Are You Ready for Christmas

There is a lot to get done with Christmas being 12 days away.   I am busy checking off my list of things to do, putting up the tree, the decorations, the gifts and the grocery shopping list. As I think about everything I am preparing to do it made me think about everything Mary and Joseph had on their plate with the arrival of Jesus over 2000 years ago. As I reflected on Luke 2 and the birth of Jesus it made me realize part of my preparation for Christmas is responding to the truth of who Christ is. Jesus fulfilled God’s promise of a Messiah. When we put our faith in the promise we get to look forward to His second return.  He will return to redeem those whom he has saved.  

There are similarities between how the people prepared for Jesus birth and how we prepare for his second coming. 

Obedience: Luke 2:21-24
            Mary and Joseph named their son Jesus as the angel Gabriel commanded them.
            They traveled out of town to have Jesus circumcised on the 8th day according to Jewish law.
            They brought a sacrifice to the temple for Mary’s purification as commanded.
            They presented Jesus at the temple as their firstborn to dedicate him to the Lord as 

              commanded in Leviticus 12:1-7.

Are we obedient to God’s instruction?  Are we willing to obey when it is going to cost us something or we may be inconvenienced? 

Read the word and live by the Spirit: Luke 2:25-32 gives us an example with Simeon.
            Simeon was watchful, righteous and devout.
            He knew the prophecies about the Messiah and he was waiting for Him.
            He was in tune with the Holy Spirit and he recognized the Messiah.
            He was at the temple watchful when Mary and Joseph arrived

In Luke 2:26 the bible says it was revealed to Simeon that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Simeon made a choice to listen to the Spirit and he chose to believe.  In verse 27  it says the Spirit led him to go to the temple.  It was no coincidence that he was there when Mary and Joseph arrived.  He was accustomed to listening to the Spirit’s prompting and obeying. 

Are we in the word, so we will recognize the signs of the second coming of Christ? Are we listening and obeying the Spirits prompting? 

Dear Father, As each day passes, the return of my Savior is nearer.  I  long to see his face.  As I wait, help me recognize your Spirit as you guide me each day. Also give me the strength to obey your commands.  Help me to recognize the deceiver as he shoots excuses my way not to do things because they may take me out of my way or cost me something. I want to be about your will.   In the name of Jesus, my Savior, Amen.

Terry Smith
Stephenville, TX

Duck Tape Christmas Lights

Sometimes I wait too long to get things done.  Some would call it procrastination.  I prefer to refer to it as “waiting until all the facts have had time to materialize” because it just sounds better.  I got my Christmas lights up on December 9th.  Some people may not think that’s too late but when you have to drive to seven stores and over 75 miles just to buy Christmas lights, it’s probably waiting a little too late.  The other problem waiting that long is that none of the seven stores, even the store with the lights, have the hooks you need to hang them off the shingles that late in the season.  So, I did something the Robertsons of Duck Dynasty fame would appreciate, I hung them with duct tape.  It’s the heavy duty, outdoor duct tape so I have faith it will hold.  (As I write this, I’m only one day removed from putting the lights up so the jury is still out.)  It was great entertainment for my son and he even took a picture to proudly show his friends.  

Too often, my walk with God resembles my search for Christmas lights.  At the last minute, when I really need to spend time with God, I’ll get busy and do whatever I need to do to be in His presence.  I will even go so far as to try and throw duct tape on the problem just so I can get it done.  When I have to.  It’s after these moments that I ask myself why I haven’t spent more time in His word, why I haven’t spent more time in prayer, why I haven’t spent more time in silence.  Why didn’t I wake up today with the thought of getting closer to God instead of running through a mental checklist of what I need to get accomplished?  

Psalm 23 starts with “The Lord is my shepherd, I will not want” but I often start the day and spend the day wanting so many things besides a simple walk with the Lord.  I want to grow closer to God each day so that I feel, in all that I do, I am walking with my shepherd and knowing that all I need is taken care of.  I want to be better at waking up with God, walking with God and ending the day with God instead of rushing God into the open moments of my life and trying to wrap it all up with duct tape.  I can get by with redneck Christmas lights strung with duct tape but I know I cannot get by without a focused, ongoing relationship with God.  I know it.  I want to spend my remaining days living it.

Grace and peace

Jeff Jones

Decatur, Texas

Remember

This week, my brothers and I got together; the four Shero boys in one place. This doesn’t happen often so it was an event. We ate, we laughed, we prayed; we told stories and remembered. We talked about our boyhood, our relatives and our father and mother. It was great! One thing I noticed was how different some of the memories were. I mean, we were all there. We saw the event unfold right in front of us. We are reasonably honest, so why two to four versions of the story?

Here is what I think. We forget. Then we fill in the story and when we tell it again, we have a new story. Eventually, the ‘new’ details are part of our memory.

  

I think God knew this about us, so He gave us the Lord’s Supper ‘lest we forget’. There are some things we must never forget. So He gave us this meal and instructions concerning it. This reinforces the big truths so we won’t forget.

When we eat the Lord’s Supper, we are to examine ourselves. This is to remind us of how badly we need a Savior. We are also to remember His death. This reminds us of the great price God and His Son paid for our salvation. This means our sins are serious. It also means God is serious about saving us and that He REALLY loves us. So each week, we go over the main points of the Gospel story so we will have it right and not forget.

I think my brothers and I need to get together more often.

Dear Father, Thank you for being You. Thank you for loving me even though I am sinful. Thank you for giving your Son to save me. Thank you for giving me the Lord’s Supper so I won’t forget. Thank you that my brothers and sisters meet on Sunday to remember together. Help me and please forgive me. Until He returns, I pray in the name of Your Son, Jesus.   Amen

Paul Shero

San Angelo, Texas

Building character: it's major, not minor

I was having lunch with one of my RAs (I work in Residence Life at ACU) today, and she said something really profound that, I think, people try to avoid thinking about a lot. She was talking about her relationship with one of her friends, and the fact that this friend is making some choices she shouldn't be making and is spending time with some people she shouldn't be spending time with. My RA told her friend, "Yeah, Jesus spent time with drunks and prostitutes, tax collectors and sinners. But they weren't His inner circle! You can't be constantly surrounding yourself with these people and expect not to fall sometimes."

My sweet, 19-year-old friend spoke some incredible wisdom in that moment. I think the cool, "hipster" thing to do these days is to say, "Screw the system! Let's hang out in bars and with potheads and drunks and stuff. They just need to know the love of Jesus." That's true. They do need to know the love of Jesus. But if their perception of what Jesus' love means includes a lack of accountability, then what good are we doing those people, anyway? And if we don't have a righteous, encouraging, disciplined community of friends to turn to, it isn't likely that we'll be able to resist temptation long-term. I guess I must be referencing the old scriptural cliché: "Bad company corrupts good character."

I agree with that to an extent. If the bad only commune with the bad and the good only commune with the good, who is bringing hope to the bad? No one. And who is broadening the perspective and capacity to love of the good? No one. Yes, we have much to learn from the "bad" ("bad" goes in quotes because it is not absolute, nor is it necessarily the most accurate description of the group I reference. For the sake of simplicity, the good-bad dichotomy makes the most sense). But, I'd be fooling myself if I said that I can spend all my time with people who consistently get drunk and not be tempted to give in to drunkenness. If I'm going to transcend that barrier, I cannot do it alone. Jesus did it consistently with twelve other people at his back. How arrogant of me to assume that my moral fiber is stronger than that of the man who said, "Hey, I'll volunteer to die on behalf of the good and the bad. They're all the same to me. Dichotomy shattered. Barrier broken." No, I think I need some Jameses, Andrews, and Bartholomews of my own. If we seek out those who are far from the Lord as a community, we provide the proper context to hold each other accountable in our time spent with those who are immersed in darkness.

Should I give my time to the liars, cheaters, drunks, potheads, adulterers? Absolutely. Should I do it alone? No. I should do it alongside my fellow Christian liars, cheaters, drunks, potheads, and adulterers. Because we've all been there, too, but we've just been fortunate enough to accept and receive redemption already. We're no better than the ones who are still dwelling in it. My dust is no better than theirs, because we all come from the same dust, and to the dust we will return. I am never better than them.

Bad company can corrupt good character, yes. And self-righteous, closed-minded pretentiousness prevents any kind of character that can do kingdom work from being built. He humbled Himself to the point of death, even to death on a cross. It isn't too much trouble to humble myself in this simple way.

Erin E. Daugherty, Abilene Christian University