Hello again! Welcome back. We’re addressing the second issue of the planning discussion, where I reveal my dry sense of humor and silliness. One liners and antics are particular ticklers of my funny bone. So hang on!

At Christmas time, I enjoy the older comedic movies like Home Alone, The Santa Clause, etc. One film in this genre, Skipping Christmas, swirled around Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, taking a tropical vacation for the holiday. Their daughter recently moved to South America and would not be home for the holiday to celebrate with her parents.

As the neighborhood finds out the couple plans on skipping the expense of Christmas and all its trimmings, the neighbors launch into an intimidation campaign of taunts, which accelerates in intensity to force the couple into participation with the community activities. But Tim Allen is not to be deterred from this special trip.

Later, while packing for their romantic trip, they receive a call from Blaire, their daughter, who plans to surprise them by coming home for Christmas with her new boyfriend.

At this news, the couple panic, trying to assemble their “normal” holiday plans in a slapstick scenario. The neighbors jump into action to pull together the annual holiday party, but hilarity comes during a scene in the grocery store. Jamie goes for the last honey baked ham and fights another woman for this “delicacy.”

Of course, Skipping Christmas is fictional. But the frantic shopping because of Covid’s supply chain issues or the scarcity of items due to a bird flu case, we witness or participate in hoarding toilet paper, eggs, beef, etc. However, God tells us not to trust in our abundance of things or store things for the future, but to depend on Him. Matthew 6:19-21 says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

When we plan for our day, week, or month, the focus needs to be on how we glorify God in each time period. Instead of buying for the uncertain future, we buy for daily needs, relying fully on God to provide for the next time. The way to determine our motivation in purchasing is to examine whether we are buying out of fear or with thankfulness for God’s provision.

If we buy based on ominous events around us, then we are buying out of fear. If we are praying about the things we need, shopping for only those things, and purchasing them with thanksgiving to God, the focus remains on God rather than what we can consume. This brings glory to the godhead.

Remembering to give thanks for everything God provides us a repeated order in Scripture. Paul commanded us in I Thessalonians 5:18, “in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” With God’s vast supply for daily existence, our thankfulness sometimes decreases rather than increases.

Why is that? Thankfulness is a spiritual thermometer. If we regularly grumble and complain, then our temperature is cold. Conversely, if we are thankful, praising God for our blessings, our temperature points to our connection to our Father and Provider.

In Luke 12:13-34, Jesus teaches on greed. He directs the disciples to think with proper attitudes toward wealth, not anxious, worrying or fretting about provisions for the future. Jesus promises they would receive everything for life and godliness.

Why is this important? Our Heavenly Father places value on the birds providing for them. But He loves and values us more than the smallest sparrow; therefore, we need to believe and trust Him for everything.

When we understand how much God already invested in us by giving His Son to die for us, we’ll see and remember He LOVES me! (See, Romans 8:32)

He LOVES you, too. If you have believed on Jesus Christ as the only Way out of a death sentence, He died in our place. Because of our sin nature and personal sins committed, we are doomed to die a never ending death. But, now, since we believe Jesus took our place, paying our huge sin debt, we no longer face eternal death. We will live forever through and with the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Paul argued that we no longer need to fear anything since God willingly gave His Son. He will also give us everything we need to endure and serve Him to the end. So, which should we depend on: our stockpile for tomorrow or God the Father’s never ending wealth?

Let’s ponder this tremendous provision by the Father for all our needs. Next time, when you see a rush on an item in the grocery store, don’t feel you have to join in the fray. Ask the Father to provide what you need and He’ll give you what is necessary for living.

Until next time,

Maranatha!

In the early years of the American colonies, two settlements were established, one in 1607 named after King James I, Jamestown, and the other in 1620 started by Separatists (outsiders to the Church of England) along with investors who agreed to the Mayflower Compact. The second English enclave was named after the sailing port, Plymouth.

 From the beginning of Jamestown, the settlers, 104 men and boys, arriving in May, had every advantage, warm weather, longer growing season, wildlife, and less loss of life in transit. But these benefits were quickly lost. The directives of the investment company were not beneficial for the situation in Virginia: build near a river with water on three sides; stay near the coast; look for gold, collect it, refining it for shipment to England.

Of course, with this instruction the men were off and running once the stockade was built. They sought their fortunes while following the Company’s directives. Three things came out of these guidelines: the settlers avoided developing shelter, planting crops, or putting stores by for the upcoming winter; a personal quest developed rather than working for the best of the community; and the individuality put them at odds with the Powhatan people who inhabited the area and on whose land they had settled.

The colonists soon became sick with mosquito borne illnesses from the marshy land. Drinking the slimy water added to the problems, and weakness arose from those issues in addition to the low food supply. Many of the Jamestown residents died; the remainder were on the verge of returning to England when in 1610 a ship arrived with new settlers and supplies. Order was established in the colony with individuals working together to develop a steady food supply, and the settlement was able to thrive.

In contrast, the Mayflower arrived in the fall of 1620. Some of the pilgrims and investors had died on the crossing. Others were sickly and supplies were almost exhausted.

During the winter the death toll was high. The following spring only 51 of the original men and women remained of the original 102. When spring arrived, the pilgrims and investors worked side by side developing a settlement, planting crops, worshiping together.

During the sailing, the colony agreed to a Compact to govern the settlement. In this document it was expected for all to pull together as a community to allow each individual to survive.

 The difference in successfulness between the two efforts was determined by whether they were in the New World as an individual or as a community. 

As long as the Jamestown colony sought only for personal gain, it could not attain to a thriving association. It was necessary for each person to willingly work with the others, as in Plimouth, toward a common goal.

So too, the word “gentleness” as used in Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” is exemplified by humility, meekness, and forbearance. In practice it is seeking the good of others before yourself.

This runs counter to American business philosophy which has adopted the early Jamestown view of being a “Lone Ranger.” An individual must be a self-promoter, self-assertive, self-starter, self, self, self… ad nauseum.

But gentleness is best expressed by forbearance, allowing others to have first place. To most this appears to be evidence of weakness, but in truth it reveals deep strength of character. When we are agitated, frustrated, or wronged, it quickly becomes apparent the great strength required to speak gently with the individual and not reveal an underlying ungodly desire to throttle them.

Being able to approach a time of confrontation for a wrong suffered in a spirit of gentleness is humanly impossible. Only the Spirit of God enables a gentle and quiet spirit without anger to reign in difficulty.

When we are dealing with evil, there are times when anger is necessary because gentleness is actively angry at evil. This is an area where Jesus shines! He displayed anger with the Pharisees at an appropriate time and for an appropriate subject, their hypocrisy.

For example, in the synagogue, the Pharisees watched to see if Jesus intended to heal a man on the Sabbath. Their object was to have cause to discredit Him before the people. Jesus said to the Pharisees,

 “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill? But they kept silent. After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man ‘Stretch out your hand.’ And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.”

Jesus was angry at their evil intent of preventing others from coming to Him for physical and spiritual healing; He was angry at their hard hearts, the wickedness that resided there, and He was angry at their hypocrisy for they were plotting for a way to kill Him. (Mark 3:4-6 NASB)

Jesus displayed gentleness towards the Pharisees in allowing them to continue with their activities, but He pointed out to them their sin. Jesus acted in neglect of His own safety for the benefit of the man who had a withered hand. His gentleness benefitted others rather than Himself.

A Greek scholar, Spiros Zhodiates, states, “It [gentleness] does not denote an outward expression of feeling but an inward grace of the soul, calmness toward God in particular. It is acceptance of God’s dealings with us and considering them as good in that they enhance the closeness of our relationship with Him.”

A great gauge of my maturity is my reaction to what appears to be humanly adverse events. Do I lash out in anger, resist God’s plan for me, or submit graciously to His wisdom?

 Come what may, good or evil, I should be drawing closer to God to cope with both situations. It’s easier to move nearer to God in difficulty, but when life is going well, do I seek the Lord’s presence? That’s a true test of how my fruit is developing.

As gentleness grows, God comes closer. God is the One who elevates the humble and actively works in opposition to the proud. (James 4:6, 8). He gives me a balanced view of myself and others. To mankind I may be insignificant but to God, I have great value. I am excited I am valuable to God!

In parting, I’ll leave you with a quote from an orchardist: “The most heavily laden branches always bow the lowest on the tree.”

How is your fruit looking today? 

Maranatha!

In December, the time comes to sing Christmas carols about Jesus birth and I have a few favorites, Away in a Manager and Silent Night. When my son was young, I sang these two as lullabies to him to lull him to sleep. Most of the time he relaxed and fell quickly asleep.

But is that the only reason to sing Christmas carols? What do these carols tell us about Christmas and who is the protagonist of the story?

In answer to the last question first, the carols record parts of Jesus Christ’s historical birth and His purpose for coming to earth as a baby. In singing the Christmas carols I love, I can mediate on the miraculous and meaningful actions in His coming and arriving as a human baby. In that birth, He gives us a look at His purpose by His identifying with the temple lambs.

First, let us review the main points we discussed last time and add more facts to fuel your praise for God’s plan.

In the prior post, we discussed the miracles of our Savior’s birth, including the location in a lambing cave, the bed used for examining the lambs, and the swaddling cloths of Jesus which the shepherds applied to perfect lambs.

Now, besides the previous information, let us look at other recorded information about the glorious birth of the Son of God. In traveling to the location of Bethlehem, the City of David, Mary and Joseph confirmed they were both descendants of David, though in different generational trees. See, Matthew 1 for Joseph’s family tree and Luke 1 for Mary’s tree. This return to their ancestral home was required by Caesar and brought them to Judea when all the housing was completely full.

As recorded in Luke 2:1-5, an edict came to force this travel to Bethlehem. Upon arrival in town, the only location available was a cave where lambs were born. The prophet Micah predicted the Savior’s birth in Micah 5:6, which says, “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will come forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His times of coming forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.” (NASB) In this choice of “hotel room” God identifies His Son as the Perfect Lamb to come, His only Begotten Son. (John 3:16)

After Jesus’ birth, Mary laid Jesus in a trough. The shepherds possibly used this trough for food or water for adult ewes, or to shelter newborn lambs. Also, this “bed” enabled the shepherd to examine the lamb for any impurities.

If under examination the lamb was perfect or whole, the shepherd swaddled the newborn in cloths to protect the lamb from injury and to maintain its body heat during the cold Judean Spring nights. Mary swaddled Jesus to protect and keep warm her Son, but God intended those wrappings to speak of Jesus’ perfection and the future once for all sacrifice for all sin.

This birth, divinely planned, occurred during the lambing season. Further, Jesus’ birth occurred during the time shepherds were in the fields with the flocks, from April to October of each year. During the Spring shepherds guarded their flocks, assisted the ewes in giving birth, inspecting the flocks, and swaddling the unblemished lambs.

Additional comparisons in the lamb’s life cycle to Jesus’ life culminate in similar sacrificial deaths. The priest’s continuous offering of lambs did not end the animal sacrifices. A continual need arises with each sin committed. Whereas, when Christ died on the cross, His one sacrifice covered all sins for all time, any sins I committed or will commit. Jesus Christ’s sacrificial offering of His life occurred at the very hour the priests slaughtered the Passover lambs.

… when Christ died on the cross, His one sacrifice covered all sins for all time…”

After Jesus’ sacrificial death, and before the burial, Joseph of Arimathea and other disciples swaddled Jesus in cloths because He was a pure and unblemished sacrifice. Jesus’ perfection enabled Him to carry away my sins and deliver from bondage to the god of this world, the enemy of Almighty God.

At the end of three nights and days, Jesus Christ rose victorious over sin and death; He shed the cloths and left them behind in the tomb. Once Jesus completed the perfect offering, He no longer needed the cloths; He proved He was perfect in His resurrection, which guaranteed His victorious and finished mission to buy back humanity out of the chains of sin..

In this resurrection from death, Jesus paid the whole penalty for my every sin. God no longer remembers any sin of mine, past, present, or future. When the Father sees me, He sees Christ’s righteousness covering me. Therefore, Christ’s sacrifice freed my soul from slavery to sin.

Now, when I confess my sin with a contrite spirit, He renews my relationship with Himself, the Father, and the Holy Spirit. This excites praise in my heart like that recorded in Rev 5:9-10 offered by the 24 elders.

And they *sang a new song, saying,

“Worthy are You to take the scroll and to break its seals; for You were slaughtered, and You purchased people for God with Your blood from every tribe, language, people, and nation.

¹⁰ You have made them into a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign upon the earth.” (NASB)

I sing with the elders and am filled with gratitude and praise, for the Amazing Son of God and the Father of all Creation look favorably on me. Hallelujah, Praise the Lord, I am set free to serve You alone!

You may have a question about receiving this freedom from sin. To receive the grace offered by God, first there are several things that you must believe:

1. That you are a sinner in need of forgiveness and freedom.
2. Jesus Christ is the one and only way for forgiveness of your sin.
3. Jesus Christ is God and Man.
4. Jesus died, was buried, and rose again with victory over sin.

Second, you need to confess your sins to God and ask for His forgiveness.

Acts 16:31 states, “They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

If you have prayed this to the Father, He forgives you and adopts you into His family, freeing you from your tie to sin. This does not mean we don’t sin any longer, but that we can continually approach Him for forgiveness, turning 180 degrees from our previous actions and following the path He has laid out for us. Ephesians 6:10, states, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

If you decide to pray and accept the Lord’s forgiveness, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit will take up residence inside of you. You will be part of God’s family, and I encourage you to read the gospel of John to discover more of who Jesus is and to find a Bible preaching church where you hear God’s word taught so you grow in your new faith.

If you have made this decision, please let me know in the comment box below.

Until next time, Maranatha,

S.D.G., Soli Deo Gloria

God gave the human race an unblemished Lamb one chilly night. His precious Lamb was born following a process of labor and delivery; however, there were peculiarities around this Lamb’s birth.

For instance, the birth occurred in a Judean countryside birthing cave where shepherds sheltered ewes and lambs during the birthing process. Once the lamb arrived, shepherds would lay it in a trough for a thorough inspection for abnormalities and bruises.

If the shepherd found none, he swaddled the lamb to protect it from potential injuries. Only perfect lambs would qualify for a temple sacrifice in Jerusalem.

The temple priests may have employed the shepherds of the Nativity to care for the temple flocks, which were bought by the people as they came to confess their sins.

The Bible passage, Luke 2:8-18 reads:

8 “In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock at night. 9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. 10 And so the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army of angels praising God and saying,

14 Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among people with whom He is pleased.

15 When the angels had departed from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem, then, and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us. 16 And they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. 17 When they had seen Him, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. 18 And all who heard it were amazed about the things which were told them by the shepherds.” (NASB)

God’s Lamb was born into this world to save humanity from our sins. He was born into humble circumstances, identifying with the role of a sheep to be the perfect, once for all time sacrifice.

This wonderful Savior came to restore our relationship with God so that we could enjoy intimate conversations with our Creator. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, came to die, which He did because He loves us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

Will you accept God’s Gift of everlasting life through His Son this Christmas? The requirement is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will receive this wonderful life with Jesus Christ.

Please pray to the Father and request to have Jesus Christ in your life as your Savior and Lord.

If you have questions about receiving Jesus Christ, or about this post, write to me through the comments.

Until next time,

Maranatha,

S.D.G.

My brother, Mark, is a writer, too! While you visit his blog, look around at the artwork. Enjoy the beauty of God’s creation!

https://mpphotog.zenfoliosite.com/truth-studio-blog/bp/merry-christmas?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1FP9xBvOpmAgiZQAkwkSlh4_Bz-DUH52Dhfhbf2cNDmlncwQmLh3Sgjzo_aem_uRSmQss4lLu1poszr84IoA

While he’s moving forward with his website, Mark subtly gives his big sister a push back to the typewriter.

During these days rolling up to Christmas, remember our beautiful Reason for rejoicing! Be thankful over God’s gifts, imparted without wrapping paper or bows but provided to bring us to heaven, to perform His work here, and to share the good news of salvation to all those who hear our voice.

Jesus came to earth with the main purpose of dying for the sins of mankind, He was three days in the grave, and He arose from the dead, ascended into heaven for those who believe on Him for rescue from sins.

Would you trust Him this Christmas believing He died, was buried, and rose again for your rescue from eternal death? Would you become one of His disciples today?

May you seek the meaning of Christ’s birth as the shepherds did; may you find the Wisdom of the Ages as the wisemen did, and may you proclaim His royalty and right to reign as the angels did.

Merry Christmas!

Melanie

S.D.G.

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In the 1970s, a television commercial pictured a young boy waiting for his ketchup to slowly inch out of the bottle. The background music plays “Anticipation” by Carly Simon emphasizing the positive of waiting for good things.

Over the last few months, we have been planning a trip to New England and Canada, investigating hotels, transportation, and restaurants, and making reservations for our vacation along the Eastern Seaboard.

While waiting, we sometimes watch a countdown clock, an exercise similar to watching grass grow! However, the day finally dawns; we travel via plane to our destination and start our adventure.

Often obstacles impede reaching the destination: delayed flights, missed connections, etc. The flight to Dallas began with a delay, then another delay, but finally, the plane was ready to board. Once the delays were over; we were on our way to our special vacation.

Plans fulfilled are wonderful things, but we had little control over those schedules.  We make plans hoping everything falls into place without a hiccup, but invariably, something pops up that changes the schedule or activities available.

God has made plans for all mankind but in contrast to our ideas, His plans will be carried out. God’s timeline began before Creation.

When God created the heavens and the earth, placing all living things on the earth, fish, birds, animals, and man, He gave man charge over the earth to subdue and tend its gardens. But the first woman and man (Eve and Adam) chose to disobey God by desiring to become their own god. For this, Adam and Eve and their descendants were given a nature that continually strove to exalt itself over others, causing disagreements, strife, and even murder. See, Genesis 1-11.

But God had a plan, from the beginning, He knew He would send His only Son, to be born of a virgin, to become like man, live a perfect life, die on the cross for humanity’s pride, spend three days in the grave, and hell, and on the third rise from the dead (Genesis 3:15). This is incredulous if God is not the Creator of everything, but God is superior to all created beings and natural laws. To carry out a comprehensive rescue plan for humanity is not difficult for God because nothing is impossible for the God of all creation (Luke 1:37).  

God’s only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, revealed the next step of God’s plan at His Last Passover when He instituted what we call the Lord’s Supper.  At that meal, Jesus spoke to the disciples about leaving them to go build a home for them in heaven. The disciples recognized this statement as a proposal by a bridegroom to a bride. Jesus promised that as the disciples’ Bridegroom to build a home and return for His bride (the church) and take her to their wedding feast in heaven where He would cement a permanent relationship with those who believe. He would be our Bridegroom with a loving, listening, compassionate, and intimate relationship.

Let me explain why this marriage proposal of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, is so important, and what the words of John 14:1-6 mean.

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be. ⁴ And you know the way where I am going.” ⁵ Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going; how do we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.

In the Galilean wedding ceremony, the groom would offer his intended bride a cup of wine. If she drank it, the marriage contract, ketubah, was signed by the fathers, and the couple was engaged. The groom would tell the bride he would construct a house attached to or near the father’s house and return for her so that they could be together forever.

In most Jewish weddings the date was set for a year later. However, in Galilee, the date was only known to the Father. He would tell the Son when the house was ready and the Groom could retrieve His Bride for the wedding to be performed.

At any point, believers (the Bride of Christ) will see their Bridegroom returning to take them to their new “house” in heaven. Are you ready for this event or are you still trying to decide whether to accept His betrothal offering, the gift of eternal life?

Why did His Son, Jesus Christ, agree to die and become engaged to those humans who believed? He died because He loved mankind. His love drove Him to be our substitute and pay the penalty for all sin, defined as separation from God to a solitary tortuous confinement in hell.

This offer of salvation is extended to you. Mankind can be divided into two groups one has believed God and received His free gift of eternal life. The other has not accepted the gift of eternal life but may deny God’s existence or think he or she is a “good person” and doesn’t need God’s salvation gift. We each have a choice to make.

Do you believe in God and accept the gift of eternal life, or will you refuse to accept that God exists?

God has said, “There is a way that seems right unto a man but the end thereof is death (Proverbs 14:12). Wide is the way that leads to destruction but narrow is the way that leads to life (Matthew 7:13-14).” Will you choose life, the narrow way? Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by me (John 14:6).”

The Apostle Paul stated … “Now, is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2).” Don’t put off your decision. Time is running out!

Maranatha!