In Keeping with Tradition

In Keeping with Tradition

We often share Christmas traditions that our families have shared. Each one has very special meaning especially if passed down from generation to generation. I would like to share one that we all should incorporate into our lives, one that has been passed down from generations in the family of God:

“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: after His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.

Then Joseph her husband being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, Son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel which is translated, “God with us”.

Then Joseph being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus.

Matthew 1:18-25

When reading the above verses we see that Mary is with child, the Christ child. Joseph desires to protect Mary from the ‘humiliation’ that she may face or possibly a stoning. Joseph also being a just man more than likely desired to protect his name and reputation. So he wants to send Mary away secretly.

Yet, what happens next?

“But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, Son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Matthew 1:20-21

While Joseph was pondering this very thing and angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream.

~What was Joseph’s response?

He did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife.

He did as the angel of the Lord commanded him.

~Do we do as we are commanded by the Lord?

I am sure that all of us at one time or another have been faced with a difficult decision to make. Being human, we tend to think in more ‘practical’ ways rather than spiritual and really for us as Christians thinking spiritually is thinking practically.

~What do you think causes us to re-act in a ‘practical’ fashion?

FEAR

Perhaps: Fear of Humiliation

Perhaps: Fear of being Outcast or Shunned

Perhaps: Fear of Offending

Perhaps: Fear of …fill in the blank

Let’s see what 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 7 says:

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7

We have not been given a spirit of fear but one of:

-The Power of the Holy Spirit

-The Love of God

-A Sound Mind being focused on Jesus

Just as Mary and Joseph did, let’s focus on Jesus, our Savior.

Upon reading Joseph’s account I couldn’t help but think of the Sunday School song “This Little Light of Mine”. Joseph and Mary both made the decision to be obedient and not hide the Lord.

~Do we tend to ‘hide’ that light under a bushel when in fear?

Hide it under a bushel….NO! We need to shine for Jesus.

Let’s look at Jesus’ words in Matthew chapter 5,

“You are a light of the world, A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.”

Matthew 5:14-15

~What happens when we shine for the Lord?

Others recognize a difference in us from the world. I am reminded of what Michael has mentioned in his teachings of the worst thing that a Christian can be told,

“Oh, I never knew that you were a Christian.”

OUCH! I never want to hear that because I never want to misrepresent my Lord.

The next thing that happens when our light shines,

People experience the Lord through us:

-We can offer them Love through Jesus

-We can offer them Comfort through Jesus

-We can offer them Joy through Jesus

-We can offer them Hope through Jesus

-We can offer them Peace through Jesus

-We can offer them the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

A quote from William Bradford:

“One small candle may light a thousand”

If you think that you cannot make a difference for the Lord, think again. He equips us to do His will. He is everything and gives us everything we need to live a life that is glorifying to Him.

When we live a life for Jesus, the Lord is magnified. Let’s be encouraged to not be swayed by circumstances or feelings but be swayed by His word and His command to let our light shine.

“Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven”

Matthew 5:16

So let’s follow Mary and Joseph’s lead to cast our fears away and be obedient to our calling and let that Light shine so the world may come to know the Savior, Jesus Christ.

Our Prayer:

Heavenly Father, we can never, ever thank You enough for sending Your only Son, the precious gift of Jesus to take our place on the cross for our sins. We thank You that You love us So Much, that You are always there for us. Father we ask that we would draw close to You and that we would not let the fears of the world get in the way of being a light for You and showing others Jesus through our lives. We pray for the salvation of the lost and Lord that you would use us to be instrumental in leading others to You. And Father most of all we desire for You to be glorified. Thank You forever. In Jesus most Precious Name we pray…Amen!

The Best Consolation Prize

The Best Consolation Prize

And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:

“Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word;

For my eyes have seen Your salvation

Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,

A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles

And the glory of Your people Israel”

Luke 2:25-32

Christ has been born, it is now time for His dedication in the temple as was customary. Simeon, a godly man was anxiously awaiting the Savior, the Consolation of Israel…

Jesus Christ

Our Consolation as well.  Notice that the letter “C” in the word Consolation is capitalized? That is because it is a name. A name for Jesus Christ. Anyone can console, but only One is Consolation.

When studying the definition in Webster’s 1828 dictionary here is what I found:

Consolation:

~ Comfort

~Alleviation of misery

~Alleviation of distress of mind

~Refreshment of mind and spirits

~A comparative degree of happiness in distress or misfortune springing from any circumstances that abates or beats down evil

Let’s put  “Jesus is…” before each definition. Wow! Jesus is even more than we thought!

~So, how can we have that Consolation?

If we look at Simeon as an example, here is what we find:

He was just

He was devout

The Holy Spirit was upon him

The Holy Spirit revealed truths to Him

He was willing to be led by the Holy Spirit

What a wonderful example of obedience and surrendering our will for Him!

When I first read “Came by the Holy Spirit” the picture that stood out in my mind was the Holy Spirit holding our hand and guiding us. If we can just let go of our wants and desires and be in one accord with Him, how can we go wrong?

Now,

~How can we bring that comfort and Consolation to others?

Again, we can look to the example set by Simeon and also by….

Pressing toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:14

Ladies, if we continue to press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus we can show others how much they need Him and His love for them.

Often, this time of year when most are celebrating, there are those who have no one to celebrate with, those who have lost a loved one, those who are ill or in despair. Let’s be encouraged in our goal, in our walk with the Lord to be led by His Spirit to reach out to those who need Him oh so desperately. To give them the Consolation they need.

There is only one Consolation and that is Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior, the Lover of our souls.

Our Prayer:

Oh Heavenly Father, You are more than gracious with us, loving us so much that You were willing to send Your Beautiful Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins. We thank You for the Indescribable Gift You have blessed us with. True Consolation. True Peace. True Love. Father we ask that You would speak to our hearts, that Your Holy Spirit would lead us in reaching those that do not yet know You. Father we ask that souls would be won for Your kingdom. We pray this in Your Precious Son Jesus’ Name…Amen!

Happy Valentine's Day!

 

May you and yours have a Blessed Valentine's Day as you remember Who loved you first :)

1 John 4:19

Awaiting Valentine's Day

I LOVE Valentine's Day!

To me, it is the perfect reminder of the One who first loved us:

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever would believe in Him shall not perish but would have everlasting life.

John 3:16

How precious is our Lord and Savior!!!

Valentine's Day is also a way to show others that we love them :)

Valentines made for sweet friends...

A Valentine that was my grandmother's...

 

A small pillow/sachet made for a friend...

 

Do you have special plans for Valentine's Day?

After church Sunday,we are having a Valentine Making Party and Fellowship for the children. It is so much fun seeing how creative each child is :)

Please share, I would love to hear what you are up to :)

Good Tidings to You!

Good Tidings To You

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

Luke 2:8-14

Let’s take a closer look at verse 10:

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.”

I would like to point out a couple of facts here:

1)God sent His angel to share the good tidings with shepherds. Why Shepherds and not council members of the San Hedrin?

~The Shepherds were a humble people. They also were an example of leadership to the Jews such as Moses and David being shepherds. Just as Jesus is the Good Shepherd.

~They were Jews.

~These Shepherds are said to have been tending sheep set aside for sacrifice at the temple.

~I also believe that the chief priests’ hearts were not prepared to receive the message.

So, what is the message?

2)The angel has brought news:

~Good tidings. After doing some research I found out that the way these words are used  together in the Greek means: To evangelize, to proclaim the Good News, to preach the Gospel.

~Great Joy. The word “great” is a definite article which means much emphasis on the word used. The word “Joy” is derived from the Greek word “Chairo” which means:

“Grace, as joy is a direct result of God’s grace.”

~To all people. Not to the Jews alone or a select few but to ALL PEOPLE. God’s desire and will is that all men be saved.

This is good and acceptable in the sight of God, our Savior,

who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

1 Timothy 2:3-4

So we have the angel of the Lord evangelizing, preaching the Gospel to the shepherds. Proclaiming the great joy of God’s grace for all people.

For who? ALL People.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3:16

So we see according to scripture, the inspired, inerrant word of God that God sent His only Son Jesus to die for our sins so that we may have everlasting life. Jesus died for the whole world.

Let’s continue starting with verse 15:

So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another,” Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us” And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in the manger.

Luke 2:15-16

First we see that the shepherds had no doubts about the Savior that was born. The text doesn’t say that upon the angels leaving the shepherds began to discuss what transpired questioning what had happened. They said:

“Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass which the Lord has made known to us.”

Secondly, we see that the shepherds made haste to see the Babe lying in the manger.

A third point is that if indeed these shepherds were tending the flock for temple sacrifice, they left “religion” for a Relationship with the Savior Jesus Christ.

~Do we as Christians ‘doubt” the word of God? We need to remember that Jesus Christ IS the word of God.(John 1:1)

~Do we make haste to spend time with Him or do we push Him aside for things of the world?

~Have we sacrificed a relationship with Him for religion? It’s easy to fall into a slump, to just punch a clock at church and do our time. But are we causing harm in our relationship with Jesus? When we fall into tradition or routine we are missing out on a wonderful, loving relationship with Him.

I can tell you from personal experience that nothing, absolutely NOTHING compares with knowing Him, with spending time with Him, with loving Him.

Let us remember the true Reason for the Season Jesus Christ. Not only our Lord and Savior but also the Lover of our souls and our Friend.

Our Prayer:

Oh Heavenly Father, how we love you so much!!! Our prayer Lord is that we would come to a relationship with you where we would have faith and no doubts, that we would make haste in spending time with You each day. We also pray Lord that we would not substitute “religion” for a relationship with You because nothing compares to knowing You Father. We thank You for sacrificing Your Son for us so that we may call upon You and have everlasting life.  We love You so much and desire to be pleasing to You. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!!!