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Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift (2 Corinthians 9:15 NASB) Christmas! How do we celebrate? Gift-giving, cookie baking, card-sending, church-attending, choir-singing, charity-giving, neighborhood-caroling, tree-decorating, party-hosting, present-wrapping, package-sending, family-visiting, travel-planning and more! The list of how we celebrate today seems unending. What a contrast to that first Christmas, when angels proclaimed the birth of the Christ child in a heavenly celebration with one shining star as the only decoration. As far as any party for Jesus’ birthday (which was actually His “earthday”) we’re told that a few shepherds were invited and came not for treats or games or cake but to worship Him. Later, Magi appeared bringing gifts to honor the young boy child. And centuries later, the exchanging of gifts to celebrate Christmas began and has continued, although it is still Jesus’ birthday, not ours. The intent of gift-giving is to replicate the love God showed us by giving us His Son, but has it become a dutiful act, just a tradition? Do we comprehend this Jesus—the Christ--is God’s gift to the whole world bringing eternal salvation for those who believe and receive Him? Do we consider that many people have not received that gift? Perhaps a better gift than another tie for Uncle Harry or a poinsettia for neighbor Millie would be sharing why Christ came and what He did for them and for the world, including them. If we love Jesus, should we not love to tell the story of the cross as well as the one of the cradle? Should we not celebrate what His death, burial, and resurrection mean to us and for all who love His appearing and how we wait in expectation for His coming again? Christmas! Lord, help us to share the Gift that lasts forever so angels celebrate again when someone receives Your Gift—Christ! Sandra Fisher
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The kind stranger12/4/2022 Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. (Hebrews 13:2) It was an overcast morning in late autumn. Barely a month had passed from the passing of my wife and mother of our two boys. I was in mourning, trying to cope with the inhuman trial that life imposes on us all, and sadly more than once. I kept myself outdoors as much as I could, walking the streets of London, the very same streets that she and I had been walking during weekends under the pretext of exercise, but in reality to explore and enjoy the city. The metropolis offers itself for walking tours with its wide, unobstructed pavements (quite unlike Athens), its neat network of streets, the diversity of its architectural styles, the cosmopolitan atmosphere that makes London so singular, the rows of trees that add character and perspective to its avenues, and most important of all, the smiles and the kindness of strangers. My wife was French and I am Greek. We met in our late teens in the North East of England, as students, and moved down to London when our studies ended. She had graduated in Astrophysics and I in Marine Engineering. In London she found a job as a maths teacher at a school not far from home. It all seemed so ideal! We got ourselves a mortgage, bought an apartment and four years later, started our family in an area where the dome of a Greek cathedral reminded me of home. We lived within walking distance from Kensington Gardens where we spent endless hours lying on its lawns and pushing our toddlers’ pram on its lanes, cautious not to frighten its bushy-tailed residents. Thanks to our boys we became regulars to its playgrounds and ice cream stands. Hyde Park was a dual gift of leisure and refuge; its greenery diluted our cares and worries and filled us with optimism and plans for tomorrow. Things took a rapid turn to the worse when my wife was diagnosed with linitis plastica, an incurable stomach cancer, in late November 2006. The doctors advised chemotherapy, all four cycles, but to no avail. She fought the dreaded disease with amazing courage, caring for her family to the very end. Words fail to describe the emotional stress and despair we all went though for the next 22 months. On the Autumn Equinox of 2008, she passed away peacefully, with her loved ones by her side. Strange as it may sound, I felt the city of our former happiness somehow solicitous to my grief. Memories kept coming to me at every street corner, to remind me of her. The capital remained firm, not out of indifference but out of support. The air itself kept bringing back some of the exhilarating moods we used to feel when we were about to go footloose. I was walking along a street in Bloomsbury, Central London, that morning, thinking of how much my life had changed, when I caught sight of a young man with short blond hair, walking briskly towards me. As we crossed each other on the pavement, I heard him say to me: “Jesus loves you!” with a smile and walked on. I was taken aback. In the split second it took me to realise what had just happened, the kind stranger was out of sight. I felt very moved by that instant encounter, and took it as a sign that Someone is watching over me through the eyes of a faithful servant. Later that day I sat at my desk and wrote down my experience in the form of a poem. I called it “Bloomsbury 2008”. “Jesus loves you!” said the stranger with a smile as he rushed past my grief in Bloomsbury. I was bereft. I had no time to thank your blonde apostle Lord. Please thank him! Every time I read these lines, I’m overtaken with gratitude for that empathetic young man who read my grief so swiftly and responded equally swiftly with the nicest possible words: Jesus loves you! Costas Nisiotis
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Gratitude12/4/2022 GRATITUDE “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant” (Luke 1:46, NIV). Supplies and provisions, honour and love bountiful all from our heavenly Father filling our past, present and future. What a time of gratefulness towards the Lord! Christmas, when Christ came as flesh, a great demonstration of God’s sacrificial love for us. What a wonderful time of the year to express gratitude towards the Holy Spirit for keeping us in the centre of His will and making us His priority! What more could a creation ask for? Its love that sustains life, that brings strength to decaying bones. Love brings confidence, security, love makes one grow. We have the privilege to be surrounded by such kind of unconditional and sacrificial agape love that comes from Him alone. In Him we are confident about tomorrow, in Him we are secure from the tactics of the evil one, in Him we grow with spiritual wisdom and understanding to know the essence of life. How thoughtful God was when he created you and me! He worked out our details, in flesh and spirit, to set a beautiful spiritual journey, to be loved and to love. It’s a time to show gratitude towards all that the Lord has sustained us with - most of all, Jesus. Thank you, Lord, for the abundance of spirit we have received from you through Jesus. Amen. Deepika Emmanuel Sagar
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Conceived by the Holy Spirit12/3/2022 “The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God’” (Luke 1:35 NIV). Before the trek of time began, which saw the heavens unfold and earth acquire its form ; the eternal Son, through the Spirit, did determine that limitation which, as Christ, he would, in time, assume . Thus, foreordained of the Father and through the Spirit, the Son so fashioned and ordered the material realm to this very purpose; that, at the time appointed, he would enter the terrene sphere of his own formation, to redeem it from the corruption of sin, under whose power it was destined to fall . When our beloved Saviour, through the eternal Spirit, comes into the world, he takes to himself the flesh of Adam , whose body and coessential spirit, once the apex and crown of that expansive and delightful creation, is of itself, by that one man’s sin , become both gaol and gaoler, sin’s slavish servant , the cold custodian of man’s ruin. Of this flesh, so foully fallen, the Holy Spirit prepares a body of mortal habitation , which body the eternal Son will take to himself, who alone can confront and reverse the sinful course. And it comes to pass that a chaste and comely maiden, the chosen daughter of Zion , cloaked in the innocence of youth and the childlike obedience of her faith, submits to God’s design for her and the Holy Spirit moves over this virgin territory, to quicken the substance which he takes from fallen man, to support, empower and sanctify. It is to this human soul, thus anointed of the Spirit, that the eternal Son, at the behest of the Father, humbles himself . Here, in the womb of Mary, do two natures conjoin, the divine and the human. So, the Holy One who proceeds from Heaven, whom the Father in his mercy sends, to be born of sinful flesh , shall be called the Christ, Son of God and Son of Man . By this incarnation is man’s face turned back to God, in loving obedience of the Son, who, in corporeal life, will so effect the Father’s will to this end. Richard Dempsey
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Increase our love12/3/2022 The disciples once asked the Lord Jesus to increase their faith. No doubt they desired to achieve greater things for God, but I wonder if they forgot the value of the greatest thing of all — to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength,” (Mark 12:30 NIV). Perhaps they thought they already did. Peter assumed he already loved the Lord with all his heart, soul, and mind — until he discovered he didn’t. He denied he knew the Lord three times. In a moment of profound weakness, Peter discovered his fear of man was stronger than his love for the Lord. But on the positive end, it brought him to the end of himself. Only then could he face the truth and be transformed into the likeness of Jesus. Remember what Jesus asked him along the seashore following His resurrection? It was only then Peter was able to honestly look at himself and answer the burning question “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?” (John 21:17 NKJV). It’s a question worth asking ourselves as we face our own unsettling fears. How much do we really love the Lord? Are we ready to ‘walk through the fire’ with Him? In the Old Testament book of Daniel, three Hebrew captives named Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego literally walked through a furnace of fire with a figure of a man who mysteriously appeared among them “like a son of the gods” in the words of the Babylonian king. Many believe the mysterious figure was Jesus, for the three men had informed the king, “If the God we serve exists, then He can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king. But even if He does not rescue us we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” (Daniel 3:17-18 CSB). Here was a faith that increased through the power of love. Toni Babcock
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Walk by faith12/3/2022 It is easy to have faith when everything is going great, when things go our way. But, what about when everything is going wrong, when our faith is being tested, the heat turned up being purified like gold, the dross removed. Our times of testing is the only time when our faith has the opportunity to really shine, to grow, to be perfected as we see with Habakkuk and several others in the Bible. Habakkuk Rejoices: Though the fig tree does not bud and no fruit is on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though the sheep are cut off from the fold and no cattle are in the stalls, yet I will exult in the LORD; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation! GOD the Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like those of a deer; He makes me walk upon the heights! (Hab 3:17-19 BSB). Jesus promised us that trials and tribulations would come, but He told us that in Him we can overcome them. To continually see ourselves in Him during our trials takes genuine faith, it is walking in the Spirit by faith, instead of in the flesh by sight. In the Spirit, the fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) are naturally produced. These fruits are the polar opposite of the works of the flesh and or tremendous benefit in our trials. It takes time for believers to recognize the benefits of praising God in the storm, many will never understand it. But there is great peace and power for those who walk by faith and rejoice in the Lord when all is going wrong. God’s promises are always true and when we trust and obey, even the worst of times work out for our best. And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28 BSB). Dear Father, give me the courage to walk by faith in every trial that I encounter. I know you are with me at all times. Michael Edwards
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Greater joy12/3/2022 I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete (John 15:11 NAB). There is a greater joy, a mysterious joy unseen. It comes from heavenly realms, not earthly places. The world offers us snippets of happiness, but true joy has a divine source. Jesus told us that His joy is complete joy. A greater joy. The Master’s joy! Receive it! “Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in the small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your Masters’s joy.” (Matthew 25:21) Jesus had just shared with the disciples the parable of the talents. His “well done” promises us the talents he entrusts us with, if offered and used faithfully for His kingdom, are rewarded with the sharing in His joy. Being faithful pleases Jesus, prompts Him to give us more, and extends to us a ticket to greater joy. Be faithful. Earn it. In John 15, Jesus paints a picture of Israel as a vineyard, relating that He is the vine and we are the branches. He asks us to remain close to Him, connected to our life-giving source. More specifically, Jesus invites us to become His disciple, bear fruit, keep the Father’s commandments, and remain in His love. If you’re weary, and the tiny snippets of earth-bound happiness leave you lacking, draw near to the True Vine so your joy can be made complete. This is the way to greater joy. Connect to it. John continues his thoughts on joy: “And if you do as I say in this letter, then you, too, will be full of joy...” (1 John 1:4 LBCE) John testifies he has seen Jesus, heard the words He spoke, and encourages us to share the fellowship he has with the Father and the Son. His letter asserts that entering into that fellowship is the path to gain greater joy. Enter it. Karen Pourbabaee
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Lasting impressions12/2/2022 ‘For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing’ (2 Corinthians 2:15 NRSV). Some perfumes have a lingering evocative scent that leaves the admirer longing for more to enjoy. However, other perfumes, depending on personal taste, are repulsive. Paul states in this verse that to those who are being saved our Christ focused words leave a lasting, edifying impression. Our words are a deeply satisfying aroma of life itself. However, for those who are perishing, who are walking far from God, Christ’s message to them is a pungent offensive fragrance – even like the smell of death. When Christians share the gospel, it will be good news to some and foul to others. True believers recognize the life giving power of Christ’s message and respond enthusiastically. However, don’t be surprised if the others hate you when they hear Christ’s message. Jesus himself prepared his disciples for this outcome in John 17:14. Rejection does not mean we must not persevere. Many may take offense from our words of hope, but we are to still spread the fragrance of Christ whenever and wherever we go leaving a lasting impression of the knowledge of Him. Jennifer Woodley
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Christ our currency12/2/2022 Each of us as believers have been given a measure of faith (Romans 12:3b CSB) and are spiritually gifted with “the mind of Christ” as followers of Jesus (1 Corinthians 2:16b CSB). So, it wouldn’t make sense to fall into the comparison trap the Apostle Paul warns us about when he wrote “…in measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves to themselves, they lack understanding,” (2 Corinthians 10:12b CSB). The truth is, when we use other Christians as a measuring stick, or try in our own strength to live up to someone else’s standard for Christian living, we fail to acknowledge where the real substance of our faith belongs. It is in Christ — not in us or anyone else — not in the person in the pew sitting next to us, not in the pulpit, not in the world, but in His power, His perfection, and His promises. It is “Christ in you the hope of glory” we bank our spiritual hope on (Colossians 1:27b CSB). This is the only currency that wins favor with God. Perhaps there’s a past sin you can’t seem to forget. God sees us in His Son, and if Jesus died and rose again to remove our sin as far as the east is from the west – if He’s truly risen out from under the condemnation of our sin and guilt once laid on Him, why would we falter in faith and choose to hang onto past failure or sin? It’s false to believe the grace of Jesus extends to everyone else – “but I might be one of the exceptions because of X, Y, or Z.” That’s a recipe for spiritual stale-mate, and it’s not the will of God for our lives, but an exercise in unbelief, (Hebrews 3:12 CSB). Lord, keep us from an evil heart of unbelief. “Create in me a clean heart oh God, and renew a right spirit within me,” (Psalm 51:10 KJV). Amen. Toni Babcock
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Never lose heart12/1/2022 Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart, (2 Corinthian 4:1 NASB) Paul knew that anyone who preaches or embraces the Gospel would experience resistance. Therefore, Paul urges them to never lose heart. Paul was speaking primarily to the gentiles or Greeks. Remember that the Greeks thought preaching the Cross was foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:23 NASB). Paul’s message to the Greeks was not seeker sensitive; it was “Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2b NASB). Paul had purposed to know and proclaim nothing but the simple Gospel message. Paul was preparing the believers in Corinth for the reality of anyone who embraces the Gospel. Paul knew through his life experience that preaching the simple Gospel would bring complex problems. Therefore, he tells his readers twice in 2 Corinthians 4:1,16 NASB to “never lose heart.” The opposition would come, but there would be victory if we do not lose hope. Satan wants to steal our hope. Resistance over a long time can bring discouragement and hijack our hope. Hope is the John the Baptist of faith; it always goes before it. If Satan can take away your hope, he has negated your faith. The Bible says that “without faith, it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6a NASB). Circumstances are real, but they are not the actual enemy. It is the powers of darkness working through them to defeat us. Negative experiences can be for or against us, depending on whether we react in faith or unbelief. Our great hope is that one day, just as Jesus Christ rose from the dead, so shall we (1 Thessalonians 1:16). Keep your eye on the prize, and you will never lose heart. Ken Barnes
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12/5/2022
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