Dec
25
Christmas Greeting
May the hope of the incarnation and the joy of the gospel be yours this day.
Happy Christmas!
Carolyn, Nicole, Kristin, and Janelle
May the hope of the incarnation and the joy of the gospel be yours this day.
Happy Christmas!
Carolyn, Nicole, Kristin, and Janelle
Our deepest gratitude to Ellie Fischer for not one but two hysterical Friday Funnies this month. This one’s actually an audio Friday Funny. To set it up, Ellie writes:
“Whenever I read Luke 1, I am reminded of a December Sunday night service that took place 5 years ago. Carols were sung and Scripture was read in a beautifully lit sanctuary. My husband Gerry was asked to read from Luke 1 beginning with verse 26.”
Listen here to find out what happened.
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Nicole
for Carolyn, Kristin and Janelle
In a three minute excerpt from one of his sermons, John Piper gives some outstanding ways to talk to others and remind ourselves about the meaning of Christmas (click on the first link under “The Latest from DG” on the right hand sidebar). Or, if your Christmas shopping is all done, you can listen to the entire sermon here.
Christmas Friday Funnies coming your way later!
I’m grateful for modern technology. Last Sunday along with many Sundays before, I was unable to listen to the message given at church. I was too busy chasing Caly around the “loud video room” (a room with video hook-up to the main service for parents of noisy kids like mine). And while the video room is great, it’s a little hard to concentrate when you are trying to keep your daughter from grabbing toys or attacking other kids. But whatever I miss on a Sunday morning I can easily access through my church’s website where they post audio files of all of the messages. Yeah!
This long explanation was to let you know that you don’t want to miss out on the Christmas message that was shared this past Sunday. I just finished listening online, and Joshua Harris did a masterful job preaching from our Savior’s genealogy found in Matthew 1. It is a passage that I have read many times, giving little thought to its significance and connection to Christmas. But this sermon changed all that. Josh explained how the genealogy of Jesus Christ illustrates the humility demonstrated by the Incarnation. Do I really need to say any more? Click here and enjoy!
Ever have trouble coming up with things to talk about in between bites of Christmas turkey? Awkward moments are often as plentiful as leftover wrapping paper at Christmastime. Donald Whitney has come to our rescue with ten questions we can ask over Christmas dinner. Not only might these questions eliminate those painful pauses in conversation, they will stimulate meaningful discussion and maybe even provide an opening for the gospel. What a wonderful Christmas gift from Dr. Whitney! May God’s grace season your Christmas conversation this year!
HT: Justin Taylor
As our kids receive gifts at Christmas, it’s an important moment to teach them gratefulness. My parents insisted we give thanks (verbally and affectionately) for each gift we unwrapped before opening another. Now, Brian and I require the same of our boys.
But I’m sometimes concerned that the number of gifts our boys receive this time of year only reinforces the selfish idea: “It’s all about me and what I want.”
While selfishness is natural to my boys and to all of us, giving and sacrifice is not. That’s why I was thrilled when an opportunity to redirect their attention from themselves to others came along this Christmas.
Thanks to the initiative of Carolyn McCulley, our family, along with other members of Covenant Life Church, were put in touch with needy children in our community. And so this morning, I loaded the boys in the double stroller and along with Mom, Nicole, Janelle, Chad, Jack and Caly took them toy and clothes shopping for a little boy and girl.
I’m not sure how much Liam and Owen (ages 3 and 4) understood—besides the fact that they weren’t taking the toys home to play. But I overheard Andrew (6 1/2) explaining to Liam that the toys were not for him. It’s a start!
Whether or not they’re old enough to really grasp the significance of what we did today, I don’t think it’s too early for us to begin to chip away at the selfishness in their hearts. As we look for opportunities to give each year (and not just at Christmastime), I pray that by the time they have children of their own they will know from experience that “It’s better to give than to receive.”
“‘Tis the Season to be jolly? Well, maybe” says author Jim Elliff.
Whether or not you are feeling jolly this Christmas week, I want to encourage you to take five minutes to read this brief article.
Our friend Kim sent us this sweet Christmas story from her grandmother…
My grandmother was a school teacher and my grandfather was a dairy farmer. Well, one day the local Santa Claus was sick and couldn’t go to the school to do his annual “Santa Sitting” so they called my grandfather. Although he was always busy on the farm, he was the only man in town available at such short notice for such a crisis as this. My grandfather got the call, left his barns immediately, donned the Santa suit, and greeted each child on his lap. The next day a little girl said to my grandmother, “Oh, Mrs. Robinson, yesterday we saw the REAL Santa Claus.” To which my grandmother replied, “Well, are you sure? There are many helpers to Santa.” And the little girl puffed out her chest and replied with great confidence, “I’m absolutely sure, Mrs. Robinson, I could smell the reindeer!”
My 93 year old grandmother died this past summer….but none of us will ever forget her, or this silly tale!
May the joys of Christmas be yours this weekend!
Nicole
for Carolyn, Kristin, and Janelle
Chances are, many of you will be making holiday preparations this weekend—baking cookies, decorating for a Christmas party, wrapping gifts, etc. While it’s a fun opportunity to turn on Christmas music, we’d also suggest listening to a Christmas sermon as you work, to remind you of the miracle of the incarnation and prepare your heart for Christmas. To that end, we want to recommend three Christmas messages by Mark Dever, Senior Pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church:
A Promise, Not A Wish
December 17, 1995
Deuteronomy 18:14-22
Born to Die
December 25, 1994
Mark 15:33-16:8
and
The Church and Her Challenges: Death
December 25, 2005
1 Corinthians 15
Joyful listening everyone!
Recently I discovered that the selfish little girl who spent hours perusing the toy section of the Sears catalog in order to make a Christmas list still hasn’t grown up. I know. All of you under thirty year olds have no idea what I’m talking about. But in that age just after dinosaurs and before google, the Sears catalog was where a child went to dream about what they’d find under the tree on Christmas morning.
I’m too mature and sophisticated to think much about presents anymore. But sadly, my selfish heart still looks for ways to make Christmas all about me. Instead of longing for that new Strawberry Shortcake bike, I want a Christmas experience that meets all of my expectations. I want the tree and the decorations to look just right. I want family celebrations to happen on my timetable. I want my three year old to play contentedly as I make cookies and hum holiday music.
Might as well call it “I-mas.”
In the Knowing God chapter Janelle referred to yesterday—“God Incarnate”—JI Packer realigns my holiday desires:
“The Christmas spirit is the spirit of those who, like their Master, live their whole lives on the principle of making themselves poor—spending and being spent to enrich their fellow humans, giving time, trouble, care and concern, to do good to others—and not just their own friends—in whatever way there seems to be a need….If we desire spiritual quickening for ourselves individually, one step we should take is to seek to cultivate this spirit. ‘You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich’ (2 Cor 8:9).”
Jesus Christ, who for my sake became poor—please grant me true Christmas spirit this year.
