Brown's Daily Word 12/23/13

   The Lord blessed us with a brilliant weekend.  As they in England would say, it was "the most fantastic weekend".  On Friday we shared in a very special homemade dinner and attended the presentation of "Handel's Messiah".  It is always a thrill and a treat.  We had 22 in our group.  On Saturday one of our ministry teams prepared and served a very special meal at the First United Methodist Church, Endicott..  

    On Saturday our  presentation of the Living Nativity began in a haste.  The milieu of the presentation was the majestic center court of the Oakdale mall.  The center court is decorated brilliantly and studded with stunning Christmas trees along with a very winsome Creche.  The Christ of Christmas blesses our meager efforts in serving Him.  Our dear friend Yancey Moore played the Grand piano and  the choir sang the ageless Christmas carols.  The children,  the youth, and some adults presented the Living Nativity.  At 6:30 many talented and gifted musicians gathered in front of the Creche and the living nativity... some were scattered in the courtyard... to sing with great gusto and deep abandon the glorious, breath-taking Hallelujah Chorus.  The Lord, the Messiah, visited us. He anointed the singing.  We were all so blessed. The center court of the mall began to rock.  It was beyond imagining.  One of the local TV stations and the local press covered the event.  We were so blessed, so filled, and so humbled.  Praise the Lord for  every one who participated with joyful and jubilant hearts and voices.  Praise the Lord for each and every one.  A big thank you to you all. 

    Sunita flew back after being away in London for a week.  She was thrilled to attend the a concert of Christmas carols at the Royal Albert Hall in London.  We here all love Christmas music to the hilt.  We do not get enough if it.  Sunita, and Andy, and Gabe came home yesterday.  

    The Lord blessed ysterday, the Fourth Sunday in Advent with a summer like day. A week ago it was snowy and wintry... Yesterday it was as warm and gentle as a spring day.   Praise the Lord for the peace that came down at the first Christmas , because the Prince of Peace came down.

    Albert Camus has called ours "an age of overt anxiety."  Worry has been termed the "official emotion of our generation," "the basis of all neuroses," and "the most pervasive psychological problem of our time."  Mark Twain once said "From his cradle to his grave a man never does a single thing which has any first and foremost object save one -- to secure peace of mind for himself."

    It is in such a world that Christians this time of year talk, sing, dream, and preach about "Peace on Earth."  In an age of anxiety, how is it that we can come together today and celebrate?  It all has to do with a child being born in a stable on a still and silent night.  Angels proclaimed Peace on Earth because the Prince of Peace had come.  Long ago the prophet Micah prophesied of His coming, declaring that this child of Bethlehem would be our peace.  It is written that the Child of Christmas Brings Peace with God (Ephesians 2:11-14)

    We celebrate the birth of Jesus, first and foremost, because He has brought us peace with God.  He Himself is our peace, who has made the two (that's Jew and non-Jew) one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the Law with its commandments and regulations  His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death the hostility.  He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.  Through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.  Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household.

    Billy Graham tells the story of a little bird.  The sea was beating against the rocks in huge dashing waves, the lightning was flashing, the thunder was rolling, the wind was blowing; but the little bird was asleep in the crevice of the rock, its head serenely under its wing -- it was sound asleep.  That is peace -- to be able to sleep in the storm!  In Christ, we are at peace in the midst of the confusions, bewilderments, and perplexities of this life.  The storm rages, but our hearts are at rest.  When Christ comes in, He stands against the winds and the storms and cries out, "Peace, be still!"  If Christ is here in our hearts, then we can be at peace.  We find peace when we find Him.  He is our peace! 

    Augustine said, "Thou hast touched me and I have been translated into Thy peace."  Ephesians 2:13-14 reminds us: "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near, through the blood of Christ -- for He Himself is our peace."

   In Christ,

  Brown

  http://youtu.be/9egij7D5seI 

If you are in the Endicott area please join us for one of our Christmas Eve services. All are welcome!

4:30 PM Christmas Candlelight Service. Wesley United Methodist Church, 1000 Day Hollow Road, Endicott, NY 13760

7:30 PM Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Service. Union Center United Methodist church, 128 Maple Drive Endicott, NY 13760

Joy to the world! The Lord is come!

Brown's Daily Word 12/20/13

    Praise the Lord for this Friday before Christmas.  We are going to attend the Messiah presentation this evening.  Pray for our weekly TV outreach this evening at 7 PM on Time Warner Cable channel 4.  I am speaking on Luke 2.

    Tomorrow, Saturday, December 21, we will gather for our Living Nativity at the Oakdale Mall at 4 PM.  The Living Nativity will be presented fro 4 to 7 PM.  Those of you who  live in the area, please join us.  We are planning for a "Flash Mob" to be  singing Handel's Hallelujah Chorus at 6:30 PM.  Please mark the change of time.  (We were planning for this presentation at 5:15 PM ... now it will be at 6:30 PM.)  Those who have sung in the Messiah and those who would love to sing, please join us.  Yancey Moore will be at the Grand Piano.  This will be a Holy Roar.  This is part of the celebration of Christmas in the Public Square.  Please be praying that the Lord would be glorified and the people will be blessed.  

    In Charles Dickens' Christmas classic, "A Christmas Carol", Mr. Scrooge says, "Humbug!  Merry Christmas?  What right have you to be merry?  What reason do you have to be merry?"  In fact, there is an answer for Mr. Scrooge, and there is an answer for "Scrooges" everywhere this Holy and special season because believers, indeed, have every right to be merry at Christmas.  The reason is simply because Jesus Christ has appeared!  To those who still walk in darkness and have been blinded by the enemy, "Christ has appeared!"

    In  1 John 3, Jesus' appearing is mentioned.  John refers to the first Christmas and he does so to encourage believers, those who have been born anew by the Spirit of God.  He encourages believers to rejoice and celebrate because of this fundamental and simple fact that Jesus Christ has appeared.  He appeared to deal with sin once and for all.  He also appeared to destroy the devil's works.  1 John 3:8, The Son of God appeared for this purpose that He might destroy the works of the devil.  He came not only to deal with sins and sinners, but He came to destroy the works of the devil.  That word "destroy" means "to render ineffective, to rob of power".  When Jesus Christ came He dealt Satan a death blow.  Jesus came to deal with that arch enemy of our souls, the devil who tempts, who inflames, who deceives.

 

    Once a missionary in Africa returned to his house.  When he got inside he discovered a huge python.  He quickly ran outside to his truck, got a 45 pistol, came back in the house.  He was careful, he was quiet, but he got close enough to fire a shot and that bullet hit its mark, and that python was dealt a mortal wound, a bullet right in its head.  But the python didn't die instantly.  It began to thrash around, crashing around that house, knocking things off of tables and counters, wreaking havoc.  The missionary had gone outside to stay away.  Finally, after a while, the noise died down and he came in and found that python dead, but in its death throes it had done a lot of damage.

    When Jesus Christ came, when He died on the cross, He put a bullet in the head of the devil.  The devil is defeated, but he's still thrashing around.  He's still wreaking havoc of one kind or another, but the devil is defeated and there is no reason for us  to accept the devil's lies.  There is no reason for us to follow Satan's agenda. He is defeated.  We are called to follow the one who is victorious, the one who came to destroy the works of the devil.

    And so to Scrooge, with his bah, humbug attitude, with his question, "How can anyone be merry at Christmas?", we say to him, "Jesus Christ has appeared. That's why we're merry.  That's why we rejoice!  That's why we're enthused -- because of His appearing.  So Scrooge, Merry Christmas!"  And Merry Christmas to you because Jesus appeared!

    "In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us" and still loves us.

 

In Him,

    Brown

http://youtu.be/THg8Yes6zec

Brown's Daily Word 12/18/13

    The Lord blessed us with an awesome evening yesterday as we went caroling.  The snow on the ground was sparkling and friendly.  The wind was gentle.  We had a very blessed time caroling. Many people came to stand in open doors as we sang.  They were receptive to the music.

    We will meet this evening for a time fellowship and study at 6 PM.  We will be looking at the Song of Simeon, found in Luke 2. followed a by special Choir practice at 7.30PM.  We are going to Handel's Messiah Presentation this Friday at 8 PM.  This is our annual pilgrimage to the majestic presentation of the great oratorio "Messiah". 

    This coming Saturday we will gather for our living Nativity at the Oakdale Mall at 4 PM.  The Living Nativity will be presented fro 4 to 7 PM.  Those of who  live in the area, please join us.  We are planning for a "Flash Mob" to be  singing Handel's Hallelujah Chorus at 6:30 PM.  Please mark the change of time.  We were planning for this presentation at 5:15 PM ... now it will be at 6:30 PM.  Those who have sung in the Messiah and those who would love to sing, please join us.  Yancey Moore will be at the Grand Piano.  This will be a Holy Roar.  This is part of celebration of Christmas at the Public Square.  Please be praying that the Lord would be glorified and the people will be blessed.

    As part of celebrating Christmas I read, "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. I love how the Christ of Christmas,  the Hound of Heaven can find us where we are and can transform our lives as we say Yes to Him.  Sometimes we come to Him kicking and screaming, but when we come to the crib and the cross, He offers us grace upon grace... Salvation so full and so free.

    Ebenezer Scrooge was really rattled by his visit from the Spirit of Christmas past.  He knew there would be a next visitor -- the Spirit of Christmas Present, and he braced himself.  He would not be surprised.  Dickens wrote that, now, "nothing between a baby and a rhinoceros would have astonished him very much".  What he met was a great robed figure with a huge holly wreath on his head and all awash in ivy and mistletoe and turkeys and geese and suckling pigs and sausages and oysters and pies and puddings and fruit and a steaming punch bowl. "Look at me," the spirit said. "You've never seen the like of me before!"

    "Never" said Scrooge. "What have you to teach me?"

    "And in a flash they were off looking at sailors on the seas and miners who dug in the earth, and each one in some way celebrating Christmas -- the advent of hope.  In sick-beds and foreign lands and jails and hospitals, they saw people who recalled that it was Christmas and marked it in some modest fashion.  They looked in on Ebenezer's nephew, Fred, with his family and friends playing children's games after dinner -- Blind Man's Bluff and other games -- "for it is good to be children sometimes," wrote Dickens, "and never better than at Christmas.

And, finally, at the end of the journey, from under his great green robe, the Spirit of Christmas Present produced two children -- two ragged, malnourished children, pinched and shriveled by monstrous need.  "The boy is Ignorance ... the girl is Want" said the spirit. "But where do they belong?"

    "They belong to humanity" was the answer.

    And Scrooge recalled how, that very day when they came to his business to ask for a donation to help the poor, he had run them off with words like, "Are there no prisons?  Are there no workhouses?"  Now he understood.  These gaunt children will wind up there -- ignorance and want will put them there -- unless somebody comes to help at the front end of their lifetime.  That pattern is with us yet, and not to be forgotten. 

    But the heart of this part of the story, to me, is the visit to the Cratchitt home. "They were not a handsome family," says Dickens, "not well-dressed; their shoes were far from being waterproof; their clothes were sooty -- but they were happy, grateful, and contented with the time."  For the Cratchitt family, reality was pretty harsh: five children in a four-room house, surviving on Bob's meager wages. 

    And on Christmas Day, Mrs. Cratchitt dressed in her best, twice-turned gown, bedecked with ribbons.  Ribbons are cheap and they dress up an old gown.   

    The goose was pretty scrawny, but everyone agreed, "Oh, such a goose!" Nobody says that the pudding is much too small for a large family. 

    But the Cratchitts celebrate Christmas! "God bless us," said Bob. "Everyone," added Tiny Tim.  They even toast Ebenezer Scrooge, the founder of their meager feast (although Mrs. Cratchitt has to be coaxed into that!).  But the Cratchitts look reality squarely in the eye and see blessing.

   And Tiny Tim, coming home from church on Christmas Day, told his father that "he hoped the people saw him in that church, because he was a cripple, and it might be pleasant to them to remember ... who made lame beggars walk, and blind men see.

    That's our story for Advent -- that whatever our present moment looks like, if we  look by faith to Jesus Christ, we can find some strength, we will discover grace upon grace, blessings upon blessings... We will dicover the faithfulness and mercies of our Lord God.

    From the outside, the Gospel looks weak and under qualified.  It's as vulnerable as a baby in a cave-barn ... The power of Christmas is not brute force meeting the brute force of our world -- that sort of strength doesn't change anything much.  The Christ who enters our history as a fragile baby.  He enters silently yet with meekness and majesty.  He comes to the dung hills of our lives and transforms them in to the hills of beauty.  He walks into deserts of homes and by Him they blossom again.  He makes all rough places plain.  Joy to the world the Savior is born.

  Joy to the world. 

   In Jesus.

   Brown

http://youtu.be/QIvH5GdY4JE

Brown's Daily Word 12-17-13

   Praise the Lord.  Jesus is the Christ of Christmas.  He is the one in whom we live, move, and have our being.  His birth has set the world on the move.  His birth causes traffic jams along Fifth Avenue of the New York City.  His birth has caused the carolers go out singing Christmas carols.  His birth has caused the composition of the some of the best music in the world.  His birth has caused some of the best musicians orchestras to perform "Handel's Messiah" all over the world during this season.  He is worthy if of all our celebration, all our singing, all our worship, our giving, our receiving.  

 

    We brought home our Christmas tree yesterday.  It is beautiful - over nine feet tall. It is almost perfect. We get our tree every year from one of the local farmers who is committed Christian.  The Lord has blessed him with very large farm.  It is a multipurpose farm where he also produces maple syrup.  He was telling me that they had one of the best years of sapping in 2013, so they had a surplus of maple syrup.  They sold over two barrels to Vermont.  Vermont buys maple syrup from New Work, bottles it, and sells it as "Vermont Syrup".  (This is my rendition on the Vermont Maple syrup).  This is part of the Christmas miracle.  it's all good.  The owner of Christmas tree farm, who is 94 years old, told me that he also got a good size dear during  hunting season. 

 

    We will meet this evening at 5 PM at the Wesley United Methodist Church, 1000 Day Hollow Road, Endicott.  We will meet at  5 PM for some exotic Christmas foods and go on caroling.  The friendly snow is all around.  Come, share, and rejoice.

 

    Christmas time is a time of great joy.  It is also for some a time of loneliness and sadness.  I know of several saints of Jesus who love Him and serve Him who are battling with some severe health problems.  When we go through some chronic and debilitating life situation we often ask, "Lord, where are you in this?".  My daughters remind me of the great faithfulness of the Lord.  Even in times of long silence our Lord is at work. 

 

    The Bible says that God was at work, even in years of silence.  When we look at the Salvation History we discover that there was a period of 400 years of silence between the prophecies of Malachi and the birth of our Lord Jesus.  The people might not see it at the time, but looking back from the ministry of our Lord, the Apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4-5, “When the time had fully come, God sent his Son.”  God was at work, preparing, making ready until just the right moment, when the time had fully come.

    At the time of Jesus’ birth, a great part of the world spoke one language, Greek, thanks to the conquests of Alexander the Great.  At the time of Jesus’ birth, Rome had built new roads for travel and established commerce between continents.  At the time of Jesus' birth and ministry, and the mission of the early church, it was possible as never before in history to spread the gospel around the world.  “When the time had fully come,” wrote Paul, “at just the perfect moment, Christ was born.” God was not absent but working, not only for the birth of the promised messiah, but the birth of the promised prophet who would prepare his way and the birth of a church that would spread the gospel to the uttermost parts of the world.

    The people of Israel had no trouble believing that God had acted in history and could even accept that God would one day act in the future.  What was hard was to believe God was present, active, involved, and working in their world in the present.  It took faith to trust that God was there when God seemed to be completely silent.  We’re no different, are we?

 

           "When the arches fall

And the creditors call

And the best you can say

On your 401K

Is you might not lose it all . . .

God might not feel all that near."

 

At times we struggle with the question of where God is right now, in our time of need.    Hebrews 11:1 says that “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

 

There are times when the only way we can move ahead is through the eyes of faith.  When we  don’t hear Him, we know by faith that God is there. When we can’t see the results, we know by faith God is still at work.  That’s what this season of Advent is all about.  We know that the God who acted in the past and gives promise for the future is with us even now.

 

In Christ,

 Brown

http://youtu.be/ZuGSOkYWfDQ

"A Child in a foul stable,
Where the beasts feed and foam;
Only where He was homeless
Are you and I at home;
We have hands that fashion and heads that know,
But our hearts we lost - how long ago!
In a place no chart nor ship can show
Under the sky's dome.

This world is wild as an old wives' tale,
And strange the plain things are,
The earth is enough and the air is enough
For our wonder and our war;
But our rest is as far as the fire-drake swings
And our peace is put in impossible things
Where clashed and thundered unthinkable wings
Round an incredible star.

To an open house in the evening
Home shall men come,
To an older place than Eden
And a taller town than Rome.
To the end of the way of the wandering star,
To the things that cannot be and that are,
To the place where God was homeless
And all men are at home."

House of Christmas:  G.K. Chesterton   

Brown's Daily Word 12-16-13

    Praise the Lord for this glorious season of peace, hope, joy, and love.  This is the season of anticipating the best. We have had one of the snowiest December Sundays in many years.  We had ample snow blanketing the fields and the hills, the highways and the byways.  It was great day to be in the house of the Lord yesterday singing Christmas carols and reading the Christmas prophecies. 

    Laureen spent the weekend in Washington visiting Sunita and her family after spending an afternoon and evening with Jess and Tom in Philly.  Laureen will be driving back to Binghamton today.  Sunita flew to London last evening on her work. She shared with me that for the first time on her International flight she traveled with only carry on luggage.  Our grandchildren called this weekend.  They picked out their Christmas tree at a stand nearby, and then the children brought it back to their place.  Alice and I picked out our 9 feet tree. We will bring it in today. Alice and I attended  the play, "A Christmas Carol" at our local theater, the Cider Mill Play House.  It is all good.  It is all about celebration.  It is my prayer and desire that we make room for celebration, for worship, for witness and for sharing and rejoicing. 

    I heard about a Jewish lady named Mrs. Rosenberg who, some years ago, tried to get a room at a very exclusive hotel on Cape Cod.  This particular hotel was run by some haughty Protestants from Boston, and it excluded Jews.  So, when Mrs. Rosenberg gave her name to the desk clerk, he said, "Sorry, we're all booked up." "But," she said, "You have a vacancy sign out front."  The clerk stammered a bit and finally confessed, "Sorry, but we don't cater to Jewish persons."  Mrs. Rosenberg stiffened noticeably and then said, "It may surprise you to know that I have converted to Christianity."  "Is that so?" responded the clerk.  "Let me give you a bit of a test.  Where was Jesus born?"  "In a stable in Bethlehem," she replied.  "Who were his parents?"  "Mary and Joseph," she answered.  "Why was he born in a stable?" he asked.  Rather loudly Mrs. Rosenberg replied, "Because a jerk like you wouldn't give a Jewish lady a room for the night."

    May the Lord of Christmas bless us with a deeply meaningful, peaceful, joyful celebration of Jesus' birth.

    There is a story about a boy who really understood what Christmas is all about. Jimmy was in the 8th grade, but because of his mental limitations, he couldn't really do all of the 8th grade work. The teacher in that class planned a Christmas play. Jimmy wanted very much to be in it.  The teacher doubted that he would be able to memorize his lines, but all the students wanted to include Jimmy.  Thus, he was assigned the role of the Bethlehem innkeeper, primarily because that character had only two words to say: "No room."  Then after Mary begged for special consideration, he was supposed to say those same words again, "No room."

    Eventually the day of the performance came. Lots of family and friends were in the audience.  Mary and Joseph approached the inn and knocked on the door. Jimmy opened the door and said flawlessly, "No room."  Then Mary said, "But I'm very tired and I'm going to have a baby real soon.  If I don't find a safe place for my baby to be born, I'm going to cry."

    Jimmy paused for a moment, and then said, "I know what I'm supposed to say . . . but you can have my room."  Jimmy was willing to violate a script in order to follow the higher impulse of love.  We are called  to violate the cultural script about Christmas if we want to truly glorify the Savior.

 In Christ,

  Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-atTCxbSb4&feature=share&list=PL6c_cod5oKzeMjRew03Yd8VWECDOL-O_b&index=1

Brown's Daily Word 12-13-13

Praise the Lord for this Friday, the 13th day of December, 2013.  It is going to be one of the ten best days of December.  Thanks to be to Jesus.  I spoke to our grandchildren yesterday.  We are excited that they are all coming home this Christmas.  I asked Simeon, our 6 year old grandson, what he wanted for Christmas.  He spoke about a toy... with all kinds of complicated apps and he concluded, "and Grandpa it is available on Amazon".  Laureen is driving down  to Philly to visit with Jess and Tom and then traveling to Washington, DC to visit with Sunita and Andy.  Sunita is flying to London on Sunday for her work and managed get a ticket to hear a classical Christmas concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London. 

    Praise the Lord for times of visitation.  It began when the Lord of the Universe decided to visit this earth.  That all caused Mary to visit Elizabeth, and the shepherds and Magi to visit Jesus, the Newborn King.  So too we all get to visit and celebrate.  Eugene Peterson captures the gist of Christmas event, "Look, look. God has moved to our neighborhood".  WOW.  At Christmas the God, who is up there, came to join us down here.  He played on our field.

    Søren Kierkegaard the Danish Philosopher and theologian, told it this way.  There once was a mighty king who from a distance fell in love with a humble maiden.  He was a mighty king!  Every statesman in the world trembled in awe of him.  No one dared speak a word against this king, who could crush nations with his power.  Yet the heart of this mighty ruler melted with love for a humble maiden.  Oddly enough, it was his kingliness which tied his hands.  If he brought her to the palace, crowned her head with costly jewels and bedecked her in royal robes, of course she would not resist, because no one dared resist him.  But would she love him?

    Of course, she would say she loved him, but would she truly?  Or would she live with him in fear, privately grieving for the life she left behind?  Would she be happy at his side?  How could he know her true feelings?  If he rode up to her cottage in the forest accompanied by an armed escort, with bright banners flying, that would overwhelm her.  He did not want a cringing subject; he wanted a lover, an equal. He wanted her to forget that he was a king and she a humble maiden, and to let their shared love cross the gulf between them.  For it is only in love that those who are unequal become equal.  So the king clothed himself in beggar's rags and slipped unnoticed through the palace gates.  He walked the roads.  He tilled the fields.  And later in a marketplace, still in his tattered clothes, his hands now calloused from rough work, he bumped into her and introduced himself.  Then he wooed and won the hand of this servant girl.  On their wedding day he whispered in her ear, "My dear beloved, you are now a queen."  And they were wed in royal splendor, and lived blissfully ever after as King and Queen.

    That is the miraculous tale of Christmas.  The King of Heaven fell in love with his bride, the church, and humbled himself so that he might win her love.  His gateway into the world was a feeding trough in a stable.  Perhaps if we focus on the manger, God will wrap his hand around around our homes and carry us back to that time of a stable and a star, and turn us into wise men and shepherds and disciples, just as if we were in the greatest tale of all.

     We all know that  best stories take place at night and that baby was born at night.  The angels serenaded from heaven at night.  Joseph had his dream at night. So John wrote in his gospel that the Christ-child came as a light into our darkness. As Simon Tugwell has pointed out, in Jesus God was pursuing us in our night, so when we tried to run away we ran right into his arms.  We all need to run into His arms where we have come home at last...  where we are safe and secure for ever and ever... Blessed be His Name.  O come all ye faithful.. Joyful and triumphant.

In Him,

Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE99PW0McQE&feature=share&list=PL912A90F3F44E7427

Brown's Daily Word 12-12-13

Praise the Lord for the songs of the season.  Alice and I drove down to Baltimore yesterday and got back home in the evening.  I read "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens and listened to Christmas songs and carols all the way down and all the way back.  Praise the Lord for the sweet and powerful carols and the songs of Christmas.  We are excited about our Living Nativity that will be  presented at the Oakdale Mall, Center Court, on Saturday, December 21, 2013 between 4 and 7 PM. We are praying and planning to have the Hallelujah Chorus sung. . . Flash Mob style.  The lead pianist that plays for the Handel's Messiah  presentation and also is the professor at the Binghamton University has agreed to play for the singing of the Hallelujah Chorus.  The Messiah in entirety also will be presented at the Binghamton High School Auditorium on 20th and 21st of December 2013 at 8Pm each night.  We are planning to sing the Hallelujah Chorus at the mall at Center Court between 5 and 5:15 PM on Saturday, December 21, 2013.  Some of the singers from the Downtown Singers' presentation of the Messiah will be joining   for this spectacular event.  All of you who love to sing and want to sing please join for this Holy event.  It will be a  blast.   It will be a Holy Roar! We will post the exact time of the singing once it is confirmed.  As of now it will be between 5:00 PM and 5:15 pm.  Please pray that this will bring glory to Jesus and blessings to people. 

    One of the  lead singers for Messiah was a young woman named Mary.  We find her rendition of the song in Luke 1.  It is called "the Magnificat"

When Mary got the news from the angel, telling her that she was going to have a baby, Immanuel, Messiah, to bless the world, she sang a Christmas carol.  Listen to what Mary sang.

    And Mary said,

        "My soul magnifies the Lord,

        and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

        for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.

        Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

        for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is His name.

        His mercy is for those who fear Him from generation to generation.

        He has shown strength with His arm;

        He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

        He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty."

        Mary sang of a world turned upside down, of those who are high and exalted being brought low, of those who are poor and hungry being filled, all by the advent of a baby.  Mary got her own life turned upside down by that angel Gabriel.  Then she sang of a child in her womb who was going to dislodge, disrupt, disturb.

    Later, one of the charges against the Christians, followers of the babe, was, "These people are turning the whole world upside down" (Acts 17:6).  So think of Christmas as a time when God began turning things upside down.  Jesus our Savior came down to the world to turn it upside down and right side up.  He is still doing it.  Blessed be His Name.

In Christ,

   Brown
http://youtu.be/gd53_BALLUc

Brown's Daily Word 12-10-13

    Praise the Lord for the joyful, triumphant songs and music of Christmas.  Dr. Elsworth Kallas calls these songs "the Songs of season", saying that both saints and sinners sing these songs of the season. We are so blessed with the powerful music, and the songs of the season that have been transmitted through the ages by those who loved the Lord.  They have captured the mystery and wonder of the season and show how the Lord touches the heartstrings of their lives and gave them new songs.  Alice and I love Christmas music.  I have been listening to Handel's Messiah presented by various orchestras and choirs from various parts of the world.  I was just listening to a rendition by a Polish conductor.  It is all celebration and all jubilation. 

    "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."  These words from Isaiah 9:6-7, are probably amongst the best known and best loved words in all of Scripture, and form arguably one of the greatest pieces of choral music ever composed – Handel's Messiah.  Isaiah is without doubt one of the most compelling, and powerful books of the entire Bible, and Isaiah one of the most influential of the biblical prophets.  In terms of its theological significance, the book of Isaiah has been described as the 'Romans' of the Old Testament. It is in this amazing book that the big picture of God's purposes for his people and for his world are set forth. Isaiah is quoted 66 times in the New Testament, and is only exceeded by the Psalms.  What makes this book so significant for Christians, however, is the way in which it bears witness to Jesus Christ.

    Isaiah was writing during a very turbulent time in the history of the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah, when they were being threatened by the expanding Assyrian empire. During the darkest days of Israel,  Isaiah receives the wonderful promise, about the birth of a child that would change everything. "The people walking in darkness have seen a great light, on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned".  (Isaiah 9:2)  "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)

 

    As we come to the the end of Isaiah 8, God's people at the time are said to "see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom." To them is the promise that they will see a great light, that their warfare will end because "unto us a child is born" and his name will be PRINCE of PEACE!

    Jesus is the Prince of Peace. The Hebrew word for peace is Shalom, Shalom means more than just peace; it means completeness, wholeness, health, peace, and harmony. It means to bind together the fragments of life into a meaningful whole.  Peace is not about the absence of trouble from our lives, but the reassurance that no matter what we face in life Jesus is with us, and that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. This is why Paul wrote "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."  (Romans 8:38-39)  This is the root of true peace. 

     Isaiah's prophecy of the coming King was a message of hope for the people of Israel and Judah in a time of great distress. But it is also a message to cause all of us to rejoice in, because, "For to US a child is born, to us a Son is given," so that we can know Him as the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, our Prince of Peace.

In Christ,

   Brown

http://youtu.be/LFBIJgkj_-g

Brown's Daily Word 12-9-13

    Yesterday early in the morning, as we were getting ready for Church, our two year old granddaughter Ada called.  She talked about the breakfast she had.  She talked about her birthday that is coming in January.  Alice asked her about her favorite Christmas carol.  Alice said Is it Gloria? (Angels We Have Heard on High)  No.  Ada said It is, "Na Na Na" .. (Every move I make I make in you).   

    Praise the Lord for this Advent season.  It is the season of anticipating the best.  Indeed, the Lord loved us so much that He gave His very best.  We are blessed.  We are loved.  We are cherished.  We have the reasons to celebrate.. We have the reasons to feast.  We have the reasons to give joyfully and extravagantly.  We have reasons to worship the Lord of the Season with all of our hearts and lives.   

    The Lord blessed the Saturday Christmas gathering for the banquet, singing, and sharing.  The hall was full of people of all ages, both young and old indeed.  The Lord has shown how to celebrate.  He turned water into wine.  He fed the five thousand with the loaves and fishes.  His love is extravagant.   

     The Lord blessed us with His reminder of His promises yesterday during worship.  Alice preached at Wesley.  I preached at Union Center.  One of the readings for yesterday was taken from Isaiah 11:1-10.  This is a powerful passage of prophecy.  One of the famous paintings by  Edward Hick is based on this Passage.  His painting is known as "The Peaceable Kingdom".  In his painting, Edward Hicks tried to capture the true flavor of what Isaiah was describing.  He has a lion, a leopard, a tiger, a wolf and a bear, interspersed among a cow, a goat, a sheep, and several other small animals.  All of the animals are wide-eyed as if in wonder that they're all together.  They are gathered along with three small children, one near school-age, the other two apparently helpless toddlers.  They all look happy and contented and the children have at least one hand on hitherto dangerous animals.  The prophecy in Isaiah 11 describes of the One who  will come to usher in the Peaceable Kingdom. 

    "A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.  The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.  His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD." 

     In this prophecy we see the the birth of Jesus when he mentioned the shoot from the stump of Jesse.  The Gospel readings in Advent season deal with the second coming of Christ.  When Christ Jesus returns, it will be in great glory and He will judge – as Isaiah says –with righteousness, and He will “decide with equity for the meek of the earth.”  

    In Luke chapter 19 we find a story of a king who went away on a long journey and left his servants in charge of the kingdom.  When he returned, the king asked each of them what they had done with the talents he had entrusted them. And that surely is a reminder to us that how we serve the king matters.  In fact if we believe and trust in Jesus as our Lord and Savior it should be the only thing that ultimately matters.  Now it may not be that we ourselves are called to fill the whole earth with the knowledge of the Lord.  But this Christmas time let’s think about the streets and homes of our local area.  Let’s think about the places where we work and the places where we meet our friends and neighbors.  How can best can we declare His praise through what we say and do and think?  How can we use our talents to make His kingdom known?

In Christ,

  Brown

 http://youtu.be/Viok5IpyMgU

Brown's Daily Word 12-6-13

    Praise the Lord for this Friday.  Praise the Lord for you all.  Because of Jesus our Lord we are all connected and blessed. 

    It is raining here today.  We had a few very mild days recently.  I saw people walking with shorts on.  Rain or shine, cold or warm, it is the most wonderful time of the year.  I get excited when I pause and ponder about the beauty and blessings of the season.  During Advent, with all the merriment, delight, and joy, as preparation is made for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, we discover the darkness of the world is dark indeed.  There is still unrest in the world.  The darkness of hostility and violence is overwhelming in various parts of the world.

    The darkness of the world is dark indeed.  Yet, the good news of Christmas is that all that darkness, whatever its cause — fear, murder, strife, unrest, violence — may be dispelled by the Living Light of Bethlehem's Baby.  The darkness of the world may be overcome.  The darkness you and I experience may be overcome.

    We may be experiencing the dark night of the soul from anxiety, loneliness, uncertainty, and a host of others dark situations.  If we are in the dark there is good news for us from the Lord.  There is a sign in everybody's night.  It is the Christ-child, the Light of all humanity.  God gave that sign at night to remind each of us that in the darkest hour of our lives, the Most High God gives a sign that brings life and light.  It is not by accident that this sign given at night was in a manger.  Jesus did not come to the bustling marketplace.  Neither did He come to the Temple, nor to a synagogue, the throne room, or a military base.  When Jesus was born, He was placed in a manger, a feeding trough for animals.  The manger, in that cattle stall, indicated the lowly state of the birth of this Child and the humble conditions surrounding His birth.  In this place of simplicity, God surprised the world with His unexpected appearance. God chose humble shepherds, a lowly maiden, and an ordinary stable for His entrance among us.

    This is the nature of God.  The Bible reveals a God who has always identified with the outcast, the lowly, the poor, the sick, the ordinary, and the needy.  We are to remember that God is concerned with the hurting people of this world and we are among that lot because in some way or another, all of us hurt.  This is why God, who came into the world by way of the manger, introduced a new kind of power.  The power of the manger bothers many of us.  That "Sweet little Jesus boy," as the the spiritual goes, would one day show that any foolishness of God was wiser than the wisdom of humans; that the weakness of love was stronger than the force of hate; that spiritual desire would outlast material possession; that His narrow way would lead to the wideness of genuine living; and that His peace would sustain in the valley, the darkest valley — even the valley of the shadow of death.  "Sweet little Jesus boy."  They didn't know who He was.  And many of us don't, either.

    It is interesting to note that the Holy Spirit revealed Himself on that first Christmas to shepherds while they were tending their sheep.  Arnold Toynbee, in his massive work, A Study of History, observed that new spiritual revelations in every ancient culture almost always came to shepherds first.  Many of the Old Testament characters such as Abraham, Moses, David, and Amos had been shepherds.

    Could it be shepherds were more alert to God because they were in quiet places where they could hear Him?  Maybe we don't hear God because we seldom place ourselves in quiet places where we can be alert and attuned to His Spirit who is speaking to us.  In an unpretentious, modest, and gentle way, God came to a manger — simply and humbly.

    The shepherds received much joy.  Their hearts were filled with joy when the angel of God made the announcement of Messiah's birth.  Did you hear what the angel said?  I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people. . . (Luke 2:10).  Our joy is built upon the fact that, in Christ, God is Immanuel — He really is. He really is with us.

 In Christ,

 Brown

  http://youtu.be/9bJX0d9JmFQ