We are on the brink of another Christmas. At this point if
your shopping is not done you’re out of luck. Sorry, but that’s reality. It’s
going to be tough on those of you with little ones. The next couple of nights
bedtime is going to turn into an epic battle, and I hope you are ready to get
up at 5 am on Christmas morning. Oh don’t I paint a bleak picture. No, not
really. These are great times. They are times of gatherings.
Family Gatherings. We need to cherish every time we get our
family together. In a flash those babies will be walking down the isle,
graduating from high school. Our family is a gift from God. Let me encourage
you to stop from the hustle and bustle and enjoy those who call your place “home.”
Barb and I have a wall hanging in our home that reads: Home Is Where Your Story Begins.
Church Gatherings.
These are precious times for us. We gather for the purpose of worshipping the
King of Kings. We strive to honor the One who split human history at His birth.
This is Jesus, the God-man who came to live with us and sacrifice Himself for
our redemption.
Our gathering last Sunday night was special. The choir did a
beautiful job, right? And the children, oh what a blessing it was to see and
hear the kids. I’m so thankful for the leadership and the sacrifice of everyone
involved to lead us to worship.
The Final Gathering.
This is what believers ultimately long for. For some this
gathering holds more meaning because of the deposit you’ve made of a loved one.
Because of their faith you know they are on the golden shores. They have
experienced what all believers desperately long to experience – worshipping
Jesus face-to-face.
Our hearts are heavy for those who’ve lost, but we rejoice
with you in the knowledge that God’s grace receives them into His embrace. This
is a tough time for many we know, and now a very difficult Christmas for the
parents and families of those who lost someone in Newtown, CT. The peace we
long for now is a peace found by those who died in Christ.
I just wanted to encourage you with these thoughts. Enjoy your
gatherings this Christmas season. Hug your family long and hard, worship the
King, and share some sweet memories of those you’ve loved and given back to
Jesus.
Merry Christmas,
Scott
I can clearly see the flow of Jesus’ thought in His teaching on the mountain. After He tells His disciples how to pray in Matthew 6:5-13, He transitions into forgiveness. For those who will not forgive how can they pray effectively; sin is a deterrent to God listening to us. The Master Teacher then moves into the territory of fasting-prayer. His focus here is on the mechanics of this type of prayer…it is a private matter, between my God and me. When we fast and pray we are communicating that God is our consuming passion, not our appetite, or anything else. Staying with the theme of our passions, He next teaches us about treasuring. Whatever we treasure reveals our heart. Jesus said,
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.(Matthew 6:21 ESV)
I like what R. Kent Hughes wrote about this,
“If anything in this world is everything to you, it is an earthly treasure.”
I found what Jesus said to be very convicting. This is something I just can’t get out of my mind this week. I am trying to develop some penetratingly honest questions to ask myself about what I treasure. Through these questions I hope to reveal to myself what it is I am really pursuing in life.
I don’t believe it is enough to tell God that He is most important to us and then live like our car, home, retirement, time, savings, family, job, power, image, etc. are truly at the center of our lives. We just don’t have the luxury of time on our hands to play around with the life with which God has gifted us.
When I come to the end of my life I want to face God and hear that I was faithful. I also want to be remembered not for the things I accumulated and left in the garage. I know that God doesn’t really care what I’ve collected in this life; and I believe Barb and the kids won’t care a lick about the clothes in my closet, the awards on my wall, or the junk in my garage…I want their love and respect! I want people to cry because they miss my investment in their lives, not because my shoes don’t fit them or the lawn mower doesn’t even start.
Grace & Peace,
Scott
For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21)
Heaven is not just a destination, it is a motivation!
Yes, certainly heaven is where I am heading; it’s my true home; it’s where my heart is; it’s a place for which I am already beginning to pack. The destination of my King is my destination as well, so if Jesus is in heaven, then that is where I am headed!
But “…to die is gain” is only one side of what Paul was teaching in this verse. I also want to think about the other side of his teaching, “For me to live is Christ…” Heaven is more than the where of my future, it is the motivation for living today. I live today in light of eternity. What God has in store for me is beyond my imagination, but it is what motivates me to do what I do today.
Let’s be honest, some days just aren’t worth rolling over in bed and putting our feet on the floor. We’ve all faced “mountains” and “giants” that seem insurmountable and undefeatable. They loom over us like a modern-day doomsday. There are times when we look at life and would just as soon run to the mountains and hide. But for genuine Christ-followers this is not an option God holds open for us. He provides the courage and strength and perseverance through the Spirit to get us up and get us going. This is what it means “for me to live is Christ.”
I think we need the perspective of eternity in our souls to keep us motivated each day. We can determine to live today for Christ because we know what He will do for us in the future. Today we live for Christ. This makes all the difference in everything we do; it changes every relationship we have; it makes every encounter eternal; it molds every decision we make.
Living without this motivation makes us worthless for today. Living with this motivation makes everyday an opportunity.
Grace & Peace,
Scott
