For many years now I’ve wanted to send you a Christmas gift to celebrate your life, for all the times you’ve watched over me and for the all ways you’ve inspired me, but there always seemed to be something that got in the way, and as you already know I’m the […]
“To be inspired is great, but to inspire is an honor.” Stacey T. Hunt As we approach the Christmas gift, we must wrestle with the impact that God’s gift has had or will have on our lives. Jacob did not expect anyone on the mountain that night, but the unexpected showed up. Jacob wrestled with the […]
Appointments to be kept. Tight schedules to maintain. Routines established. Projects to be completed… The list goes on and one. That’s how most of us try to live our lives in a seemingly endless cycle of doing stuff so we can buy more stuff, so people can envy our stuff. But what happens when life […]
2013 Pastor’s Christmas Letter The Unexpected Life One of the amazing aspects of the Christmas story is how it unfolds so… unexpectedly. Mary obviously knew she was expecting a baby, but she never anticipated her first child would be born so far from home, let alone in a stable. And then there’s Joseph. […]
God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 1 John 4:12 “The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. And that’s what you’ve given me. That’s what I’d hoped to give you […]
“Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a father who prepared a wonderful Christmas for His family complete with the best food, wine, presents, singing and games. He placed invitations in the mail and in the newspaper, sent notices across the internet and sent his messengers to share the news of […]
“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” Mark 10:15 Christmas is Innocence. Well it’s Christmas Eve, or at least it was, and I’m writing last minute thoughts on the day now spent preparing for the day that now is. I’m thinking through […]
“For right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13 (Message) Christmas is Love I don’t suspect too many people are surprised by this one, but I do think we’ve taken […]
“Addiction” might be the best word to explain the lostness that so deeply permeates society. Our addiction make us cling to what the world proclaims as the keys to self-fulfillment: accumulation of wealth and power; attainment of status and admiration; lavish consumption of food and drink, and sexual gratification without distinguishing between lust and love. […]
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” Luke 15:20 Christmas is prodigal. At some point in the Advent season we simply have to silence the the cynic and just […]
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 Christmas is peace. There is a sense in which I find this difficult to believe. Have you been shopping lately? Have […]
I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. Proverbs 8:17 Christmas is worship. I love what the Magi said in Matthew 2, “For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” More importantly, I love what they didn’t say. Nothing about asking. Nothing about receiving. Nothing about […]
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.” Matthew 1:22-23 Christmas is Immanuel Do you remember what it was like when you were little and afraid of the […]
“When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was […]
Most of the time we settle for happiness when Joy is being offered. Happiness is circumstantial and depends on things going the way we expected. Joy is deeper and certainly longer lasting. Joy understands the ups and downs of life because its focused on the destination and know that trials and troubles are a necessary […]
“the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:26-27 Christmas is Anticipation. Have you ever tried to keep a secret, perhaps a […]
All mankind will fear; they will proclaim the works of God and ponder what he has done. Psalm 64:9 Christmas is Ponder While it is important, even critical, to slow down during Christmas, it should be used to gain understanding of the why and wherefore of everything that is happening. It should be a time when we […]
“When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” Matthew 2:3 Christmas is disturbing. One of the great challenges that come with having power and control is of course maintaining it. It seem like we all know that deep down inside us all there is a frightened child hiding behind […]
In 1994, two Christian missionaries answered an invitation from the Russian Department of Education to teach about 100 boys and girls who had been abandoned, abused, and left in the care of a government-run orphanage. It was nearing Christmas and so they decided to tell them the story of Christmas. It would be the first […]
“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.” Luke 2:8-9 Christmas is pause. We’ve all heard that expression ‘You can’t see the forest for the trees’. […]
Christmas is Rejoicing. And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” Luke 1:46-47 Think Cheering. Think Celebration. Think Party. Well that’s what Tony Campolo imagines Christmas will be like in his book The Kingdom of God is a Party!. Not a formal dinner party but a spontaneous, expression […]
HOPE: to cherish a desire with anticipation, to expect with confidence, trust Read: Luke 1:16-38 NIV Immanuel – God with us. The Presence of God in our world radically changes the nature of how we see and live each day. The Light of Christ shows us the world as it is and brings us the HOPE […]
“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.” Psalm 143:8 I love the fact that God did not send the Magi on some wild goose chase. Look at Matthew 2:2, […]
Remember that Christ says, “When I come, it will surprise you like a thief! But God will bless you, if you are awake and ready.” Revelations 16:15 Christmas is Surprise. Let me explain. The word appears in Luke’s account of that first Christmas. “And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them…” Surprise! Didn’t […]
“This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 3:6 Christmas is Family. On that first night two very important people were present for the birth of the Messiah. Mary, His mother, and Joseph, the man […]
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 6:38 Christmas is Giving. Most Christmas cards have it all wrong. The Magi probably weren’t there that first […]
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her. Luke 1:38 Christmas is humility. I know. Probably not your first choice of descriptions for the holiday season. But it was certainly God’s starting point. We need to remember that our Lord was not […]
Christmas. How have we managed to make it so difficult? We have turned the most amazing time of the year into a maze of commercial enterprise, contradictory influences, and confused priorities. The season of celebration has become the most stressful time of the year for so many. Over the next couple of weeks I want […]
Advent, like Lent has strong themes of preparation, of waiting, of the coming dawn. And the story started a long time ago. Why did God decide to be born a man? Why was a rescue plan of this magnitude needed? It all started way back in at the beginning of beginnings: Read Genesis 3:8-19 We all […]
On a quiet Christmas Morning I sit here quietly in my office and reflect on what the last several weeks have meant to me and particularly to the people I care about. I understand the battle that rages within the Christmas story for the hearts and minds of humanity. We are immersed in a world […]
“At that time Jesus said, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.” Matthew 11:25-26 When we get past all the frenzy of the Christmas experience, what’s left with the nagging […]
The Great Story of God This is a transcript of the service used on December 24, 2011. It is a closer look at the characters, circumstances and context that combine to make each piece part of the Greater Story of Christmas. No one character had all the pieces of the puzzle at the time, but […]
“Are you willing to forget what you have done for other people, and to remember what other people have done for you … to remember the weakness and loneliness of people who are growing old … Are you willing to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world … stronger than hate, stronger […]
Who says you Christians don’t have a creative funny side! enjoy. Bethlehemian Rhapsody Related posts: That’s My King Just how far? Christmas Eve: The Great Story of Christmas Does God Ask Too Much?
We all have them, family members that cling desperately to the family tree you’re just positive dropped from a high branch at one time or another. We all have those crazy uncles, aunts or cousins that we just don’t talk about much, but you know they’re part of your gene pool. And if you can’t […]
Questions for Joseph By Max Lucado Matthew describes Jesus’ earthly father as a craftsman (Matt. 13:55). A small-town carpenter, he lives in Nazareth: a single-camel map dot on the edge of boredom. Is he the right choice? Doesn’t God have better options? An eloquent priest from Jerusalem or a scholar from the Pharisees? Why Joseph? A […]
We must never loose sight of the fact that God engaged Mary and Joseph in a life story they did not fully understand, after all who could understand what God was up to when He decides to use an unwed teenage girl to give birth out of wedlock. It is nothing less than… Scandalous! I’m […]
There are just some things about Christmas that drive me Crazy! What drives you crazy about your Christmas traditions? Here’s my top 10. (10) Re-gifting. (giving the gift nobody wants to people we don’t like) (9) The need for bigger, better, faster gadits. (I still love them anyway!) (8) Unrealistic commercials (How many people do […]
“We want a “religious” leader, not a king! We want someone to save our souls, not rule our world! Or, if we want a king, someone to take charge of our world, what we want is someone to implement the policies we already embrace, just as Jesus’s contemporaries did. But if Christians don’t get Jesus […]
Our expectations are critical in giving us goals and standards for which to strive. Yet we can also be blinded by our expectations too! Each Year we prepare for Christmas with a flurry of activity, partly due to fear, guilt and competition to have the best dinner party, find the best gift or have the […]
Pastor’s letter for December 2009. Entire newsletter can be found at www.fumcwilliamstown.org What is your fondest memory of Christmas? Do you remember the excitement of childhood dreams that were so intense you couldn’t sleep the night before? Do you remember a Christmas Eve service with your family when the sanctuary is bathed in soft candlelight, […]