Christmas in Jail

by Joe Baranowski

It was a frigid cold evening of Christmas shopping that began in the police lock up. As I sat shivering on the cold metal bench with my two grandchildren and their little friend next to me, my grandson of twelve pointed to the handcuffs attached to the bottom of the bench.  My nine-year-old granddaughter and her friend smiled at the amused police officers as they entered the station.  I started singing, “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen…” We were there because I had failed to come to a complete stop at a stop sign and was driving on a recently expired license.  After what seemed a long embarrassing time we were released with me being issued a ticket.  This will naturally become a favorite Christmas memory for my grandkids, as they already joked about it over dinner last night.

Sadly, for some Christians, Christmas is a time of more unpleasant and harsh memories. A friend of ours lost her mom last Christmas.  There are Christians among us who are without work and some are losing their homes.  The multi-colored Christmas lights remind one hurting soul of the tavern lights where she would find her drunken father night after night. For someone else the season reminds him of the time his marriage ended.  And there are many who feel all alone. For those that are hurting Christmas is more of a time of survival than celebration. And for every one that is in emotional pain there are many more who don’t know Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  They may be in bondage and not even know it.  There are difficult moments when Christmas brings out the Charlie Brown in us and we ask, “What is Christmas all about? “

Under a spotlight, Linus quotes the second chapter of the Gospel according to Luke, verses 8 through 14 from the King James Version.

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

“……And this is what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.”

Where’s Your Heart?

by Janet Davidson

I just finished reading Dave Ramsey’s book, “The Total Money Makeover”.  In it, he explains how to get your finances in order – a particularly good read for those who struggle in this area.  The book is peppered with shocking statistics.  One such stat is: “88% of college seniors have credit card debt—before they even have a job!”  Imagine that, aside from student loans, leaving college with debt already in the bag.  It reminded me of my college days.  I remember having $20 to live on during a quarter (we were on the quarter system, not semesters).  I didn’t have a credit card – just a $20 bill.  Since this was all I had, I had to be very judicious about how I spent it.  I used it primarily for laundry and for personal care items such as toothpaste, shampoo, etc.  There were many weekends where my friends would do a “Young’s Run” (take a trip to the nearby Young’s dairy farm—popular among students) to get ice cream and hang out.  I often wanted to go, but I simply couldn’t afford it.  For several years, this was my experience—it was harsh. It made me very conscious of my needs vs. my wants.  But, in the end, it disciplined me because I didn’t get into debt and learned to live below my means.  I did eventually get credit cards but was careful about how I used them.  Despite being careful about credit, bad things can happen to us financially.

This past October, I returned from a business trip in Denver only to discover that my wallet was missing.  I got several calls from credit card companies alerting me to fraudulent charges.  It was true, someone had stolen my wallet and compromised all my credit cards – more than $7000 worth of wrongful charges incurred in less than 2 hours.  I was upset.  I knew I could work with each of the credit card companies and get affairs back in order but I really didn’t want to deal with the aggravation.  I also had to replace everything else in my wallet: driver’s license, insurance cards, store membership cards and more.  Plus, I felt insecure that someone had my identity.  I prayed that they’d find no joy in the things that were purchased but that those things would only bring “leanness” to their souls.  Thieves today can steal anything—your things, your identity, your credit, maybe even your life.  Nothing wrong with any of these…just don’t put your trust in them.

Jesus said it best in Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The question is: where’s your heart?

 

You Have a Gift

by Donna Baranowski

“In his grace, God has given different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership responsibility, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly” (Rom. 12:6-8, NLT).

Paul makes his point very clear, and that is, we all have been given at least one gift to build up His church. The question we need to ask ourselves is, “What spiritual gift has God given me and am I using this gift for God’s glory and purpose?” This is really not something to sit back and wonder about because the reality is that YOU do have at least one gift and God made us to serve each other. So there is no argument that you don’t have a gift and for those of you who are using your gift: “Great! DO IT WELL.”

The importance of using our gifts is so vital that Paul uses the concept of the body to teach how we should live and work together. Sometimes I think we can get so comfortable with the current status quo, one might be tempted to think, “New Hope has all these programs and talented people making things run so smoothly, I will not be missed if I’m not part of anything.” Wrong attitude.

But let’s take that reasoning and look at it from  Paul’s perspective. If, as Paul states in Romans 12:5, “We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other”, then who are we to say that we are unnecessary? It’s something like this:  You start an exercise regimen focusing on the upper portion of your body. You do all these strengthening exercises to improve your arms, back, shoulders and chest. You also do a daily routine of sit-ups. But when it comes to the lower portion of your body, you neglect it. You don’t take time to walk daily, do leg stretches and subject it to strength training. After three months of vigorous training do you imagine that this person will be fit? You may have the “appearance” of being healthy and fit. But the reality is that you are weak and unfit because one part of your body has been neglected.

In the same way our churches are not as strong as they could be if even one of us is neglecting his/her part. So my challenge today is to take a step of faith and reach out by getting plugged in! Let’s all take Paul’s words to heart “…and let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (Heb. 10:24, NIV).

 

 

The Gift of Time

by John Serritos

We can use the time God has given us to glorify Him.

In the Book of Numbers we see that Joshua and Caleb’s use of their time, dedication and faith were honored by God and brought glory to Himself. Joshua and Caleb trusted in God and put Him first even when the popular consensus of the Israelites was that Canaan was unconquerable. And to think that God had just shown His power as He miraculously freed them from slavery in Egypt. Out of the twelve spies, Joshua and Caleb were the only two who believed that following God was the best option even when an easier choice was presented to them. They were later (40 years later) rewarded by being allowed to enter the Promised Land. Both Caleb and Joshua also brought God glory in the military conquests that followed their exodus from Egypt.

God uses the situations in our lives for his glory too. Something as simple as skipping a friend’s party for the purpose of attending a church function such as Awana or a Bible study can have a ripple affect. Skipping the party at your friend’s house and coming to Awana instead, for example, can put you in a position to be a servant and teach God’s Word to children that may never hear the Gospel message anywhere else. By prioritizing an opportunity to serve God through Awana, one can potentially lead a child to Christ, resulting in his salvation.

Putting God’s work first before “fun” activities can also be a great witnessing tool to unsaved friends. Your friend may see the model you are setting of turning away from secular activities and putting the things of God first on your list of priorities. The example you show them through your actions and godly time management may be what they need to turn away from their sin and trust in Jesus Christ. God will honor your commitment to Him. In addition, God may also be testing you and the reward may be seeing the salvation of your loved one because of your example. When faced with these choices, what do you think will yield eternal rewards?