Joy To The World!

“But the angel said to them, ‘Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David.’” – Luke 2:10-11

Every year our family, like many families, put up our Christmas decorations. Each year I hold firmly to waiting until the day after Thanksgiving to put up our decorations and they must be brought down no later than New Year’s Eve. My wife loves the decorations and once the Hallmark movies start playing, she’s ready to put them up. I believe I actually gave in to putting them up before Thanksgiving one year. Needless to say, every year we put them up but I noticed something this year I have never noticed before.

This year God called us to new ministry at Union Hall Baptist Church and so this is also our first Christmas in the church’s parsonage. Our decorations worked out where the Christmas tree and the nativity scene are close together. They are almost side by side. I noticed something this year that I had never noticed before until I really saw them side by side.

What did I notice? I noticed that we pay too much attention to what might go under the tree and not enough attention to who is already in the manger. Now this isn’t a new thought and to many, this is not a grand revelation. Even for me, I may say something to this effect every year but seeing the Christmas tree and the nativity scene side by side made a huge difference for me.

Why has it made such a difference to me? I remember my grandmother telling me stories about how they received fruit as Christmas presents when they were kids and you know what? They were thankful for the fruit they received! Try giving fruit as a present to kids today. I dare you. I imagine you know what their reaction would be. If we are honest, our reaction would not be much better if any better at all. We have focused too much on the empty tree and not enough on the full manger!

Christmas is a time I have always wanted to enjoy more. There always seems to be a lot of stress at Christmas. Those Christmas movies that my wife loves are depressing to me because I can not live up to those movies. Some years I truly wonder if I will be able to buy my children anything for Christmas. Most years I just feel like I can not make anyone happy at Christmas time. I joked with someone the other day. They asked me what my favorite Christmas song was and I responded “Auld Lang Syne”. In case you don’t know, that is the song we sing for New Year’s. In other words, I was saying I would be glad when Christmas was over.

This Christmas is different. Yes, I still deal with all the emotions and stress related things that I mentioned but this Christmas I have chosen to focus on the full manger. I have chosen to rejoice in the fact that God loved us so much, even a sinner such as I, that He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to this Earth. He sent Him to live a sinless life and to die a death that was meant for me. He carried my sins and the sins of all humanity to the cross and paid the penalty for those sins. However, that was not the end! Three days later, God raised Jesus Christ from the dead! The Bible tells us that anyone who believes this will be saved from their sins and spend eternity in Heaven!

I have given my life to Jesus! I am saved and will spend eternity in Heaven with Him! Will you? This Christmas, quit focusing on the empty tree and focus on the cradle that was filled by the only hope in the world, Jesus Christ! Give your life to Him today!

This Christmas, more than ever, I can rejoice and say “Joy to the World! The Lord is come!”

Light In The Darkness

“You have already heard about this hope in the message of truth, the gospel that has come to you. It is bearing fruit and growing all over the world, just as it has among you since the day you heard it and recognized God’s grace in the truth.” – Colossians 1:5-6

Last night I watched as a missionary in Mumbai told about the horrors of slavery that exist all around him. He told of how young women are sold as slaves and forced in to prostitution. He told of how many of these women see up to fifteen customers a day for as little as $1 to $2. I continued to listen as one young woman stated that she is so hopeless that she has thought about suicide so many times.

While many people are not in physical slavery in our world today, there are billions of people who are in slavery to sin. What is really sad though is that most of them have no clue that they are a slave. If we knew of someone personally who was being held as a slave, I presume most of us would do everything we could to break them free from the chains of slavery. Why is it then that many in the church today are unconcerned about those trapped as a slave in the chains of sin? Why is it that we will not go and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them?

For many people, we are concerned about what we can see. If all of my family and friends are at church, then we see that and we are content with that but we abandon then billions of people to the darkness of sin. We leave them to wander, destined for Hell. Christian, you have heard the gospel! You know the life changing message! You have been saved from your sins, its penalty and now have eternal life in Heaven waiting for you. But there is more!

Imagine a man who has bought his train ticket. He is so excited that he finally got his ticket that he just stands on the platform and never gets on the train. He forgot to truly begin his journey. Likewise, many today are just concerned about punching their ticket to Heaven, being saved, that they forget to get on the train, meaning to go and grow.How will a lost world ever hear the Gospel if you do not go and share the Gospel with them? How will missionaries be strengthened to share the Gospel if we do not pray for them? How will they go if you do not give?

During this week of prayer for International Missions and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering I want to offer you a challenge, Christian:

• Would you commit to pray for our missionaries serving all around the world? Here is a link that can help you with praying: https://www.imb.org/pray/ 
• Would you commit to give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering to help fund missionaries all around the world? You can give at your local church or you can donate here: https://www.imb.org/give/  
• Finally, will you commit to be a missionary yourself? Yes, you! As Christians we are all called to share the Gospel with all people all around the world. Will you pray that God will use you to share the Gospel? Remember this the next time you sing “Wherever He Leads I’ll Go.