What's Next?

Yesterday I was surprised to see this Sand Hill Crane standing all alone in our Still Waters Pond.

It is very unusual to see one alone. They are usually seen with their mate close by. This one kept looking back toward the shore, as if he was listening and watching for someone to join him.

But the longer he stood there, the more apparent it became that there was no one else coming.

Finally he started moving on across the pond, as if he was in a hurry to go somewhere.

As he reached the other end of the shore, he stopped and stood at attention, again listening and watching and waiting. I wondered if he was listening for a call from his mate, telling him where she was or that she was waiting for him on the other side. I didn't hear any sound...and if there had been any it would have been quite distinct....if you've ever heard their call, you would know what I mean. 

But he stood there listening intently, as if he could hear something that I could not. And then, suddenly (before I could get my camera focused of course), he flapped his mighty wings and lifted himself up and flew away in a hurry.

Today, being another Sunday that we cannot join together in person with our dear church family, my heart and mind is tuned in to worship.  I was thinking about this Sand Hill Crane standing there alone on the shore, waiting and listening for a call from his mate...and I thought about the church...and about myself personally.  It is as if we are all standing and waiting, listening for God's voice to give us directions for our next step.  We've been set apart for a little while, and we are getting anxious to get back into action together as The Body of Christ.

But before we can come back together, my heart tells me we need to be listening for God's voice in our own personal lives.  

We need to be seeking His direction, and preparing our hearts for the "what's next". 

I was reading in Isaiah 6, and the verse that stood out in particular for me this morning is

Isaiah 6:8

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

"Whom shall I send,

and who will go for Us?"

Then I said, "Here am I! Send me." 

Also I was reading in the Gospel of John 20:19-23, when Jesus appeared to His disciples after His resurrection, and in verse 19 it tells us that "the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, and Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 

"Peace be with you."

And then in verse 21, Jesus said to them again:

"Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

22. "And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 

"Receive the Holy Spirit."

Jesus gave the disciples a command in Matthew 28:19-20 to:

"Go therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son 

and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;

and lo, 

I am with you always, even to the end of the age." 

Amen.

We have this commission to go.  We've been resting and waiting and hopefully preparing our hearts for the "what's next".  God has work for us to do when we come back together. The way things are going in this world, we may not have much time left to keep sharing the Gospel freely.

  

This little song came to mind this morning as I was sitting here thinking about these things, and this is the prayer of my heart today.  What about you?  It may help us to figure out the "What's Next?" question as we ponder and pray and LISTEN for God's voice.  

Here I Am, Lord, Is It I, Lord?

Praying you have a blessed and beautiful SONday. Let us not forget Whose day this is.

It is the Lord's Day.

Amen.

It's Easter Monday Morning

It's Easter Monday Morning...the day after Easter. The day after Mary and the Disciples learned that Jesus was alive and no longer in the tomb! I was reading in the Gospels the different accounts of all that happened on Resurrection Day, and the activities of Jesus as He revealed Himself to His disciples,  and then also to the men on the Road to Emmaus, (Luke 24:13-32),

and still on that same day He came and had fish and honeycomb with the Disciples (Luke 24:33-43), and also came back especially to show Himself to Thomas, so that he would also believe and not doubt...(John 20:19-29).  Jesus was quite active on that first day!

Jesus continued to show Himself to His disciples for forty more days, teaching them more about love being the only proper motive for service (John 21:15-17),  and there were "many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written." John 21:25.

And then at the end of these forty days Jesus gave them (and us) His Great Commission:

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, 

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son 

and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;

and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Matthew 28:19-20

And after sharing these things with them and giving them this commandment, 

"He blessed them...

He was parted from them and carried up into heaven."

Luke 24:51

And Acts 1:9-11 tells us:

"Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up,

and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, 

behold two men stood by them in white apparel,

who also said,

"Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven?

This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven,

will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."

So, here we are, the day after Christ's Resurrection, and we have work to do! We can't just keep standing here gazing up into heaven. We've been given a Great Commission to go out and share this Good News with the world, and then to prepare our hearts for His, I believe, soon return.  

I trust that you all had a blessed and pleasant Easter. Yes, it was different for everyone, without being able to attend our regular Easter Sunday worship services, singing the songs we love so much that are special especially on that day.  I don't know about you, but I sang them anyway.  We awoke early and waited for the sunrise to go outside into our front yard, to rejoice to see the day of Christ's Resurrection.

I stood there at the cross and sang several of my favorites..."He Arose", "Christ The Lord is Risen Today, Alleluia!", and "He Lives".  The neighborhood was quiet and calm. No one else was stirring except for a distant rooster crowing. I thought about Peter when I heard it crow, and was thankful that Peter's denial of Christ did not stop him from repenting of that and being forgiven by Christ...and then going forward to begin what we know as the Church today! How awful it would have been if Peter had quit after denying Christ...we would not even know about Jesus today, nor have any reason to celebrate! So thankful Christ gave Peter another chance when He told him to "Feed My Sheep" in John 21:15-17. 

After singing and waiting on the sunrise in our own yard, we decided to jump in the car and take a short ride to the boat ramp where we hoped we could get a better view of the sunrise:

 It really wasn't much better as it was very overcast, but it did not deter me from continuing my praise and worship of the Risen Christ. Again, I was moved to sing the above mentioned songs and added what I could remember of one of my favorites, "Was it a Morning Like This?"

"Did the grass sing? Did the earth rejoice to feel You again?"

"Over and over like a trumpet underground, did the earth seem to pound He is Risen?, 

Over and over in a never ending round, He is Risen, Alleluia "

Was it a morning like this, when my Lord looked out on Jerusalem? He is Risen, Alleluia...Alleluia...Alleluia!"

Thankfully no one came outside of their homes to tell me to be quiet...but my thoughts were like what Jesus told the Pharisees:

Luke 19:39-40 (NKJV)

"39 And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.”

40 But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”

Finally, I felt satisfied that Jesus knew my heart...and that the angels and saints above were all rejoicing along with me...and it was time to go back to our home and begin the preparations for the day of Easter celebration with our immediate family. I say immediate, meaning our adult son who lives with us, and our other adult son and his wife, who live nearby. We have been appreciating their help over the past month especially since my surgery, and they have been in and out of our home frequently, so we felt safe that we could spend this day together, within reason. No holding hands to say grace, no welcoming hugs, which we miss, but still sharing time together in a reasonable way. I feel badly for those who could not spend time with any family members due to having younger children or other restrictions.  These are difficult times for all, and we pray this "season of social distancing" will soon be a thing of the past and people will be able to get back to work and resume their lives with loved ones once again.

That being said, I thought I'd share a few pictures with you from our Easter family celebration. If you are a Facebook friend, you have probably already seen most of these, but bear with me. There may be some surprises still.

 Many of you already know about my interesting cake...My son asked why I put "stove top stuffing" on top of the cake. That quip took the cake,  so to speak! Actually, I was trying to have a lovely pastel hued multi colored coconut topping, but it just didn't turn out that way. It still tasted good. Next time I will just stick to using green food coloring to look like grass. No one turned down a piece of cake, btw.

Yes, we still have Easter Baskets for our adult children. The trick is, they have to find them first. The Easter Bunny had a difficult time finding good spots in this new house to hide the baskets, but after many hints to the searchers of "hot, cold, luke warm, red hot"...they each finally found their baskets...

If you recall THIS POST a couple of weeks ago, you will remember that we ladies were supposed to display our lovely "Easter Dresses" for at home Easter celebration wear. I'm probably the only one brave (or silly enough) to actually do this.  If you did, please show us your outfit!! I don't want to be the only crazy one in the bunch!

My hubby was getting anxious for the shenanigans to get over with so he could have some lunch:

And lunch we did have, actually, this was "Dinner"...Baked Ham with pineapple and glaze baked by my daughter in law perfectly, scalloped potatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, carrot medley (fresh, not frozen), rolls, and of course deviled eggs!

We even used my good china. I was planning to put them in the dishwasher, but someone grabbed them and washed them first because they didn't want to possibly ruin them in the DW.  That was very thoughtful, but so much for my great plans for saving us some work! LOL.

I know this is picture overload, but I never got around to posting my Easter decorations before Easter, and so I thought I'd better go ahead before we get totally out of the season and you won't be interested in seeing Easter Bunnies and such anymore.

 This is my "Margie Doll", so named for my Aunt Margie, who gave her to me for my 7th birthday many many years ago. She is all dressed up for Easter in a lovely dress that my mother made for her many years ago also.

These next few pictures are just some of the Easter Bunnies that are sitting around...

Or, should I say "hanging around"?  LOL...

Or perhaps swinging in to wish us a Happy Easter...

The green china bunny on the far left was given to me by my maternal Grandma Tedlie when I was a very young child. It is a special treasure.  Some of the ceramic bunnies sitting on the table were given to our boys when they were little by my mother.

And we must not forget Baby Elva,  who is all dressed up for Easter in a dress that I actually wore when I was an infant, so you KNOW that's old!

 With that, I will close this montage of Easter pictures. I hope that you have enjoyed this visit as much as I have enjoyed spending this time with you. I hope to get around to visit your stories in the next few days to see how you have celebrated this special time.

Now let us be like the disciples and go out tell everyone that "Jesus Christ is risen from the dead!" Hallelujah!! Because He lives, we shall live too!!!  The Good News is that because Christ is risen, death does not have the victory!! 

 "Death is swallowed up in victory.

O Death, where is your sting?

O Hades, where is your victory?"

I Corinthians 15:54-55

Praise God!!

Postscript, Let us remember in prayer those who may be suffering loss of home or family due to the bad storms that have been passing through the south yesterday and today, as well as those who are suffering loss of income and health due to the coronavirus. I would not want my "frivolity" above to take away from those who are truly suffering at this time. They are definitely in my thoughts and prayers, as I am sure they are yours as well. 

I Am Not Alone - Revisited

Sharing this post again...perhaps there is someone out there who needs to hear this message today, especially during this time of "social distancing" and isolation.

May you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are not alone..."the Father is with me"...

"And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me."

John 16:32b

The above drawing used to hang in my husband's study when he was serving as a pastor.  I drew this for him years ago after seeing this same picture on a card that someone had sent to us...so I can't take full credit for the idea...but it struck me so strongly that I had to duplicate it for a constant reminder that God would be with him through all the difficult days and times of searching for answers from God's Word to share with God's people.

Perhaps there is someone reading this today who needs to be reminded that you are not alone...because the Father IS with you...always!  How do we know this?  Because His Word promises...and God never goes back on His Word:

"Be strong and of good courage,

Do not fear nor be afraid of them;

For the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you.

He will not leave you nor forsake you."

Deuteronomy 31:6

"And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you.

He will be with you,

He will not leave you nor forsake you;

Do not fear nor be dismayed."

Deuteronomy 31:8

"Fear not, for I AM with you;

Be not dismayed, for I Am your God.

I will strengthen you,

Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

Isaiah 41:10

"Where can I go from Your Spirit?

Or where can I flee from Your Presence?

If I ascend into heaven, You are there;

If I make my bed in hell,

behold, You are there.

If I take the wings of the morning,

and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

Even there Your hand shall lead me,

and Your right hand shall hold me.

If I say, 'Surely the darkness shall fall on me,'

Even the night shall be light about me;"

Psalm 139:7-11

Jesus tells His disciples the following promise just before His departure from this earth into heaven...which is for all of us who bear His Name:

"Lo, I Am with you ALWAYS, even to the end of the age."

Matthew 28:20

Also Jesus promises to send us a helper...a comforter:

"And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, 

that he may abide with you forever..

the Spirit of truth,

whom the world cannot receive, 

because it neither sees Him nor knows Him;

but you know Him,

for He dwells with you and will be in you.

I will not leave you orphans; 

I will come to you..."

John 14:16-18

So, my friends, if you are feeling all alone in your battle with grief, disease, disappointments, tragedies and anxieties...if you cannot feel Christ's Presence in your life, I encourage you to claim these promises above for yourself today.  Rest in His loving arms, knowing that He is with you and will never leave you or forsake you.

There is a song that came to my mind while writing this that I would like to share with you...perhaps you've heard it...or maybe it will be new to you.  Click on this link to the song "Just Be Held" by Casting Crowns.    

Here are the lyrics:

"Just Be Held"  by Casting Crowns

Hold it all together
Everybody needs you strong
But life hits you out of nowhere
And barely leaves you holding on

And when you're tired of fighting
Chained by your control
There's freedom in surrender
Lay it down and let it go

So when you're on your knees and answers seem so far away
You're not alone, stop holding on and just be held
Your world's not falling apart, it's falling into place
I'm on the throne, stop holding on and just be held
Just be held, just be held

If your eyes are on the storm
You'll wonder if I love you still
But if your eyes are on the cross
You'll know I always have and I always will

And not a tear is wasted
In time, you'll understand
I'm painting beauty with the ashes
Your life is in My hands

So when you're on your knees and answers seem so far away
You're not alone, stop holding on and just be held
Your worlds not falling apart, its falling into place
I'm on the throne, stop holding on and just be held
Just be held, just be held

Lift your hands, lift your eyes
In the storm is where you'll find Me
And where you are, I'll hold your heart
I'll hold your heart
Come to Me, find your rest
In the arms of the God who won't let go

So when you're on your knees and answers seem so far away
You're not alone, stop holding on and just be held
Your worlds not falling apart, its falling into place
I'm on the throne, stop holding on and just be held (stop holding on and just be held)
Just be held, just be held, just be held, just be held

So, no matter what you are going through right now, my prayer for you is that you will remember that you are never alone...God is with you always...and now, lay back into His loving arms and "Just Be Held".

"Peace I leave with you,

My peace I give to you;

not as the world gives do I give to you.

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid..."

Words of Jesus, 

The Gospel of John 14:27

Fourth Sunday of Advent: Let's Go! (Updated)

Update: Today is the 4th Sunday of Advent.  I will not be posting any "Sermon Notes" for today as we are having our Christmas Cantata in place of the sermon. I've already shared about that with you HERE.  So for today, let's light the candle, and prepare our hearts for the coming of Emmanuel, God With Us...

(In this picture above from our home Advent service, we have already lit all five candles. But if you have a Christmas Eve service, that is when the tall white candle in the middle should be lit. I have kind of combined all of that in this post today).

Today  is the fourth Sunday of Advent...the Sunday prior to Christmas Day. As we light the fourth candle, the question is asked:  "Why do we light this candle?"

And the response is:

"Today we add the Shepherd's Candle.  It reminds us of our responsibility to share what we have seen and heard.  The Galilean Shepherds, who received the first announcement of the Savior's Birth, left their task and went with haste to see the Christ child, and then returned to tell others about the earthshaking event.  Sharing the Good News required no special talent, simply telling others what they had seen and heard with the conviction of personal experience."

Then we read Luke 2:17-20

"Now when they (the Shepherds) had seen Him (the baby Jesus),

they made widely known the saying which was told them 

concerning this Child.

And all those who heard it marveled at those things which

were told them by the shepherds.

But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

Then the shepherds returned,

glorifying and praising God

for all the things that they 

had heard and seen, as it was told them."

Luke 2:17-20

We are reminded that, like the Shepherds, we too should go out from this Holy place and spread the good news.  What IS the good news?  That little Baby that was born in the manger came to save us all from our sins.  He came to change the world....Click Here for "Mary Did You Know?" by Pentatonix

May the Good News of this little Baby fill your heart with joy and peace and the strength to carry on in the New Year, no matter what may come your way.  I am so thankful that I know this little Baby, Who grew up to save us ALL.  I hope that you know Him too.  No better time than now. And if you DO know Him, let us join with the Shepherds and spread the Good News throughout the world. This Little Baby Jesus, Who grew up to die and save us from our sins, didn't stay in the tomb.  After three days He arose from the grave, and conquered death once and for all. As He ascended into heaven, we were promised that He would return for us someday...

"And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up,

behold, two men stood by them in white apparel,

who also said,

'Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven?

This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven,

will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.'"

Acts 1:10-11

Jesus told His disciples in John 14:18-19 ~ 

"I will not leave you orphans;

I will come to you.

A little while longer and the world will see Me no more,

but you will Me. 

Because I live,

you will live also."

Just before Christ ascended into heaven, He gave His disciples (and us) this "Great Commission"...

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you,

and lo, 

I AM with you always,

even to the end of the age.

Amen."

Matthew 28:19-20

And that, my friend, is truly GOOD NEWS!   EMMANUEL, "God WITH Us", will be with us until the end of the age...and then He will come again and take us home to heaven to be with Him forever.  What better message could we share with the world than this?

Let us go and do as the Shepherds did.

Let's Go!

Sermon Notes: Holy, Holy, Holy....God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity

Today is Trinity Sunday...the day we focus our scriptures and thoughts upon the Holy Trinity of God...God in Three Persons...God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit... 

Most Christians have sung that hymn, "Holy, Holy, Holy" at some time in their lives...I know I've sung it many many times.

(Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir singing Holy, Holy, Holy)

1. Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty! 

Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee. 

Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty, 

God in three persons, blessed Trinity! 

2. Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore Thee, 

casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea; 

Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee, 

which wert, and art, and evermore shalt be. 

3. Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide Thee, 

Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see, 

Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee, 

Perfect in power, in love and purity. 

4. Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty! 

All Thy works shall praise Thy name, in earth and sky and sea. 

Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty, 

God in three persons, blessed Trinity.

But how often have we actually stopped to think about just WHO this "Blessed Trinity" is?  The concept of "God in Three Persons" seems to be a difficult thing for most people to grasp.   Our guest lay-minister today termed the Trinity as "The Great Mystery...Three personalities of God in One Essence...The Trinity".  We understand The Trinity to be God The Father; God The Son; and God the Holy Spirit. 

Our speaker today shared several vignettes focusing on the relationship between the Father and Son first of all...

Jesus, the Son,  the 2nd Person of the Trinity, God in the flesh...Who, when He came to earth in the flesh, had some "limitations" because of being in human form...

According to Matthew 24:36, Jesus did not actually know when the second coming of the Son of God would be...

36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."  NIV

Another example was the miracle of turning the water into wine at the wedding in Cana...
See John 2:1-11.  When Mary, the mother of Jesus, came to him to tell him that they had just run out of wine, He said to her in verse 4:

"Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come."

Nevertheless, Jesus went ahead and told the servants to fill six waterpots with water, and so they did. And then He told them to draw some out and take it to the master of the feast (verse 8), and when he tasted the water that was turned into wine, he declared in verse 10 that they had kept the good wine until now!    

Jesus, in His human form, was often faced with challenges to balance his needs for rest and times of solitude away from the crowds with the pressing needs of those around Him. Even though He knew "his hour had not yet come" to be sacrificed for the sins of the world,  He could not ignore the pleas of those who were suffering.  

One such example was the story of the woman from the region of Tyre and Sidon, found in Mark 7:24-30.  This woman was a Gentile, and she had a daughter with an unclean spirit.  In verse 24, we see Jesus had gone to a house where He had hoped to rest and wanted no one to know where He was for a while...perhaps He needed a "vacation"... but the scripture says "He could not be hidden".  His fame was too great...

But this Gentile woman heard about Him, and fell at His feet, begging Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.  Jesus said to her in verse 27, "Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  This meant that He came first for the Jews, the chosen people of God,  but this woman was persistent (and I believe Jesus knew she would be, and was testing her faith, but that is my opinion), and she said "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs."    And Jesus said to her (vs. 29) "For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter..."   It was not quite yet His time to minister to the Gentiles...and yet, Jesus honored this woman's great faith.

Jesus, God the Son, was paving the way for God, the Holy Spirit, the 3rd Person of the Trinity, to come after His death and resurrection and ascension into heaven...Read John 16:1-16...

7.  "Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away;

for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you."

13.  "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth;

for He will not speak on His own authority,

but whatever He hears He will speak;

and He will tell you things to come.

14.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.

15.  All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you."

Finally, just before Jesus ascended into heaven, He gave His Great Commission to all of us who believe in Him and belong to Him...His time had finally come...as well as the time for the Gentiles to be included in this great commission:

Matthew  28:18-20

18.  "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

19.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,

baptizing them in the name of 

The Father, and of the Son, 

and of the Holy Spirit,

20.  Teaching them to observe 

all things that I have commanded you;

and lo, I am with you always, 

even to the end of the age." 

Amen.

What is this "mysterious relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit...?"... "God in three persons, Blessed Trinity!"

We were admonished to search the scriptures for ourselves, get into the Word of God, The Bible, and as the Apostle Paul exhorted Timothy in II Timothy 2:15 ~

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God,

a worker who does not need to be ashamed,

rightly dividing the word of truth."

And then, go and do as the disciples were taught, and make disciples of all nations...

baptizing them in the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit...

And God, The Trinity...God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, 

will be with "you always, even to the end of the age."

This rainbow stretched across our path as a reminder that God is with us always...

Please Note : I want to repeat this disclaimer here...the notes, outline, and content included here are based upon my own personal understanding of the message that was being given.  I am not attempting to completely quote or reproduce this message or any other message I've shared previously.  Just as each person reading these notes may glean insights and thoughts that seem to directly apply to one's own situation and interpretation, my own delivery of these messages is skewed by my hearing and translation of what is being said.  Some may read my notes here and wonder if they were hearing the same message as I...and I say, God speaks to each of us as He wills...there are things He is trying to get across to each individual that may be entirely different than what the person sitting next to you in the pew is needing to hear...  That is how the Holy Spirit works! He knows what we need to hear and how to apply it to our hearts.  So it is with that understanding that I present these sermon notes to you.

Thank you for your continued prayers for our Pastor. He is improving day by day, but will still be out of the pulpit for a few more weeks. Next Sunday please pray for my hubby, as he will be delivering the message on Sunday morning.  I hope I will be able to give a "good report" of his sermon notes! :)

4th Sunday of Advent: Spread the Good News! (Updated)

Today  was the fourth Sunday of Advent...the Sunday prior to Christmas Day. As we lit the fourth candle, the question was asked:  "Why do we light this candle?"

And the response was:

"Today we add the Shepherd's Candle.  It reminds us of our responsibility to share what we have seen and heard.  The Galilean Shepherds, who received the first announcement of the Savior's Birth, left their task and went with haste to see the Christ child, and then returned to tell others about the earthshaking event.  Sharing the Good News required no special talent, simply telling others what they had seen and heard with the conviction of personal experience."

Then we read Luke 2:1-20

"Now when they (the Shepherds) had seen Him (the baby Jesus),

they made widely known the saying which was told them 

concerning this Child.

And all those who heard it marveled at those things which

were told them by the shepherds.

But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

Then the shepherds returned,

glorifying and praising God

for all the things that they 

had heard and seen, as it was told them."

Luke 2:17-20

We were reminded that, like the Shepherds, we too should go out from this Holy place and spread the good news.  What IS the good news?  That little Baby that was born in the manger came to save us all from our sins.  He came to change the world....Click Here for "Mary Did You Know?" by Pentatonix

May the Good News of this little Baby fill your heart with joy and peace and the strength to carry on in the New Year, no matter what may come your way.  I am so thankful that I know this little Baby, Who grew up to save us ALL.  I hope that you know Him too.  No better time than now. And if you DO know Him, let us join with the Shepherds and spread the Good News throughout the world. This Little Baby Jesus, Who grew up to die and save us from our sins, didn't stay in the tomb.  After three days He arose from the grave, and conquered death once and for all. As He ascended into heaven, we were promised that He would return for us someday...

"And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up,

behold, two men stood by them in white apparel,

who also said,

'Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven?

This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven,

will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.'"

Acts 1:10-11

Jesus told His disciples in John 14:18-19 ~ 

"I will not leave you orphans;

I will come to you.

A little while longer and the world will see Me no more,

but you will Me. 

Because I live,

you will live also."

Just before Christ ascended into heaven, He gave His disciples (and us) this "Great Commission"...

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you,

and lo, 

I AM with you always,

even to the end of the age.

Amen."

Matthew 28:19-20

And that, my friend, is truly GOOD NEWS!   EMMANUEL, "God WITH Us", will be with us until the end of the age...and then He will come again and take us home to heaven to be with Him forever.  What better message could we share with the world than this?

Let us go and do as the Shepherds did.

Let's Go!

Pictures from our Advent Candle Lighting service today, 12/18/2016...our friends Marion Hill and Maura Masterson lighting the candles, and our son Benton read the scripture readings.  

Following our service today we had our Home Bible Fellowship Christmas dinner....  Here is the table being prepared the night before....

And here we are today enjoying a wonderful ham dinner together...

And here's "Nanny", my 93 year old mother in law...enjoying the fellowship and good food and her after dinner snack of peanuts and a piece of chocolate...something she seems to be craving these days and we have to limit or she'll just eat that and nothing else!  Yes, never a dull moment...

I pray that you and yours are having a blessed Advent season...preparing for the celebration of the birth of Christ next Sunday!  Now, Go Tell it on the mountain...that Jesus Christ is born!!! 

Hallelujah!!