Pause After Reading

A friend of mine shared this with me (and a few other people :) and I wanted to share it with you all as well. This is from Max Lucado. Please take the time to pause and think after reading.

Merry Christmas!

God had entered the world as a baby.
Yet, were someone to chance upon the sheep stable on the outskirts of Bethlehem that morning, what a peculiar scene they would behold.
The stable stinks like all stables do. The stench of urine, dung, and sheep reeks pungently in the air. The ground is hard, the hay scarce. Cobwebs cling to the ceiling and a mouse scurries across the dirt floor.
A more lowly place of birth could not exist.
Off to one side sit a group of shepherds. They sit silently on the floor; perhaps perplexed, perhaps in awe, no doubt in amazement. Their night watch had been interrupted by an explosion of light from heaven and a symphony of angels. God goes to those who have time to hear him—so on this cloudless night he went to simple shepherds.
Near the young mother sits the weary father. If anyone is dozing, he is. He can’t remember the last time he sat down. And now that the excitement has subsided a bit, now that Mary and the baby are comfortable, he leans against the wall of the stable and feels his eyes grow heavy. He still hasn’t figured it all out. The mystery of the event puzzles him. But he hasn’t the energy to wrestle with the questions. What’s important is that the baby is fine and that Mary is safe. As sleep comes he remembers the name the angel told him to use … Jesus. “We will call him Jesus.”
Wide awake is Mary. My, how young she looks! Her head rests on the soft leather of Joseph’s saddle. The pain has been eclipsed by wonder. She looks into the face of the baby. Her son. Her Lord. His Majesty. At this point in history, the human being who best understands who God is and what he is doing is a teenage girl in a smelly stable. She can’t take her eyes off him. Somehow Mary knows she is holding God. So this is he. She remembers the words of the angel. “His kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:33)
He looks like anything but a king. His face is prunish and red. His cry, though strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby. And he is absolutely dependent upon Mary for his well-being.
Majesty in the midst of the mundane. Holiness in the filth of sheep manure and sweat. Divinity entering the world on the floor of a stable, through the womb of a teenager and in the presence of a carpenter.
She touches the face of the infant-God. How long was your journey!
This baby had overlooked the universe. These rags keeping him warm were the robes of eternity. His golden throne room had been abandoned in favor of a dirty sheep pen. And worshiping angels had been replaced with kind but bewildered shepherds.
Meanwhile, the city hums. The merchants are unaware that God has visited their planet. The innkeeper would never believe that he had just sent God into the cold. And the people would scoff at anyone who told them the Messiah lay in the arms of a teenager on the outskirts of their village. They were all too busy to consider the possibility.
Those who missed His Majesty’s arrival that night missed it not because of evil acts or malice; no, they missed it because they simply weren’t looking.
Little has changed in the last two thousand years, has it?

Prayers Needed: 23 Year Old Dies While Performing The Nativity Story

This email was sent to me by a friend, a lot of other people were included and received it, but it needs to reach even more people. It is a pure attack of the enemy and we need to cover with prayers, her family members, this Church, the people that were involved in the performance and all the people that God wanted to reach through this perfermance that will not get to attend because it had been cancelled.


If you are receiving this email, it's because I know that you understand the power of prayer, and that especially at this time of year, are grateful for the birth of Jesus who truly is, our only hope and security. I've never sent out a prayer request to multiple people, but this time,I couldn't not ask for your prayers. Last night was Opening Night for Crossroads Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio. Crossroads is a "mega-church" with thousands of members. This church is particularly committed to reaching people who may not believe in God or who are searching to find some meaning beyond this life, which we know we can find from the ultimate sacrifice which resulted in an empty tomb. Crossroads puts on a Christmas show every year which is the caliber of anything you would see from a touring Broadway company. The stage sets are extensive, the talent is incredible, the special effects are amazing. This show is heavily attended every year, and this year 26,000tickets were requested (the show is free). People from all walks of life attend this; believers as well as non-believers, young, old, able and disabled. The gospel message is always preached at the end of each performance. Last night, during a scene in which the "three wise men" were climbing a"mountain" that was 25 feet high, a 23 year old girl fell to her death in the middle of the performance of Opening Night. It is uncertain at this time whether the harness malfunctioned, broke etc. They are still trying to determine what the actual cause of the accident was. The head pastor determined to cancel the show immediately and all remaining eleven performances have been cancelled. In addition to the tragedy of this young girl losing her life and the trauma that her immediate family is now experiencing, there were several thousand people in the audience who witnessed this first hand as well as the staff, crew, other performers and volunteers of Crossroads church.My two younger sisters were intimately connected to this show. One sister is the Producer and oversees a large creative team that irresponsible for every aspect of birthing and executing this show. My other sister is one of the choreographers. Both of them, as you might imagine have been deeply and profoundly affected by this. I'm specifically concerned about my sister who is the Producer as she was instrumental in bringing the aspect of harnessing so that actors could "fly" and "climb". She even personally attended at raining workshop in California earlier in the year where she herself,participated in the actual flying and climbing. (A former competitive gymnast, she found the experience exhilarating and couldn't wait to bring this to this year's Christmas show). She is suffering from unnecessary feelings of guilt and at this point, we have been unable to convince her to attend the free counseling that Crossroads is providing at the church today for ANYONE who may need to come and speak with professional. There are so many people who are affected by this and have experienced a great loss. Of concern also, is those who may be seeking to understand more about God and His love for us and something like this can be difficult to surmount. For those of us who have been Christians for awhile, something like this can bring up uncomfortable questions. Was God really in control? Why did He allow something like this to happen?Is it okay to be angry? Those are difficult questions for people who know and follow Jesus but for people who have yet to experience His grace, mercy and sacrificial love, these are questions born of a tragic occurrence that could make the difference in their decision to believe at all. Please pray that the parents and family of this girl will be comforted,especially at this time of year which will come every year with its own fresh memories. Please pray for the staff, crew and volunteers of Crossroads who put an amazing amount of hours, work, dedication and talent into this performance. Please pray for the thousands of people who witnessed this first hand last night and for the thousands of people who will not be able to attend the cancelled future performances.Please pray that my sister will be at peace and know that this was not her fault and that she was not responsible. Please pray that she and her creative team will have the strength to continue their work, the work they believe they were called to, the work that is and has been, touching so many lives. Should any specific thoughts or prayers come to you, please pray in that direction as the Lord guides you. For any of you who may today be experiencing the stress and anxiety that is inherent as we walk with our human minds and bodies in this world,please take a moment to realize that life truly is short. We spend so much time worrying about things that won't matter next week, let alone after we are gone. Take a special moment this Christmas season to share or remind someone of the true meaning of the season and though we can count on absolutely noting in this world, we can "be of good cheer, for He has come to overcome the world". Take a moment to understand that we don't and won't understand so many of the things that we encounter in our lives. And if you are reading this, take a moment to thank The One who lives in your heart, who comforts and provides, who loves us when we aren't so lovable, who believes in us when our beliefs are momentarily shaken. Because of His birth, we don't have to truly die. Because of His death, we can truly live. Here, in the perfect joy that only He provides and forever later, in His house and by His side. Spend one extra moment this season to tell someone you love them, that you care about them, that you are championing them, that you believe in them. They may not be here tomorrow. With love and affection to you all and embracing the resons for the Season, Jane

To find out more, follow this link: http://www.crossroads.net/about/AwaitedStatement.htm

How Are we Suppose To Use Giving Statments

Ok, this has been on my mind for awhile, it always seem to bother me when I am asked to make sure my address is correct on the giving form, whether tithe or offerings, to make sure that I get my "statement" that tells the government what a great person I am and that they should give me a tax break because of it. I am fully aware that I might ruffle some feather and if I do...then so be it, maybe God is trying to tell you something... :)

I do understand that the Churches have to provide those because the government requires it and that part is Biblical; Jesus teaches us that we should respect all authority (Romans 13) I am not really sure how it works and if the Churches are require to produce a statement for everyone who gives or if it could be optional, which would also help being good stuarts of God's money.

So, maybe I am miss understanding how we are suppose to use these statements and maybe there is somewhere in the Bible where it is all explained and I just haven't found it yet, so please, if you know something I don't, put it in the comments section below.

Thank you for your help!

Daniel's Story

One of my favorite story of the Bible is found in the book of Daniel, chapter 3. It is the story of Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego that were thrown in the fiery furnace because they refused to bow down to the gold statue that king Nebuchadnezzar had made of himself, but they came out unbound and unharmed.


But there are another important lessons in the book of Daniel. The attitude Daniel and his friends had and also their faithful service to God ;


After telling the king his dream, Daniel was put in charged of the king's affair. How easy it would have been for Daniel to take credit for it, and to forget about his friends...But he gave credit to God and made sure his friends would also be taken care off (Daniel: 2). I believe that, because he was serving God so faithfully, God was walking along side with Daniel and was guiding him as were Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego, their attitude toward the king was respectful, because they knew well the God the were serving, they could tell the king that they would not bow down to him, but they did that in a respectful manner; they were respecting the earthly king while serving the Heavenly King. (Daniel: 3)

These are just a few attitudes that God teaches throughout His love letter to us.

I am leaving you with these thoughts, I have to go do my attitude check and make sure it lines up with God's!

Serving is also Seeking

One of the time I feel closer to God is when I serve Him (which also mean His people). It takes my focus away from myself and make me realize that my circumstances aren't that bad after all. The other morning, God whispered the following to my heart, I wanted to share it with you because it helped me discover another way to seek Him, This is what He whispered; "Take your eyes off of yourself and start serving. Why worry about what you can or cannot accomplish, you are distrusting Me when you do that. Stop focusing on you and start looking for ways to help others, to serve them as my Son Jesus did." (My paraphrase) This is also what He meant when He said; "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." - Matthew 6:33 When you serve others, you are telling God, "I trust that you will meet my needs, therefore, I don not need to only be focused on myself and my circumstances." You are also experiencing Jesus' life at it's core, what greater sacrifice of serving is there then dying on the cross for the sins of a nation? Now, of course God is not asking us to do anything as drastic, but He is requiring us to mold our lives in the likeness of His Son. So start serving Him today, and see how great it is!!

Prayer

Lord, may I be authentic, may I be real, may I be transparent, may people see me flaws, most of all, may you make your light shines through me for people to see your wonderful Grace and Mercy! Amen