Christmas

All our Christmas services this year centered around trees: especially the Jesse Tree based upon this verse, "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit" (Isaiah 11:1). On the left is the original idea behind the Jess Tree. By the use of images the medieval church communicated the linage of Christ. In more modern times someone combined the idea of a Jesse Tree with our modern Christmas tree. The result is the picture on the right. It was great to have our children take part in our service on Sunday and decorate the Jesse Trees with the ornaments they had created. In fact, one of the things I enjoy most about our special services is that we allow a number of our more creative people to use their gifts of decorating, singing, drama, construction, etc. May we continue to encourage creativity and applaud those who use the gifts God has given them to serve others and glorify our Lord.

Candlelight

I am continually amazed at the creativity of David Layman. Each year he crafts the perfect Candlelight service. The highlight of this year's service for me was having the children of the SMOMS (Single mom's ministry) carry in the various ceramic characters for the nativity. The number of children growing up in homes without a father is increasing. Few would say this is an ideal environment for children, however, this is the reality of the world in which we live. My hope is that our church will be a welcoming environment for single moms and their children and that these children grow to know God as their Father who will never leave them nor forsake them. May we, as the people of God, work to this end. Thank you David, for one small step in that direction.

Priest

The extent to which God went so that we might understand the magnitude of the sacrifice of Jesus is wonderful beyond comprehension. The establishment of the priesthood, the job of the High Priest, the requirements for sacrifices, the construction and design of the Tabernacle--all were done so that we might grasp how significant is the death of Christ on our behalf. The repetition of sacrifices and the magnitude of offerings given all lead up to the final, once for all sacrifice of Jesus. He is God's great High Priest who is vastly superior to all priests who preceded him. He is the perfect atoning sacrifice for sin that has brought full atonement so that we might never need to suffer under the guilt and condemnation of sin. May we all respond by trusting in the work of our faithful High Priest and being ever mindful of his constant intercession on our behalf, may we become more like him.

The Prophet

When Jesus came as "The Prophet" Moses had spoken about, his first sermon was, "repent for the kingdom of heaven is near." It is repentance that opens our heart to enter the kingdom and repentance that keeps us maturing and growing in Christ.

It is amazing that so wonderful a gift as repentance has come to be viewed so distastefully. It is such a blow to our pride to admit that we have been wrong. However, when we humble ourselves before God and freely confess our sins, we give the Holy Spirit the necessary room to bring about transformation of our true selves. It is then that "times of refreshing come from the Lord" (Acts 3:19).