“Gather to me this consecrated people, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”  Psalm 50:5

Our Church has taken on the mission of standing on the corner of a major intersection holding Gospel signs. We don’t hand out tracks because we don’t get to talk to drivers. But once in a while someone, walking or biking, comes along. Last week, one came by, said he’d come by… but didn’t!

I well remember conversations like this one because they provide hope. Hope that others will see and respond to God’s call to life in His Son. Before he spoke, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a mini Bible. Handing it to me he said he does what we do by passing these things out. We were on equal ground! That is… until I started asking questions. “Where do you live? How long have you lived here? Where do you go to church?” That last question met with a different facial expression as he responded, “well, I haven’t found one down here yet!

His last statement gave me kind of a shock because, as it turns out, he has lived here for 3 years! In fact… right around the corner from our church! And he has never attended! I told him where we were and gave him the 2 most distinct features of our Church Fellowship, that we simply LOVE Jesus Christ (and each other), and that we know and believe the Bible! Christmas Eve service was that night and he said he’d LOVE to come. But he didn’t!

I remember what it is like to be a Church Snob! Long before I became a pastor Katie and I tried MANY churches that didn’t conform to our way of liking, routine or teaching. My dad used to say, “always go to a church at least 3 times before you make up your mind. They could just have a bad day.” So we would! And that is what confuses me.

I can’t tell you the number of times the question comes up after discovering someone claims to be a Christian, “So where do you go to church?” More often than not the answer is, “no where!” And THAT is where they stay! No Where! And that’s confusing!

In reading and researching, I discovered over 100 Bible verses where God and His Son calls Believers to come together and meet. The benefits and duties include praying, encouraging, supporting, teaching, honoring, correcting, training and glorifying God in the process. Like belonging to ANY club… ‘Membership has it’s benefits and privileges!’

In 2022 God is calling you to join Him in His Church. AND to encourage and invite others to join you in joining Him. After all, God’s Clubhouse will last into eternity! If you don’t like hanging out with His people here, there’s a HUGE chance you won’t be hanging out there!

So may I ask? Where do YOU go to church?

SOOOO many people live miserable unhappy and unfulfilled lives.  I SPITE of the fact that God, theri creator, has BOLDLY issued a BLESSING CHALLENGE!  Life not going the way you like???  “TRY ME,” God says!  I can think of NO more arrogant a challenge.  LET ME SHOW YOU WHO I AM!!!!   WHY wouldn’t EVERYBODY take advantage of an offer like THAT???  But most simply ridicule the statement and walk away!  How about YOU?  Are YOU testing and trying out God’s faithfulness and blessings?

You Can’t Outgive God

“See if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” Malachi 3:10

My dad, an evangelist, was the original soft touch. I remember him once going off to speak in a tiny church and coming home ten days later. Eventually my mother asked about the offering. I can still see my father’s face as he smiled and looked at the floor. “You gave the money away again, didn’t you?” she asked. “Myrt,” he said, “the pastor there is going through a hard time. His kids are so needy. I felt I should give the entire fifty dollars to them.” My good mother looked at my father for a few moments and then smiled. “You know, if God told you to do it, it’s okay with me.” A few days later, we ran completely out of money, so my father gathered us for a time of prayer. He said, “Lord, you told us that if we would honor you in our good times, that you would take care of us when things are difficult. We need a little help at this time.” The next day we received an unexpected check for $1,200. That’s the way it happened— not once, but many times. No matter what you give, you’ll find you can never outgive God.

Just between us . . .

Are we trusting God with our giving? What blessings, material and nonmaterial, have we seen from our gifts? Do we know someone now who needs a helping hand? Should we share what we have with them? Do we really believe “God owns it all”?  

Heavenly Father, You promised to pour out blessings on those who tithe in Your name. Help us to take You at Your word and to trust in Your provision as we give back to You and share our abundance with others. Amen.

This devotional is taken from Night Light for Couples. Copyright © 2000 by James Dobson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

God Morning Words of the Day 

Throughout the Christmas break I will be sending devotionals from the archives, or from others.  Please enjoy your Families.  I love this devotional for a 2022 hard look perspective as to what “I” am living for.

Empty Castles

“This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” 
Luke 12:20

The utter folly of materialism hit home dramatically for me (JCD) during a trip to Britain years ago. As I toured the museums and historical buildings, I was struck by what I called “empty castles.” Standing there in the lonely fog were edifices constructed by proud men who thought they owned them. But where are those men today? All are gone; most are forgotten. The hollow castles they left behind stand as monuments to the vulnerability and impermanence of the men who built them.

I hope to leave more than empty castles behind when I die—something more meaningful than land, machines, stocks, or fame. I will consider my earthly existence to have been wasted unless my legacy is a loving family, a consistent investment in the lives of people, and an earnest attempt to have served the God who made me. Nothing else really matters.

Just between us . . .

• If we died tonight, would our obituaries describe empty pursuits or meaningful lives?
• How would the Lord judge our stewardship of money, time, and belongings?
• What has been our most foolish investment or expenditure in the past few years?
• Do we seek satisfaction in things or in the Lord? Is there a change in order?
• How can we encourage each other to pursue what really matters?

Lord, we know that all that is of this earth will eventually turn to dust. How much we long to live like Your children every day—with eternity’s values always in mind. Grant us Your grace and wisdom as we seek to make changes that will glorify You. Amen.

This devotional is taken from Night Light for Couples. Copyright © 2000 by James Dobson, Inc. All rights reserved.

When I read this devotional this morning I had a grin.  Having SOOOO much to do, and with little time to do it, I had this exact same thought yesterday morning.  But getting caught up in “I gotta,”  I didn’t take the time to write.   I LOVE when God uses multiple imprints on my senses to drive a point home. “Be still and know that I am God,” is the message for ‘Christmas Eve day.’  Tomorrow morning will be crazy for me, so TODAY is the most important Christmas time for me to refelct on What God has done for me.  I pray for you as well.  

Please take time to reflect on the Story of Christmas and WHY He came.  You’ll NEVER comprehend it, but love requires we try.

Happy Christmas Eve, everyone! Thank you for joining us on the podcast. Pastor John, in the last episode I shared a clip from you preaching on Christmas 1981 — forty years ago, at the youthful age of just 35. The clip is older than you were when you preached it! It’s amazing to hear your voice as a rookie pastor.

But we’re now zoomed into real time in the studio. You are 75 now, and Christmas 2021 is tomorrow. For a lot of Christmases, you’ve been thinking about the implications of Christ’s coming. Over these past several weeks, I know you’ve been giving a lot of thought to the holiday this year in particular. Tell us why. And what’s on your mind this Christmas Eve?

I learned back in October that I’d be preaching at my own church — at Bethlehem — the Sunday before Christmas. From that time in October until now, the wonder of Christmas that has taken hold of me in a fresh and powerful way is the amazing reality that the personal, infinite, eternal, holy Creator of the universe sent his Son into this tiny speck of human habitation called Earth in order to be condemned to death in my place.

Sometimes we just have to do what Psalm 46:10 says: “Be still, and know that I am God.” In other words, we have to just pause and let staggering reality sink in. Christmas Eve is a really good time, I think, to do this.

“The Creator of the universe sent his Son to this tiny speck called Earth to be condemned to death in my place.”

So what reality do we need to let sink in today? Reality like this: reality before, above, and outside of all created reality, reality outside of the entire scope of the universe, with its countless light-years of expanse. Outside of all that, there is and always has been a personal, infinite, eternal, holy God. He is absolute reality. He is the most real. The most ultimate thing he ever said was, “I am who I am” (Exodus 3:14). He is simply there. He’s there, like Francis Schaeffer said. He’s the God who is there — above, before, outside all reality.

Think of it. Eternal reality could have been a gas. Nothing could have existed before the original reality to make it what it was. It just was. Only we discover it’s not an “it.” Ultimate reality is a Person. This is just mind-boggling.

“I am who I am,” he says (Exodus 3:14). In other words, we don’t create him; we don’t define him; we don’t counsel, help, enrich, or initiate anything with him. He reveals himself. As Hebrews 1:1–2 says, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.” We must be still today, it seems to me, and let this sink in.

When God Sent God

From all eternity, the infinite, eternal, personal, holy Creator has existed as Father and Son and Holy Spirit. What could that possibly mean? It means that God has always had a Son. This is the kind of mystery that makes Christmas breathtaking. God has a Son. He has had a Son forever. The Son never came into being. He is not created. There never was a time in the infinite eternity past when he did not exist.

“This is the kind of mystery that makes Christmas breathtaking. God has a Son. He has had a Son forever.”

The apostle John helps us as our mouths are agape with astonishment. He says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The Word was with God, and the Word was God. So God was with God. And the God who was with God — the Word — was the Son of God.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). We mark this moment when God sent God into the world with a celebration called Christmas.

We have one day a year to be still and know that, from all eternity, God had a perfect image of himself — a perfect radiance of his glory, a perfect essence of his nature. This God who was with God was the Word and was the Son. And as Paul says in Galatians 4:4, when the time was full and perfect to accomplish all God’s eternal purposes for humanity, God sent God the Word, God the Son, to this tiny speck of human habitation called Earth, and the foundations of Christmas were laid.

Why God Sent God

Now the question is, Why? The answer God himself gives — the one that I have been so sweetly captivated by since October — is Romans 8:3: “God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son . . .” — that’s Christmas. Romans 8:3 is Christmas.

Here’s the rest of the verse: “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin” — and here it comes — “he condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). God sent God as the God-man, the flesh-God, to be condemned in his mortal flesh, and the one who condemned God was God. God condemned sin in the death of the God-man, Jesus Christ. And Jesus didn’t have any sin. Jesus was the one person in the world who didn’t deserve to be condemned. The rest of us did.

John Piper has accumulated almost 76 years of sins — thousands upon thousands of sins, any one of which is offensive enough against a holy God to plunge me into eternal ruin. I don’t stand a chance on my own to be acquitted before a God of justice. I am under condemnation, and justly so. The righteous law of God that I have broken hangs over my head like a curse.

What hope is there then for me? In a very short time, John Piper, aged 75 now, will stand before God to give an account of his life. So what hope do I have? My hope is this: “Be still, and know the meaning of Christmas.”

God has done what the law, hanging over me like a curse, could not do. The law can’t pay for my breaking the law. So from all eternity, God planned to send God the Son, the God-man, so that in his mortal flesh — without any sins of his own at all — he might bear the condemnation I deserve. “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). Or to paraphrase Paul in Galatians 3:13: “Christ became a curse for John Piper.”

How Christmas Feels

What does Christmas feel like for me? It feels like a man standing on the gallows with the rope around his neck, and the king’s son steps forward, takes the rope off my neck, puts it on his own, looks me in the eye, and — just before he drops to his own death in my place — says, “I love you. I love you. Go show what I’m like now to the world.”

What does Christmas feel like for me? It feels like a man drowning in the icy Atlantic after the sinking of the Titanic, desperate to be taken into a lifeboat, but being refused. Why? There’s no room in the lifeboat. It’s full. And a man — the wealthiest, healthiest, most influential man on that ship — pulls me in as he jumps overboard to make room for me. He looks up as I float away in safety and says, “I love you.”

What does Christmas feel like for me? It feels like I’m in a courtroom where my life hangs in the balance. The prosecuting attorney is the unassailable law of God, and the defense attorney does not exist. There is no defense. It is manifest to everyone in the courtroom that all evidence is against me, and the judge, the son of the king of the realm, brings down the gavel: “Guilty.” I’m sentenced to execution and everlasting ruin. And as they leave the courtroom with me in bonds, the son-judge follows me out, pulls me aside, and says, “I’m going to take your condemnation. You go now, and show the wonder of this moment to the world. I love you.”

So that’s where I’ve been during these months leading to this moment on Christmas Eve. I have been in Romans 8:3: “God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son [that’s Christmas] in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned [my] sin in the flesh.”

What Christmas stands for is infinitely precious. It is. I would simply plead with all our listeners: Come to Jesus Christ this Christmas. If you will embrace Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as your precious Savior, all that God is for you in Christ will be yours in him. You will have no condemnation ever. And it will be a very merry Christmas.

John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books, including Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist and most recently Providence.

There are times when I read something that impacts me and I just have to share. This is one of those times. Enjoy!

The Peanut Vendor

“Once upon a time there lived a peanut vendor in South India. Every day he walked up and down the beach calling out, “Peanuts! Peanuts for sale! Peanuts!” The man was miserably poor. He barely earned half a living, hardly enough to feed his family. But at night he bragged to his wife and children, “I am the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company!”

Eventually, the grinding poverty wore his nerves paper thin. One day he snapped. He sold all his peanuts and most of his meager belongings. He decided to go on a big fling.

“For one day, I am going to live like a rich man!” he vowed.

So he stopped by the barbershop for a clean shave and a hairstyle trim. He visited a fine clothing store and purchased an expensive suit, white shirt and tie, and all the accessories needed to look rich. Then he checked himself into the finest luxury hotel for the night. He had just enough money left to pay for the gourmet breakfast buffet the next morning.

He enjoyed the night’s accommodations in his luxury suite. When morning came he located the private, beachfront patio for the breakfast buffet. Although it was crowded with tourists, he found a table by himself. He had just filled his plate when in walked an elegantly dressed man. By this time no more tables were available, so the man approached and asked, “May I join you?”

The peanut vendor replied, “Why, yes! Please sit down.” He thought,

This is my lucky day! Not only am I living like a rich man, but I am going to eat with a rich man, too.

As the two began to talk, the stranger asked, “Sir, what do you do?” “I am the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company,” he replied. “And what do you do?” The richly dressed man looked a bit sheepish. “I’m sorry. I should have introduced myself. I just supposed that with the coverage in the newspapers you might have recognized me. My name is John D. Rockefeller.” Although he had not recognized the face, the peanut vendor did know the name. He thought, this is wonderful! I am eating with one of the richest men in the whole world.

After talking for a while, Mr. Rockefeller said, “I like your style. We are starting a new company here in South India. Why don’t you come to work for me? I will make you vice president of sales in my new firm.”

The peanut vendor replied, “Why, thank you. What a generous offer! I would like a few minutes to think it over.”

“Of course,” said Mr. Rockefeller, “but I would like some indication of your interest before we part company.”

The two leisurely enjoyed the rest of their meals. When they were finished, the peanut vendor stood up. He wanted to announce his decision with style. He took a step away from the table and then turned and spoke in a voice loud enough so many could overhear.

“Thank you, Mr. Rockefeller, for offering me the position of vice president in your new company. But I must decline. I prefer to be the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company.” He turned on his heel and walked out.

Years later, an old peanut vendor walked up and down the same resort beaches croaking in a broken voice, “Peanuts! Peanuts for sale! Peanuts!” But at night he boasted to his grandchildren that long ago one of the richest men in the world had offered to make him vice president of a huge firm.

“I turned it down,” he bragged, “so I could be the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company.”

LOOKING AHEAD…

The peanut vendor had a chance for financial security but was too proud and self‐sufficient to accept it. Yet don’t we, as Christians, often make the same mistake? Our “rich” friend—our heavenly Father—owns the possessions and resources of the entire world. He has offered us love, meaning, purpose, and, ultimately, eternal life. These are His gifts to us (“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Jesus Christ”—Philippians 4:19). All we must do is repent of our sins and accept His lordship in our lives. But many people are too proud—too self‐sufficient—to surrender their lives and belongings to Him. They would rather stand out in the crowd than sit under God. The unfortunate result is that they continue life in misery and poverty.

Do you struggle with wanting “more”—be it money, possessions, status, bragging rights or something else?  Maybe it’s time for a sit down with the Lord of the universe!

“… having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he (Jesus) has taken it away, nailing (stapling) it to the cross.” Colossians 2:14

We have an outside pool table that was gifted to us years ago. But as with all things, maintenance must be done, and it’s time to recover the old, dirty cloth with new. To do that job requires a stapler. And not just ANY stapler! This one needs to be a STAPLER!

I have several hand staplers, none of which have sufficient strength to push the staple into the backing OR do so without GREAT hand strength! Yesterday I headed to Lowes and bought an electric one. Surprisingly, THAT one couldn’t sufficiently handle the job either! Luckily I have a friend!

My friend called ME, and as we were talking, the question just popped out of my head, “Hey, do you have a good stapler I can borrow.” Within a short time I had an air compressor AND a stapler WITH staples, in the back of my car! I was surprised, yet glad to have ‘staple’ influence!

Being born in 1955, I didn’t fully understand that my life was in a state of disrepair. My parents tried to teach me right from wrong, but I generally altered those silly rules to invent my own rule book that conformed to MY way of thinking. The older I got, the more miserable I became. My way wasn’t working!

It didn’t help to realize that God not only had a set of rules for relationship and life with Him, but that He had written them down! If you’ve ever read Leviticus, you can see just how picky he is! It didn’t take mankind any time at all to add ‘intents’ and ‘imaginations’ into the mix to see that there was NO hope for ANY of us! Luckily, I heard about a friend!

Jesus Christ, God’s son, came to pay the penalty for my sin so I wouldn’t have to! The wage of sin being death, He came and died! But stapled up on that cross along with Him, was something else He brought along for maintenance purposes. The RULE Book! My friend paid my price, then did something else! He left the Rule Book stapled UP THERE!

Friend, if you want to be free, you need Jesus. He made it possible to be forgiven! But He did it in such a way as to take the penalty book out of the way so no charge could even be leveled against me! Now, my friend Jesus and I are close. As we hang out (no pun intended) He continually teaches me how to maintain and enjoy my new life in Him. FREE from any charge!

Have YOU been saved and influenced by The Stapler? 

“And Mary said: ‘My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.‘” Nehemiah 9:5-6 

Yesterday was Christmas Sunday. For those labeled ‘C & E Christians,’ it was 1 of 2 days out of the 365 day year to go to Church. Those 2 days being Christmas and Easter. I know that bothers some folks, but I happen to LOVE the opportunity to speak to ANYONE who is willing to listen about Jesus. Even if the terms may not be ideal.

As the service was starting, a couple came in and sat in a middle row. I didn’t immediately recognize them, but Katie did. As the service continued, I could see there was something going on deep inside them. Their countenance and actions spoke volumes about the state of their souls. Unfortunately, I was not in a position to speak to them privately. But!!!

It was later in the afternoon when I saw a missed message from Theresa and Steven. Returning their call, and halfway through the conversation, I put the call on ‘speaker’ and asked them to ‘repeat what they just said so that Katie could hear.’ Shock and joy lit up both our faces. After church, Theresa and Steven acted on a Spiritual nudge and invited the new couple out for lunch. They called to tell me that the couple had just received Jesus Christ as their Savior! A MERRY CHRISTMAS present for all!

I couldn’t have been more joyful because this event had Jesus’ Hands ALL OVER IT! Hearing the story, they hadn’t come particularly because it was Christmas. They came because they needed something. The need had led them to search for whatever that something was. And God had rewarded them.

The body language they exhibited displayed everything I just said. They weren’t arrogant, bold, outlandish or ostentatious, but humble, subdued and seeking. It reminded me of Mary’s speech, directly from her heart, when she stated, “He has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.” ‘Mind-Full,’ is proof that God hasn’t changed in 2000 years!

I’m told that if you want to catch a rat, use peanut butter or Slim-Jims!” Diamonds are said to be a girl’s best friend! But if you want to attract the God of the universe, the Bible tells us that humility is the key ingredient! God is attracted to broken hearts, lives and people who have no place else to turn for REAL answers when their hearts are not sound.

C.S. Lewis said, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thing of yourself, less.” It is wise, when one is broken, lost or in need of real meaning and answers, to take a humble approach in approaching God. He has the answers…we don’t! Jesus clothed Himself in humility and became flesh on my behalf. God expects the same attitude from me in return.

The Word tells us that God’s mind has been FULL of thoughts about you and me! This Christmas I am reminded, like Mary, to reflect and think about the love, joy and peace that God has voluntarily decided to share with those with a right attitude. Only humble and seeking children receive His greatest gift to men. He comes in the form of a humble baby at Christmas!

Have YOU received God’s greatest gift?   

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life . . . whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed . . .” John 3:16, 18 (NIV)

We own LOTS of blankets and ‘throws’ in our house. There is a closet in our room that is stuffed full…and the bottom of our hall closet contains even more. Thankfully, living in Florida, we don’t have much need for them. But when we do, we have plenty to choose from. Which is why I thought the gift Katie showed me, just received from one of her students, wasn’t all that exciting!

As far as blankets go, it is very pretty. It has a Scottish pattern to it…and being Scottish, the appeal is apparent. But it’s a BLANKET! And, as I’ve said, we have LOTS of blankets! Last night, as Katie was carefully folding it, she said, “this is the most comfortable blanket I have EVER owned! I LOVE it!” Naturally, my immediate reaction was to reach for it!

The texture of the comforter has a smooth and silky feel to it. Touching it immediately drew me in, creating the desire to wrap myself in its AHHHHHHHsomeness! I guess my face registered that desire far too well, because Katie immediately pulled it back and said, “this is mine, you can’t have it! It is the most comfortable blanket I have EVER owned!” Then I understood.

The story of Christmas is a story of a search for the ONE thing for which nothing else can satisfy or fulfill. Every year I want to discover and find a special gift that will show my love and gratefulness to the one who loves me. And NO one loves me like Jesus Christ!

The Christmas Search was started, not by Wise men, but by God Himself! He KNEW what He wanted, but ‘IT’ being out of His grasp, was completely unacceptable. So He sought a solution! Then, when confronted with the cost, He didn’t hesitate to pay the price. But surprisingly, what He sought and paid for by choice, could not be forced upon the object of His love.

When the Wise men came to Bethlehem, They were alone! They shouldn’t have been! The promise of The Savior and Messiah King had been boldly proclaimed for centuries. While THEY sought, the rest of the world slept! Apparently the world was satisfied with what they already had. At least enough to not search for anything better.

It is my hope that the world will see how much I love and appreciate the love and comfort of ‘The Savior’ of MY life. And that seeing it, THEY will want to search and discover the one who is also searching for THEM! This gift is FAR TOO BIG to keep to oneself… it has GOT to be shared!

Are YOU COMFORTABLE with Jesus?       

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Galatians 4:4-6 ESV

Like you, life has been BUSY! Christmas is coming fast… and like most everything else in life, Christmas preparation has proven to follow commandments 11 and 12. The 11th declares “It always takes longer” and the 12th, “It always costs more.” But like it or not, ‘Christ’s-Mass’ is on the way. The clock on the wall WILL signal Christmas Day, and no amount of time or money can change that.

Yesterday I received news from my lovely wife that she has no presents for me. Since we are doing something special together over Christmas vacation, ‘that’ is going to be her gift to me. I wasn’t alarmed or upset at all, since I don’t really NEED anything. You see… I am a wealthy man in that respect. But the HARDER part FOR HER is… I don’t really WANT anything either. It is a wonderful pinnacle of life now shared by my son.

Colt told me last week that he asked his wife for a special kind of gift this year. He said, “if you can think of something you want to give me, take a picture of it and put it in a card. NOT SPENDING MONEY will be your gift to me!” My son has arrived at this stage of life earlier than I had!

The magic of Christmas is different for children. You don’t have to experiment to prove it either. Think about handing out gifts to your children that contain only PICTURES of what they wanted! Yea… you get it! But how would they feel about not getting what they NEED? As a parent… THAT, my friends, would be horrific.

The Bible tells us that when the clock ticked off the perfect time, God sent HIS Son to purchase ‘The Thing’ man really NEEDED… Eternal Life! But the CHARACTER of God went FAR beyond just my need, and even FARTHER than my greatest want. God’s ‘Will’ made me His legal heir! This Christmas Eve and Christmas day, I invite you to think about THAT! What could anyone give a Child of God? I can give you some hints!!!  Because pictures of admiration and care, for now, MUST suffice!  We send them ahead when we show our love and respect by showing our Lord our commitment to Him through our time, giving, service and sacrifice toward one another.  THAT shows Jesus what you think of HIM!

 Are YOU part of the Family?  How are you showing it?

Thought for today…. if you don’t like spending and sharing life with Jesus and His people HERE… you will absolutely HATE Heaven!