c. Mary left Nazareth for a while    d. and Angel told them to go to Bethlehem
e. Both B and C              f. Both B and D

Question #3: Who directed Mary and Joseph to go to Bethlehem?
a. Herod             b. An angel
c. Caesar            d. The IRS

Question #4: Joseph's family was originally from:
a. Jerusalem        b. Bethlehem
c. Nazareth         d. None of the above

Question #5: For the journey to Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph...
a. Walked          b. Joseph walked, Mary rode a donkey
c. Took a bus     d. The Bible does not say.

Question #6: Who told Joseph to name the bay Jesus?
a. Mary            b. the chief priests and scribes
c. and angel of the Lord.    d. Herod the king

Question #7: What did the innkeeper say to Mary and Joseph?
a. There's no room at the inn    b. I have a stable out back
c. Both A and B        d. None of the above

Question #8: The baby Jesus was most likely born in a:
a. cave            b. tent
c. stable          d. house

Question #9" What animals were present at Jesus birth?
a. cows, sheep, and camels   b. cows, chickens and donkeys
c. lions, tigers, and bears       d. the Bible does not say.

Question #10: What was a manger anyway?
a. a small shed       b. a feeding trough
c. a place to keep hay    d. a Greek term for a nursery.

Question #11: When did baby Jesus cry?
a. when He saw the wise men       b. whenever babies usually cry
c. when the cattle started lowing     d. no crying He makes

Question #12: How many angels spoke to the shepherds?
a. A multitude        b. one
c. two- Gabriel and Michael    d. who knows

Question #13: What sign were the shepherds to look for?
a. a star over a stable   b. a barn outlined with Christmas lights
c. a baby in a manger    d. both A and C

Question #14: Just what is a "heavenly host"?
a. an angelic choir    b. the welcoming angel in heaven
c. an army of angels   c. none of the above

Question #15: What song did the angels sing?
a. "O Little Town of Bethlehem"    b. Handel's Messiah
c. "Glory to God in the Highest"   d. none of the above

Question #16: Who saw the star over Bethlehem?
a. Mary and Joseph     b. the wise men
c. shepherds     d. Both B and C
e. None of the above

Question #17: How many wise men (or magi) came to see Jesus?
a. one        b. three
c. Twelve      d. the Bible doesn't say

Question #18: What in the world are Magi?
a.Persian tribal kings     b. men of a sacerdotal caste
c. magicians          d. astrologers

Question #19: When the wise men brought their gifts to Jesus, they found Him in:
a. a stable         b. a house
c. a church        d. an inn

Question #20: For about 250 years after Christ's birth, Christmas was celebrated on:
a. January 6       b. March 21
c. May 20         d. It was note celebrated at all.



Alright! Write down your answers, put them in a comment, and post it. Now be sure to tell all your friends. :-)  I'll be posting a couple other quizzes in the next day or two. I'd hoped to get this done several days before Christmas so I had more time... however, it is what it is. :-) This year has been slightly wacky for our family. Mostly just that we haven't been able to do all the 'traditions' we normally do. However, it is wonderful to know that even though this Christmas season might be different, our Savior never changes. :-)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

So Close, Yet Still So Far to Go

I sometimes feel like I've made great progress in my walk with Christ. I feel like I'm finally beginning to understand this or that and I feel elated with my progress. Guess that should be the first sign that I'm not as far as I think I've come! However, I will say that I do tend to know when I've grown more in the Lord. It shows itself in many ways, usually small things here and there. Maybe I don't just yell at my brothers when I'm mad at them. Instead I'm able to bite back the cutting words and speak gently, or at least with more kindness than what I would have done earlier! Or perhaps I feel more like serving my family one day, or maybe when I don't grudge about housework when I feel like I've done everything. In any case, I believe God is faithful to let us know that we are growing, that He loves us, and that He is proud of our determination, dedication, and hard work.

Yet, somehow I still feel like I'll never reach my goal. My goal of becoming more like Jesus every day. I have my setbacks and cringe, after I've yelled at a sibling, to know that the Devil has prevailed once again. I know that a lot of folks have said, 'well, we'll never be perfect, so there's no use trying'. Believe it or not, we can be perfect. Now before you exit out of my blog thinking that I've totally lost it, let me explain. I've been reading a book called 'Hungry for More of Jesus' by David Wilkerson and have found a lot of his thoughts have spot on. One of the things he said, though, was that we can be perfect. We need to strive to be more and more like Jesus. Well, if Jesus was perfect and we can be like Him, then we can be perfect. Now, unfortunately sin has entered the world, so we 'can't' be perfect because of that, yet we can strive for all we are worth to be so.

One of my newest revelations that God has shown me recently is to trust Him in ALL things, the big and the small. I was laughing one day, thinking about my 'business', if you can call it that. For a couple of months now, I've been cleaning house for a couple. It's a wonderful job for me because its something that I can do, and it isn't far from where I live. I was thinking how nice it would be to get another house to clean in the nearby area. I've got several things I'm saving up for, so why not? I began to fret and worry about how I was going to go about asking for house cleaning job. You might think, 'well, do the same thing you did to get the first one'. Ah yes, well that was totally a God thing. My brother and I ran into a friend at the grocery store, visited for a few minutes, then went on our merry way. Little did I know that God was answering my prayers-prayers to find a job so that I would be able to get my books published. This man went home, told his wife (who had just lost her other cleaning lady) that he had seen us, and didn't think much of it, I imagine. However, she did and the idea came that perhaps I would like to clean house. We had attended church with them for many years a while back, so we knew them pretty well. She liked the idea of having an independent, trustworthy young lady cleaning her house. So, she called me up and I've been cleaning ever since. Any way, that was obviously a 'God thing', as I might call it.

Well, there I was, worrying about how I was going to get another house, when it dawned on me. "Sarah," that little voice said. "What do you think you should do? You should trust God! He'll bring another house if He wills it. Now, you pray that He'll give you an answer, and then sit back and watch." I chuckled to myself, realizing how I really hadn't been trusting God! I trust Him to bring me a husband, tell me how to live my life, and yet I forget to trust Him about the little things in life. How foolish I am! Ah, thinking I've made leaps and bounds, yet still suffering great set-backs. I will say that, although He hasn't shown me the answer to my prayer yet, I know that He has heard me and will answer in His timing.

So, I've been trying to work on trusting Him more on the small things, as well as the big. He has proven to me over and over again that He has it under control and that nothing can stop Him from doing His works. He has surprised me with enough funds to publish my book, has blessed me with the knowledge of the next step that I'm to take, and has shown me His unending love and mercy. How can I continue to doubt that He will take care of me? It is something that I am still learning, I'm afraid. However, I am glad to know that He IS working on me, and that He loves me enough to keep pushing me beyond my limits so that I continue to grow in Him and His love.

It gives me strength to know that I still can strive to be perfect like Christ. I won't get there on my own, but God will continually guide me and give me what I need to make it through.
Just a few rambling thoughts from a learning student. :-)

In Which I Tell You About Our Adventures

Hello my lovely readers! I'm finally posting after having been gone for some time to tell you about a wonderful adventure I've just gone on. Accompanying me was my beloved family. This sort of adventure is what is called, I believe, a vacation.

Yes, we were finally able to go on a lovely, 5 day vacation! I will let everyone know, at this moment, that our family hasn't taken a vacation in 6 years, and it was with a multitude of excited cheers that we set off on our little adventure. We programmed our ship to head due West, towards the great state of California, on Tuesday, November 20th. Our first leg of the journey was rather boring, but, armed with audio books, crocheting, and other things of employment, we were able to make many miles before we stopped in the very warm state of Arizona for an overnight stay.

We awoke refreshed and ready to travel again. As we neared California, the excitement mounted once again, although whether it was from the thought of getting out of the tiny rental car, or getting to our destination, I'm still at a loss to know.

Ah! California at last! The state right next to the ocean! The state that had palm trees growing on the side of the streets. Oh my! What a shock for these poor desert folks to come up to a place where it practically rains every evening. Where everything around them was green, green, green. Why, we had to learn that color on our way up in order to know what it was. Perhaps I'm exaggerating, but it is very close to the truth.

 ('Birds of Paradise'. These were just so cool!!)

 (Normally we have rocks and gravel in our medians... not so here!)

(All the beautiful palm trees!!!)

Our first business was to find the hotel. During this rather stressful point in our journey, we learned that the TomTom knows much more than an ordinary paper map. Thankfully, being armed with this wonderful device, we finally 'reached our destination' (in the words of the TomTom).

We scrambled out of our means of transportation and quickly unloaded into our lodgings. Everyone had a bed, which is quite a bonus for our larger family, and we settled in at a speed which would surprise a race car. (or perhaps just a turtle).

Our first thing for this grand adventure was attending a meal with the king and his daughter at a lovely place called, Medieval Times. There, we were given crowns, placed in our seats along a very long, narrow table, and settled in for our meal. What luck! The princess had arranged a tournament of the knights for her guests. We had front row seats and had a very good view of every event that happened.

(Our handsome knights. I have to admit that they were MUCH better looking than the ones in the ring! They are wearing some tunics that I made recently.)

There was jousting, sword fighting, and several other competitions. Our knight, the Green Knight, won several different competitions. We feasted on soup, chicken, potatoes, beef, and bread. All on tin plates and cups, and having no utensils. This was quite fun, though, and everyone heartily enjoyed it.

(This guy was the horse trainer. He did a couple of spectacular little shows in-between fights with his beautiful horses.)

(The first two knights next to ours - Red and Yellow, and Blue- are our allies)

However, the evening would soon see a disturbance to this jolly gathering. An evil knight appeared and wanted to bring the princess to his master in order for their to be peace between the two countries. Well, this wouldn't do! Our knight, along with 2 other comrades, set off to the Grand Tournament in order to defend their Lady.

 (The King deciding what he shall do)

This was when the real jousting began. Splinters of wood flew everywhere as the knights collided with their wooden spears. Both were still astride their steeds (which were just beautiful, I might add). Another joust would have to happen. This time, our opponent fell. However, he recovered and continued the fight from the ground. The Green Knight soon jumped from his steed, and relied on his shield and his Morning Star (this is a weapon, I've checked with my historical tutor). The Morning Star soon proved fruitless, and both knights engaged in hand to hand combat with their trusty swords. Sparks flew, ringing sounded all around. Finally, the Green knight conquered the enemy. (Sadly, my camera died on me right as the 'real' fighting began.. and I'd forgotten to put the extra battery in the case!)

It started over again with a new knight from each side. I will shorten my tale by saying that our side won in the end, although the Green Knight was not the final conqueror. However, the Blue Knight, our ally, was and  we were all satisfied. The evil knight was taken away to the dudgeon and our fair lady was saved. Thus ended the lovely evening. We headed back to our lodgings quite satisfied and jolly. The next day would prove to be another adventurous one, but that shall have to hold for another time.