Praise
the Lord for His might and mercy, and the way He undergirds and
upholds our lives in the grip of His grace in all seasons. There is a
deep mystery and wonder about His providence and about His provisions.
During the last few years I have had three very major surgeries.
Prior to that I had a very good health. I had never even had a
cavity in my entire life. I have been with people who have had major
surgeries including brain and heart. I had heard about tests like CT
scans, Myelograms, Bone scans, MRI's. In recent days and weeks I have
gone through those tests several times over. In the midst of the
intricacies of life and health the Lord, who is our winsome physician,
comes somehow and gives us the victory. He has provided some of the
best in their fields for my medical care. I am so humbled and
blessed. The doctor in charge of my recent treatment is one of the best
in her field. Her team was excellent in compassionate caring.
During my last visit with my doctor after the last session of my treatment we
prayed together. I was comforted, encouraged, and blessed.
We
met some wonderful people at the Hope Lodge in Boston. "Birds
of a feather hang together". The guests at the Hope Lodge are
all in the same boat - I call it it fellowship (Fellows in the same ship).
We shared our stories and listened to each other's stories of the
wonderworking mysteries of our Lord God. I met a woman and her mom -
she lives in the USA and her mom, who lives in Vietnam, has come to care
for her daughter. They were constantly, generously, offering food to us
from their supply. I also met a couple from near Austin, TX.
The husband is having major treatment and his wife is the caregiver. They
are grandparents of 6 grandchildren; they live near two of their grand
children and are part of a great church in the Austin area. I also
met a man was born of Australian parents in Argentina, who lived much of
his life in Brazil and was educated in the UK. His wife is from
Argentina and they live in Vermont. We had time to pray and share.
On one evening a group of Students from Boston University came to the
lodge to spend some time with the guests. Alice had made a big batch of
her chocolate chip cookies. We shared the cookies with the students and
some sweet moments of fellowship.
One
of the paramount blessings of being in Boston is to spend some time with our
grand children. One day we watched the movie "Hugo" in the
movie theatre of Hope Lodge. Alice played lots of table games with the
children, including Foosball. Simeon made his grandmom really tired
with his vigorous play. Last Sunday we all attended the worship service
where Jeremy, Janice, and the children are part of the church. It is a
very young church consisting of mostly young professionals. They have
lots of young children. I was the oldest attending the worship that
morning. In the evening we went out to one of the local restaurants
to celebrate our oldest granddaughter's 11th birthday. She was all
dressed up for dinner. A Celtic band playing for the dinner. It was
beautiful and delightful. The group of 3 instrumentalists grew to 6 as
others semi-spontaneously joined in with their violins (fiddles) and other
instruments.
Alice and I drove back to Marathon yesterday. All the toll booths on the Mass
Pike have been removed, and they have been replaced with electronic overhead
devices that read the transponders (and license plates). It was a
wonderful drive. As we got near to Binghamton we listened to MIX 103 playing
Christmas music 24/7. It was brilliant. Alice has begun watching
her Christmas movies on Hallmark Channel.
During these last days of affliction and pain we have
been clinging to God's promises. I often turn to Psalm 84:11-12,
"For the Lord God is a sun and shield; he bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly. O
Lord of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in thee!"
We are excited about the upcoming new seasons of Thanksgiving,
Advent, and Christmas. We have so much to celebrate, "10,000
reasons" to bless the Lord (in the words of Matt Redman). I am
planning to preach this coming Sunday from Psalm 103. We are excited
about some of the special mission and ministry events planned for this season.
On Sunday, December 4, beginning at 6:00 PM, we will
participating in the Annual Community Caroling event. The first carols
will be sung at the Catholic church, followed by the Episcopal, Presbyterian,
and Baptist, and concluding at the Methodist Church with a mega-reception to
follow. This is a heart-warming experience as we carol from church to
church, and walk from one to another to sing the ageless carols with deep
gratitude and unspeakable joy. All are invited to join us. This
annual event is very special and unique to our town, and we eagerly wait to
participate once more. Come! Share! Rejoice!
On Tuesday, December 6, our church has chartered a bus to go to
NY City for the Radio City Hall Christmas Spectacular. The bus leaves
from Upper Front Street Binghamton at 6:00 AM sharp. For information,
call Barb Pitcher at (607)745-2365. The bus will arrive in NY at about 10
AM, leaving many hours for sightseeing, window shopping, and culminates in the
Christmas show at 5 PM. Don't forget that the 100 foot tall Rockefeller
Center Christmas tree (which came from Oneonta, NY) will be lit up in all its
glory!
On Friday, December 9, the St. Petersburg Men's Ensemble from
St. Petersburg, Russia, will be in concert at our church. It will be
preceded by a special dinner at 6 PM, prepared by Chef Lou Pasquale. The
concert will begin a 7 PM sharp. We will receive a free-will offering for
the dinner and for the concert.
On Sunday, December 11, there will be a community-wide youth
Christmas event beginning at 6:00 PM. It will begin with a special dinner
for the youth and be followed by a concert by a Christian band from the
Southern Tier. A youth specialist from the Binghamton area will be
speaking. We invite all youth from the community and surrounding area to
come together for a great time of celebration and witness. Please pray
for our young people, that they will experience Christ afresh and anew, and
that their lives may be changed forever.
Saturday, December 17 - The Downtown Singers of Binghamton, NY
accompanied by the Binghamton Philharmonic Orchestra, will present
Handel's "Messiah". This must-see event begins at 7:30 PM at
the Forum. I have attended "Messiah" for the last 30 years, and
I always leave the scene amazed, blessed, and, above all, provoked to love
Jesus more. I have access to a few tickets so if you would like to
go, please let me know. The cost is just $10 for open seating.
Reserved seats are $20.
On Sunday, December 18 at 6:30 PM there will be a special
program of Christmas music and celebration, presented by our friends Carl and
Nancy Barber, resident musicians of our community.
Our month-long Advent and Christmas celebration will culminate
in our Annual Christmas Eve Service on Saturday, December 24 at 6:00 PM and
Christmas Day service at 10:30 AM. During the entire Advent Season we
will be receiving a "Joyful Noise" Offering each Sunday, to be used
for Missions.
" For
unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be
upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The
mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."Isaiah 9:6
" 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."G.K. Chesterton
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."G.K. Chesterton
In Jesus our saviour and
Lord.
Brown
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