Sunday, December 28, 2008

What a Wonderful Christmas!

I hope that you enjoyed your Christmas holidays. I know I did. So many good things have happened. Our Christmas Eve service was the best ever, and we owe a great thank you to Becky Dunn for coordinating that for us. We also need to thank Becky and my wife, MaryAnne, and Sara Foster for putting up our Christmas decorations as well.

Today, I combine two of our texts from Acts into one sermon. I did this because I really wanted to do a New Year's sermon this coming Sunday. It will be an important message on the future of Crossroads Christian Church. We will talk about the challenges and the opportunities that face us as a congregation in 2009.

My wife and I want to thank all of you for the gifts, the bonus, the cards, and for your presence at our Christmas open house. We love all of you very much and feel honored and blessed to serve this congregation. Even with the recent "rough patch", we are more convinced than ever both that God has us where HE wants us and we are doing his Will serving at Crossroads.

I want to extend a invitation to all of you who do not have plans for New Year's eve to come to the party at the church. It is tremendous fun and we enjoy good Christian fellowship. We share in a variety of activities and well as in snacks. You would not believe how much fun a group of believers can have. Not only that, it is a great time to invite your friends and family. They will be amazed that Christians can have such a good time.

Mike

Friday, December 12, 2008

Christmas Time!

I love the holidays for many reasons. The opportunity to get together with friends and family is always welcome. As Christian, I especially appreciate the body of Christ at this time of year. The open house we have is just one small way of showing that appreciation. I want to thank everyone who came to our home to celebrate with us. My wife and I want you to know how much you are loved.

Being over fifty (50) years old, I have seen a lot of Christmas seasons come and go. Growing up in home with five other kids, Christmas time was a great deal different than it is today. As a child, we did not get lots of presents because my father was not a wealthy man. He was, for most of his life, a laborer. He would work as much overtime as was available, and even work second jobs to pay the regular monthly bills. But at Christmas time, we got to pick one toy we wanted Santa to bring us for Christmas.

Yes, I must confess, I was one of the children who were so deceived by my parents. I believed that there really was a Santa Claus. I also believed that he sent my mother and father a catalog of the toys his elves were making this year. This is probably why I love that movie, "A Christmas Story" so much. It reminds me in many ways of what Christmas was like growing up. I also wanted a "BB gun" for Christmas (which I did, in fact, get).

This Christmas season is different in many ways. With the economy in serious trouble, some families are facing difficult times. Everyone is concerned that things may get worse before they get better. In many ways, it is comparable to the very first Christmas, when Christ was born. The Jewish community, under the Romans, was facing difficult times as well. They were ready for the Messiah to come and deliver them from their oppressors.

Ironically, the Gift that God gave them; Jesus, was not really the gift they were seeking after. Then, as now, people were wrapped up in the materialism of this life. While we all need money to provide for ourselves and our families, money does not really meet our deepest needs. Without a personal daily relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, no amount of money, no job or career, and no single possession, regardless how costly can obtain salvation for us. Our security, as Christians, rests solely on the sovereignty of God, not the next paycheck or government bailout.

I think that going through a Christmas season with a limited ability to give material gifts might help each us to really focus on the kind of Christmas gifts people really need, the kind money cannot buy. Things like grace, peace, and love cannot be bought. They are given when we willing try to be "like Jesus" our Lord, and forgive others. They are given when we are humble enough to accept others as Christ accepted us, unconditionally. They are given when we are open to being connected to God and to others in the body of Christ in genuine relationships.

My prayer for you and your family is that God blesses you in ways that are lasting this Christmas. That after the wrapping paper is in the trash, and the batteries are all installed, you will discover that God has given you a greater faith in His control over your life and your family. I hope the greatest gift you receive is far more than the one you want, but is really the one that meets your needs.

Merry Christmas!
Mike