Luke 1:35. The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest (Most High) shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing (one) which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
Oh Friends, it’s Friday! But a Friday with a difference, because it’s Christmas Eve. Wow! That means some of us might not be joyfully shouting ‘TGIF’! ‘Thank God it’s Friday!’ in the usual sense of the term because the lucky ones are already off work, but all of us will be joyfully and ecstatically shouting ‘TGICE! Thank God it’s Christmas Eve!’ Yes Friends, tomorrow is the BIG DAY! And everybody’s hurrying home for Christmas, and that home factor is possibly one of the best things about the season. It’s like Joseph and Mary travelling to their ancestral home of Bethlehem two thousand years ago. However the difference these days, the good part, is that we’re not going home to be taxed, but to celebrate the birth of Jesus with our friends and families; to LOVE and be LOVED! And here’s a quote from Hal (Harold Glen) Borland (1900-1978) the famous American journalist, which brings out the real true feeling of home. ‘To know after absence the familiar street and road and village and house is to know again the satisfaction of home.’ Oh Friends, no matter where in God’s wide world we travel, when we return ‘HOME’ it’s always with a grateful sigh and a welcome shrug off of the stress of constantly moving. That’s because home implies stability, rest, security, comfort and satisfaction. Regardless of the size or quality of the physical space we call home, it creates and maintains a constant aura of welcome that banishes all our fears and worries once we enter though its welcoming portals. So please my people, please let’s make this Christmas a true homecoming, a time of peace, LOVE and good cheer betwixt and between families, friends and neighbours. Let’s put off whatever resentment, anger and any other negative emotions that will prevent us and our LOVED ones from having a joyful Christmas, celebrating the wonderful birth of Jesus, for that’s what the entire season is all about. Now let’s chant a ‘TGICE, Thank God it’s Christmas Eve Chant!’ (smile) ‘Oh heavenly Father, we, your rebellious children, sincerely thank you for this day, and for all the underserved blessings you continually rain down on us. Friday is usually a day when we celebrate the end of a hard work week, but Father this is a special time of year; the anniversary of your Son Jesus’ incarnate birth to the Virgin Mary, when you sent Him to earth in human form to teach us and make us understand what you’re all about. And this Friday is even more special because your Son’s birthday falls within the weekend. So please help us to rest and renew our tired spirits, souls and bodies, but also to worship and celebrate your Son’s birth in the true spirit of Christmas, placing Him first, as we ought to, before all the worldly things. And Father, please use this Christmas weekend to raise our level of hope, faith, trust and surrender in you, so that when we go back out to work, we’ll be even more fruitful than before. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.’ Oh Friends can you imagine the confusion and consternation that must have befallen poor Mary when the angel told her in no uncertain terms: ‘The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest (Most High) shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing (one) which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.’ As the old people would say: ‘What a bam bam!’ Imagine being engaged and finding yourself pregnant before the wedding back in those olden times nuh. It’s rough enough now, back then it would have meant real ostracism. Poor Joseph was also placed between a rock and a hard place, when he discovered his wife to be pregnant, and definitely not by him. But Friends, as we keep on saying, the Lord moves in mysterious ways and His plans and designs are much higher than we can ever comprehend. Thus he had an angel appear to Joseph in a dream while he was considering what to do about Mary and his marriage plans. And the angel said to him: ‘Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived (begotten) in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS (Saviour): for he shall save his people from their sins.’ (Matt.1:20-21) Oh my brethren do you think our response would be as accepting as Joseph’s, who just got up and did as the Lord desired? I surely hope so, though I truly doubt it. Many of us would be more concerned about what other people would think and say. But thankfully Joseph didn’t make that mistake, else we wouldn’t be celebrating Christ’s birth now. The same goes for Mary. And I think she was even stronger than Joseph, emotionally, for look at her response after the angel also informed her that her cousin Elisabeth, who was previously barren, was also in the family way with John the Baptist, then cunningly threw in that nothing’s impossible with God. ‘And Mary said, Behold the handmaid (maidservant) of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.’ (Luke 1:38) That’s true surrender, trust and faith in the Lord God Jehovah my people! Let’s pray that in this Christmas Season, or in the New Year to come, that whatever the Lord calls us to do, we’ll do with the same sense of trust and surrender that Jesus’ earthly parents did, and Jesus Himself continued to do when He grew to be a man. As Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) likes to say: ‘Obey God, and leave all the consequences to Him.’ Yes Friends, that’s the only way to live a good earthly and righteous life. Much LOVE!…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
Oh Friends, it’s Friday! But a Friday with a difference, because it’s Christmas Eve. Wow! That means some of us might not be joyfully shouting ‘TGIF’! ‘Thank God it’s Friday!’ in the usual sense of the term because the lucky ones are already off work, but all of us will be joyfully and ecstatically shouting ‘TGICE! Thank God it’s Christmas Eve!’ Yes Friends, tomorrow is the BIG DAY! And everybody’s hurrying home for Christmas, and that home factor is possibly one of the best things about the season. It’s like Joseph and Mary travelling to their ancestral home of Bethlehem two thousand years ago. However the difference these days, the good part, is that we’re not going home to be taxed, but to celebrate the birth of Jesus with our friends and families; to LOVE and be LOVED! And here’s a quote from Hal (Harold Glen) Borland (1900-1978) the famous American journalist, which brings out the real true feeling of home. ‘To know after absence the familiar street and road and village and house is to know again the satisfaction of home.’ Oh Friends, no matter where in God’s wide world we travel, when we return ‘HOME’ it’s always with a grateful sigh and a welcome shrug off of the stress of constantly moving. That’s because home implies stability, rest, security, comfort and satisfaction. Regardless of the size or quality of the physical space we call home, it creates and maintains a constant aura of welcome that banishes all our fears and worries once we enter though its welcoming portals. So please my people, please let’s make this Christmas a true homecoming, a time of peace, LOVE and good cheer betwixt and between families, friends and neighbours. Let’s put off whatever resentment, anger and any other negative emotions that will prevent us and our LOVED ones from having a joyful Christmas, celebrating the wonderful birth of Jesus, for that’s what the entire season is all about. Now let’s chant a ‘TGICE, Thank God it’s Christmas Eve Chant!’ (smile) ‘Oh heavenly Father, we, your rebellious children, sincerely thank you for this day, and for all the underserved blessings you continually rain down on us. Friday is usually a day when we celebrate the end of a hard work week, but Father this is a special time of year; the anniversary of your Son Jesus’ incarnate birth to the Virgin Mary, when you sent Him to earth in human form to teach us and make us understand what you’re all about. And this Friday is even more special because your Son’s birthday falls within the weekend. So please help us to rest and renew our tired spirits, souls and bodies, but also to worship and celebrate your Son’s birth in the true spirit of Christmas, placing Him first, as we ought to, before all the worldly things. And Father, please use this Christmas weekend to raise our level of hope, faith, trust and surrender in you, so that when we go back out to work, we’ll be even more fruitful than before. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.’ Oh Friends can you imagine the confusion and consternation that must have befallen poor Mary when the angel told her in no uncertain terms: ‘The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest (Most High) shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing (one) which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.’ As the old people would say: ‘What a bam bam!’ Imagine being engaged and finding yourself pregnant before the wedding back in those olden times nuh. It’s rough enough now, back then it would have meant real ostracism. Poor Joseph was also placed between a rock and a hard place, when he discovered his wife to be pregnant, and definitely not by him. But Friends, as we keep on saying, the Lord moves in mysterious ways and His plans and designs are much higher than we can ever comprehend. Thus he had an angel appear to Joseph in a dream while he was considering what to do about Mary and his marriage plans. And the angel said to him: ‘Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived (begotten) in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS (Saviour): for he shall save his people from their sins.’ (Matt.1:20-21) Oh my brethren do you think our response would be as accepting as Joseph’s, who just got up and did as the Lord desired? I surely hope so, though I truly doubt it. Many of us would be more concerned about what other people would think and say. But thankfully Joseph didn’t make that mistake, else we wouldn’t be celebrating Christ’s birth now. The same goes for Mary. And I think she was even stronger than Joseph, emotionally, for look at her response after the angel also informed her that her cousin Elisabeth, who was previously barren, was also in the family way with John the Baptist, then cunningly threw in that nothing’s impossible with God. ‘And Mary said, Behold the handmaid (maidservant) of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.’ (Luke 1:38) That’s true surrender, trust and faith in the Lord God Jehovah my people! Let’s pray that in this Christmas Season, or in the New Year to come, that whatever the Lord calls us to do, we’ll do with the same sense of trust and surrender that Jesus’ earthly parents did, and Jesus Himself continued to do when He grew to be a man. As Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) likes to say: ‘Obey God, and leave all the consequences to Him.’ Yes Friends, that’s the only way to live a good earthly and righteous life. Much LOVE!…to know, know, know Him…is to LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Him…
SCRIP-BITS 