Praise the Lord for
the wonders and mysteries of Christmas. Our grandson from Boston reminds
me that it is all magical yet it is all true. Praise the Lord that
we enter New Year through the gates of splendor of Christmas and
Epiphany. I trust you all had a blessed, splendid, and spectacular
Christmas celebration in worship, witness, giving, and receiving. The
Lord has blessed us with an amazing Advent season culminating with Christmas
Eve services. We joined the millions and millions of those who love
Jesus, worship Him, and celebrate His Holy Birth. It was an extra
blessing when we were able to connect with our family and
friends around the corner and around the world through the social
media. We cherish and rejoice in Christ the New Born King who connects us
and brings us together as part of His family.
We
rejoice that we were able to see our families and friends, and get reconnected.
We were deeply blessed to have part of our family join us for
Christmas. Sunita, Andy, Gabe, Addie, and Asha from Washington,
Laureen from Washington, Jess, Tom, and Lindy from Philadelphia all came to New
York for a whole week. We shared those precious days together almost
24/7. We laughed, prayed, and cried together. We shared
special meals and shared deep and therapeutic conversations. We prayed
together, shared the Scriptures together, and shared songs and music of the
season. My daughters and my wife became my caregivers and
nurses. I received the therapeutic messages and uplifting
affirmations. Our four little grandchildren Gabe, Addie, Lindy and
Asha acted as cherubs for the days we were together. The little ones
took the adults to the park to make a handsome snowman and play in the
snow. Tom and Andy prepared some delicious bizarre foods. Alice
and, the girls walked past farm lands and meadows covered with
snow. They walked and walked with jubilant feet and mirthful
hearts. One morning while we were driving home on a country road we
passed by a majestic eagle diving with precision, ferocity, and
gracefulness.
Only
one thing kept our Christmas celebration from being complete as our Boston family
was unable to join us. They stayed in Boston for Christmas and the
following week that the children were off from school. They love Boston
and they find many activities to fill their days. Janice and Jeremy,
Micah, Simeon, and Ada spent some time Ice skating, swimming, and hiking.
They also celebrated Christmas in Boston with some of the
family from Jeremy's side. On New Year's Eve they went as a
family to a winter carnival, complete with an ice sculpture of a large ship (It
looked like the Mayflower or the USS Constitution). Though it was sad not
to see them in person we were able to do some "facetime" and were on
the phone regularly.
I
had my second treatment the week after Christmas. The Lord covered me
with His grace and matchless mercy. I had some initial adverse
reactions but the Lord gave grace to overcome. Alice and I took and brief
and brisk shopping trip to the Triple cities before heading back to
Marathon. While in this Sam's Club, fully masked to avoid germs, I
ran in to one of our old friends who is a college professor. He shared
that his mom, who lived with his family, entered in the presence of Jesus just
before Advent season. He said that she ran the race well and finished it
well. Soon after that I met up with another friend, the wife
of a colleague who entered the presence of Jesus over 12 years ago. She
shared that her younger brother died recently back in India. She was able
to be with him before his death. She also shared that the daughter of one
of her very close friends died suddenly in New Jersey soon after the
Christmas program in her church. She shared about her son who is an
engineer who works for NY State. He is busy with his church, planting
churches in Albany area. This friend of ours is involved in the ministry
of her local church. Another friend and fellow servant shared
that his sister entered the presence of Jesus before Christmas. We
can face the death of our loved because of Christmas, because of the
"sure and certain hope of Resurrection". We
praise the Lord for the life of Jerry Hults, who entered the Lord's presence at
the age of 80. He and his wife had been together for 65 years.
We also praise the Lord for the life of Rob DePuy's 95 year old grandmother,
who recently went to be with the Lord.
The
Lord blessed us in His House yesterday the First of new year. The church
family celebrated the 80 birthday of Pete, a dear servant of Jesus.
I watched some football in the afternoon. My team, the Steelers, won
ready their way into the playoffs. Alice and I went out into open fields
to walk in the late afternoon. The sun was warm and bright. The
fields were glistening with snow. The Western sky was getting
colorful. Alice and I walked on crackling snow for over a mile. We
praise the Lord for the new year filled with His promises and His
faithfulness. Everything we need we will find in Christ. He has all the
hope, all the love, all the grace, all the power, all the strength, all the
wisdom, all the patience, all the guidance, all the encouragement, all the joy,
all the endurance, all the gentleness, all the forgiveness, all the
determination, all the submission, all the boldness, and all the meekness that
we need. Every virtue is in him. Every good thing we need he has
and what he has, he willingly gives to us. Let no one falter in the race
that is set before us. Let no one drop out because of discouragement,
fear, doubt, despair, anger, or bitterness.
I love a story that I ready sometime ago that on Christmas Day, 1939, King George VI of England gave a brief radio address to his troubled nation. England was already at war with Germany. Soon all of Europe would be plunged into the horror of brutal, unrestrained warfare. Hoping to calm the troubled hearts of his countrymen, the king offered words of encouragement as the storm clouds gathered overhead. He ended his remarks by quoting a hitherto unknown poem by Louise Haskins, “The Gate of Year.” It has since become known around the world:
“I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: ‘Give me a light, that I may tread safely into the unknown!’ And he replied: ‘Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.’”
What a word that is for us today. No one but our Lord , the Lord of the history, knows what the future holds. Let us do as the poet suggested and place our hands in the hand of Almighty God and let us go out into the unknown future with confidence, knowing that if our Lord goes with us we need not fear the future. To walk with the Lord is the greatest of all joys, and it is indeed safer than any known way. "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." Titus 2:11-14
In Christ,
Brown
https://youtu.be/S0Ke8p93QRk
No comments:
Post a Comment