Happy December! (Yeah right!) This is the month of Advent, Christmas, and the final hoorah of 2025! It is also the beginning of winter, Oh yay. Even though the temperatures outside are dropping, it doesn’t mean that the warmth of our Christian hearts and spirits must follow. No, in fact with Advent and Christmas we should be igniting renewed flames of spirituality and devotion, which should translate into increased fellowship and love for our fellow mankind.
This Advent season might bring some change to how it has been celebrated in the past within our church. I am going to be making efforts to get more of our people involved every week and hopefully spur a bit of seasonal transformation in some of us. Afterall, this time of year is the season of giving (as they like to remind us in the commercials) and what better giving is there than giving of yourself?
But as Christians, we also know it will soon be the season of receiving. As we soon will be commemorating the receiving of the greatest gift ever known, Jesus, God in human form. It is during this time of year that we focus on what we have been given, God in the flesh of a newborn babe. It is from that miraculous, humble beginning that the world was given the chance to come to know our God, and to receive the eventual blessing of redemption. (There could be no Easter without Christmas.) This wonderful birth changed the world. This wonderful birth brought us closer to our creator than anything prior or since. What a miracle! It is only right that we celebrate and commemorate this spectacular moment with joyous hearts, sharing of our resources, and air filled with music that heralds the birth of our Lord! How wonderful it is to be counted among those that belong to the Lord! How wonderful it is to recognize Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior! In short, how wonderful it is to be us! When we keep our focus on what we have in Christ, it really doesn’t matter too much what we don’t have of this world. Could we have more money? Surely. Could we have a bigger/fancier home? Probably. More jewelry? Toys? Absolutely! But how do all these things compare to what we DO have? They are trivial, meaningless, and temporary. Whereas in Christ we have the promise of salvation and eternal life with God the Father! What could be more important? NOTHING!
If you have someone on your Christmas list that you don’t know what to get, think about introducing or re-introducing them to Jesus. You could never give a better gift (and you don’t have to wrap it!)
Marian and I wish you and yours a blessed Advent and Christmas. May you each open your hearts to truly receive the Christ child this year and bring Him with you into 2026.
Pastor Gerry
Monthly Men’s Breakfast…Please join us for our monthly men’s breakfast the second Wednesday of each month at 9:00 am at Eat-N-Park. All are welcome!