What Do You Do With Christmas

December 26 and Beyond... 

What do you do with Christmas the rest of the year. We anticipate it for what seems forever, and suddenly it is over. We are faced with the bills and none of the thrills of Christmas. Those there in that first Christmas season were able to take it with them for the rest of the year, in fact for the rest of their lives.Simeon had waited his whole life to see the Christ. "MOVED by the spirit he went into the temple."   Mary was new to this and the youngster in the group that first Christmas. She and Joseph "MARVELED about what was said about Jesus." Anna was over 84 years old and had spent at least 60 years waiting in the temple for Christ. "She SPOKE about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption..."

     These three help us discover three action steps we can make part of our lives and a way to take Christmas with us throughout the year.

First we must be open to the MOVING of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Second we must always be willing to be surprised and MARVEL at what God is doing around us.

Third we must be willing to speak as MESSENGERS to those who are wanting and willing to listen.

     This year make the 26th the beginning of a whole year with CHRIST and a whole year of CHRISTMAS!

Have a very merry CHRISTMAS this coming year.

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The Gift

The Gift Under the Tree

It is that time of year again. You have to buy gifts for people who don't need them but you feel obligated to get them something.

I remember one gift more than any other one. Now it was not the most expensive or the best gift as far as value. In fact it did not last one year. It was just that every kid wanted the new Dick Tracy Shot-Gun squirt gun, and my brothers and I each got one. the only problem was we discovered we would not be allowed to put water in them for about five months. If we would have put water in them on that very cold December 25th we would have all frozen to death before the 26th.

So what do you get someone who has everything? A flashlight or house slippers, or a Chia pet. This year Chia pets come in George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, the Statue of Liberty and Barak Obama. Imagine the wise men on the way to see Jesus. What should you get this very important baby? They brought him Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. These gift represent Jesus the king (gold), Jesus the priest (frankincense) and Jesus the prophet (Myrrh).

What do you get someone who deserves nothing? Well if you are God you get them what they need most. Now I did not say what they want, but what they need. According to John 3.16 God gave us the three things we NEED most. First he gave His son, Jesus. This was his way to make personal contact with each one of us. Second, He gave us salvation. That means that he made it possible for us to be rescued from the flood of sin that would sweep us away to our death. Third, he gave us eternal life. This means the very God we have rejected, replaced and tried to erase is inviting us to spend eternity with him. He has provided his Son so Salvation is available to all who ask, making eternal life with God part of the gift we do not deserve but was given to us anyway.

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cristo-scopophobia

Spiritual FEARS

People have many fears and some of them are religious in nature. There are those who have a fear of SERMONS - Homilophobia. Now that is really silly, being afraid of what a minister might say from the pulpit on a Sunday morning under the directions of the Holy Spirit. Why would anyone be afraid of that? That is unless they are out of touch with God and then they might have Theophobia or the fear of God. That would put them in the direct line of sight for an attack from Satan which could lead to Satanophobia or the fear of Satan and the fear of his Spirits - Pneumatiphobia.

That leads me to a new fear that should be properly labeled and examined. The fear of being seen or stared at is Scopophobia. The only time I have this is at 6:30 in the morning when I first get up. Come to think of it I am the one who people are afraid of seeing at that time of the day. There is a fear among modern Christians that I call Cristo-Scopophobia, which means they are afraid of being seen or recognized as a CHRISTIAN. They do not want to be seen as "one of them." You know those Bible believers who are so narrow mined as to actually think there is a God who died for the sins of all humanity and who will confess their needs and accept his forgiveness.

They are much like Gideon the Old Testament Israelite who was afraid of being seen by the Midianites who were running his country. He was hiding in a wine press trying to thresh his wheat when he was confronted by an angel or messenger of God. The conservation went something like this: (Judges 6.11-16)
Angel- What are you doing down there?
Gideon - Hold it down I don't want to be seen.
Angel - But God wants you to be seen and work for him out in the open.
Gideon - What, I have not seen any evidence that would make me want to stick my neck out. I know He used to be involved the lives of people, but you know this is not a good time and the followers of God are not real popular right now and....
Angel - You are chosen and God will be with you, so get out of that pit of SELF pity and get to work.

Today many Christians with CRISTO-SCOPOPHOBIA are hiding out in Churches instead of wine presses. It is time we faced our fears and like Gideon get out and about doing God's work in public. We need to be living our beliefs out where they can make a difference and influence those around us. We are suppose to change our world that is why Jesus compared us to salt. We are suppose to expose the lies of this world with the truth of God, that is why Jesus compare us to light. It is time we starting living what we believe and get over our fears of being seen as followers of Jesus. View the message on Cristo-Scopophobia HERE.

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