Are You Coming?

"Don't be afraid. I'm here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Saviour has just been born in David's town, a Saviour who is Messiah and Master. This is what you're to look for: a Baby wrapped in a blanket and lying in a manger." (Luke 2:10-12, The Message)
The angels were excited. The Messiah was now here and they were entrusted with proclaiming the news. I wonder why the birth was first to a group of shepherds, the lowest of the low, since the message was for everyone. Maybe they were the only ones listening. The shepherds discussed this news and ran to find the Christ child. They were the first to visit the new baby but they were not the last.
The next recorded visitors were the magi from the east. The ancient astronomers were convinced that the heavenly sky held the key to the coming of the king. They followed the star and stopped at the palace in anticipation of finding the King but He was not there. The religious leaders searched the Scriptures and saw Bethlehem named as the home of the Messiah. So they followed the star to the house were He lived. The wise men found Jesus, came close and bowed down and worshipped the Child. Their expensive gifts were just a token expression of their heartfelt worship.
Others may have come to see the Child but many did not. There were probably shepherds who chose to ignore the message or were off attending to other things and missed it. There were other wise men in the east who chose not to make the hazardous journey to search for a new king.
The insecure Herod was so terrified of the Baby dethroning him and taking his power, he remained aloof, distant and dangerous. Instead of worshipping the child, Herod chose to rid the landscape of the baby that could truly bring him peace.
Why may others not have come?
Maybe the merchants were too busy fleecing the travellers. Income profited from the census was chosen over coming close to God.
The inn keepers may have been too busy changing beds and feeding their customers than realizing the greatest patron was lying snuggled in strips of cloth in an animal feeding trough. They would rather rub shoulders with the paying clients than to come close and wait on the Son of God.
If a poll had been taken in Bethlehem about why others did not come to the manger and worship the Christ, the answers would vary as much as the people who made them up. “Too busy.” “Too many guests.” “I didn’t know the family.”  “Didn’t know what to wear.” “Didn’t have anything to bring.”  “I was up too late and slept in.”  “Wasn’t interested as it didn’t concern me.”
Interesting, if the poll were taken today, some 2000 years since Jesus was laid in that manger, people would use the same excuses. They would rather huddle together shivering and miserable than come to the warmth of God’s love and find  peace and good will towards all people.
May this Christmas season find us desiring and making the effort to come close to the Baby that changed everything.  Jesus, God with us, gives us an incredible gift through a promise, if we draw close to God, He will draw close to us. 
Our prayer for you is taken from a song that Evie Tournquist made popular.
Move me closer, Move me closer  
Move me closer to the Child.
Let me see Him, Let me hold His hand, 
Move me closer to the Child.”

From our home to yours we wish you a Blessed and Happy Christmas and may this up and coming new year be filled with the glory of God as you move closer to Him.

Pastor Joel & Mary

What's Your Christmas Wish List

“Do you hear what I hear?” Christmas carols are playing on the radio and in the malls. For some it is the most wonderful time of the year. Maybe you felt you were run over by a reindeer only the decorated Bambi is driving a Mac truck. Some of you are waiting for jolly old St Nicholas to grant to you your three page wish list. Still others are trying to climb out from under the hippopotamus that surprised them last year.
Whatever your feeling this yuletide, there are certain longings that well up inside you and return each year as regularly as Old Faithful. These desires may be as simple as wanting your two front teeth or they can empty the bank account as you fanaticize over jewelry from Tiffany’s. You may want to be home for Christmas, but the thought of uncle Harry getting drunk and mother lying in a snowbank because of too much holiday cheer, sends cold chills up your back and the thought of such a family gathering gives you a wintery frosty feeling that shows in the icicles dripping from your nose. 
Some desires are wrapped with a bow. Others may take several trips of Santa coming to town to deliver the elaborate gift you are sure you deserve because you have been a good little boy (or girl).
You may find yourself huddling in pain. For you, this season comes way too often and you long for it to be gone. You tighten your fist as the Salvation Army collectors jingle bells and your heart tightens as you try to make sense of your unemployment.
December 24’s silent night has been preceded by weeks of noiselessness as you sit alone in isolation. Divorce, death or tragic loss is amplified as the songs tell you to gather around a festive table. Instead reality beats upon you like the Grinch that stole Christmas. You would rather drown your sorrows in a bottle of cheap Christmas cheer than to tell the inquisitive aunts you are okay when you are not.
I enjoy Christmas and my desires may be different than what you experience. I would rather have my family gathered around me than to have a multitude of presents. I love watching joy spread across their faces as my children and grandchildren unwrap their gifts from us.
For our family we usually push away from the table feeling very much like our late dearly departed turkey, STUFFED. Yet the food is not what ties us together for we would rather have peanut butter sandwiches eaten with joy than to gorge ourselves on a lavish abundant feast if the conversation was filled with bitterness and strife.
I long for the day when across our planet all the yellow ribbons could come down as our troops would all be home for Christmas with peace and good will reigning on earth. No more war, no more suffering, no more pain.
I desire for the true meaning of Christmas to be celebrated in every home. Instead of commercial lights and festive decorations, I wish for each home to celebrate Jesus, the Christ. Immanuel, God with us, came as a baby and was laid away in a manger. The birth of this Baby changed everything and now we can be reconciled to God through His forgiveness.
I hunger for people to experience the wonderful life that comes with our sins and selfish ambitions forgiven because of the great sacrificial gift Jesus gave. He willingly paid the ultimate price, His voluntary death, so we could be forgiven and adopted by an almighty, loving God.
There is a burning in my spirit for all of mankind to know how vast, high and great God’s love is towards them. This burning desire that stirs my heart is for this to not just be a head knowledge but a reality as we embrace God. The God who sent His One and only Son to the humblest of Jewish peasants. The Son who made His grand entrance in a barn, wrapped in strips of ragged cloth and placed in a feeding trough as a cradle. Jesus came as the humblest so He could reach ALL of the human race. He came for me ... and you.
No matter what is under the tree, on the table, or who you are snuggling up beside I hope this Christmas is when your true longings are fulfilled in Jesus.
Have a Blessed and Wonderful Christmas.

The Wedding Dress

Threatening rain, 90 km/hr winds and the single digit temperature changed the venue of the outdoor wedding to inside. Rearranging tables, the reception hall was quickly turned into the wedding chapel. Jessica and Nathan were getting married.
The groomsmen looked dashing in their black suits. The ladies gave the wedding an air of sophistication, but the belle of the day, Jessica, looked absolutely stunning in in her white bridal dress and veil.
The wedding dress, a major expense, is only tried on for fittings before the wedding. After the ceremony, it is dry-cleaned and packed away as a wonderful memory of the vows that were made.
Imagine you are the recipient of an expensive heirloom wedding dress. It has been preserved well and is spotless. The plan is for you to wear it for your wedding sometime in the future.
Boxed up, you have difficulty imagining what the dress is like. With no prospective groom in the offing, you want to see your inheritance now not wait until THE DAY. You take the exquisite gown out of its protective wrapping. The beauty of the dress and suppleness of the fabric invokes dreams of walking down the center of the church with everybody admiring you in your wedding attire. You cannot resist trying it on. Standing in front of the mirror you feel like a queen in her royal robes.
The dress is comfortable and fits like a dream. You do not want to take it off. You dance around the house until lunch time. You eat a hamburger with all the fixings. Ketchup and mustard ooze out of the burger and land on the front of the dress. You try wiping it off with your hands smearing the stain even more. Sleepily, you decide to take a nap after lunch wrinkling your dress beyond repair. Upon waking, you use a black sharpie to write out your grocery list and the fresh ink smudges all over the sleeves. On your way to the store, the engine light comes on. When you open the hood, oil is spurting out of the engine block. You jump back trying to avoid the oil but you trip and land in fresh tar and gooey mud. While trying to stand you tear a hole in your dress.
On arriving home, you are convinced you can clean up the dress. You put it in the washing-machine with bleach to eradicate the stains. After several hours, you engage the wash cycle with detergent and piping hot water in hopes the dress will come out like new.
It does not! In total frustration you crumple up the garment and throw in the back of your closet. Your reasoning, “At least I am not getting married any time soon.”
Several years pass, and Prince Charming arrives. After a meaningful courtship, he proposes and you set a date for your wedding. That night, you spot the soiled, crumpled garment that was to be for your wedding dress.
The next day, you confess your dilemma to your future husband. With tears of regret, you pull from the bottom of the closet the dress that was your inheritance. The anguish and tears are unbearable. Your fiance pulls you into his arms, affirms his love, asks if you would give him the disfigured gown, and trust his love. You oblige the request but wonder how he could ever fix such a horrible mess.
The dress arrives, is nicer than the original gown and is in perfect condition. The groom has paid the full bridal price so that you could look and feel beautiful on the day he marries you. You are awestruck by his love and this time you treasure the gift and keep it in honour until the wedding day.

We all have been given an unblemished inheritance. With misuse, disobedience, arrogance and neglect we have damaged our lives, our wedding clothes. Stained, torn and wrinkled, we are ashamed of what we have become in our lives. Jesus asks us to give him our rags of rebellion, disrespect, unfaithfulness and selfishness and replaces them with a robe of righteousness.
We have all ruined our wedding garment but Jesus is willing to give you a brand new look. It means trusting His heart and receiving God’s forgiveness.

More Valuable Than a Sparrow

Eyes closed. It is still dark, only 4:30 in the morning when I hear them. It starts with one but soon the early morning is filled with the announcement that a new day is soon upon us. Birds catch my attention.
I am not a bird watcher but I do enjoy watching them. I am amazed robins can find worms and pull them out of the ground. The architecture of some bird nests are complex and sturdy considering their building technique. While driving down a lone stretch of highway, I count how many hawks are sitting in trees and on fence posts.
I think the navigational abilities of a flock of birds is phenomenal. A thousand birds can be huddling in a field, eating seeds when something startles them. They all seem to fly in different directions yet none seem to crash. Maybe rush-hour city drivers should take some lessons from our feathered friends.
A bird caught my attention today while I was mowing our lawn. As I came near a tree, I saw this little clump of feathers with a tiny beak and black eyes. It had survived some major thunder storms but now had fallen from it’s nest in the tree and was helpless as it could not yet fly. It was a good thing I was watching where I was cutting. Had I not been paying attention, well you can imagine. Each pass as I drew closer, I could see the helpless, terrified little fellow. His bright eyes were watching the lawn tractor as it passed within inches of his body. To my delight , he was able to hop away and find some security in the hay field.
I was reminded of a verse from the Bible. “What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it (Matt 29:10 NLT). What a comforting thought! God knows when a seemingly worthless bird tumbles out of his nest. Some may say, “Why are you so choked up over such a thing? Big deal! So God knows when a tiny chick doesn’t make it. What is that to me?”
The reason it is such a big deal is because “the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows” (Luke 12:27 NLT). Don’t miss the meaning of the last part of this verse. It is extremely important. “YOU ARE MORE VALUABLE TO GOD THAN A WHOLE FLOCK OF SPARROWS.”
Why are you valuable to God.?
You were created in the image and likeness of God.
You were created to bring God glory.
You were created to experience his vast love.
You were created to know his provision and protection.
The most important reason you are so valuable to God is that no other creature can know that their sin and selfishness can be forgiven by a holy God. God did not send His Son to die and rise again for some feathered fowl, no matter how extinct or majestic they are. It was only for humans that Jesus willingly laid down His life. Jesus was the supreme sacrifice and His death followed by His resurrection paid in full the requirements for the consequences of a broken covenant (see Genesis 1-3). God wants you to enjoy His fellowship so He sent Jesus, His Son, to this darkened planet to be the light and the only way back to Him.
The next time you see or hear a bird remember “I am more important to God than these birds because JESUS DIED FOR ME.”

Take Time To Prepare Now

I read of a man who like his father was spontaneous. His dad would say, “Grab your passport, wallet and a change of clothes.” Then the father and son would go to the airport and take the next flight out to wherever it took them. Most of us don’t have the financial means or the time to be that spontaneous but unless house bound, most of us do make a trip or journey of some kind. It may be a vacation, driving to work, a run to the store or a walk in the back yard. Unlike the aforementioned man, when we go, we generally have a purpose for the trip, a destination in mind and a plan of how to go about it.
We plan for our vacations. We schedule itineraries. We procure the necessary vaccinations and travel documents. We save our money and make sure there is a good balance on our credit cards. We look for the best rate on our currency exchange. Finally, we pack our suitcases, load the car and are on the way.
When we lived in Prince Edward Island, the local residents would consider it an all day event to travel to Charlottetown. The plans to go would be made well in advance of the day. They would check the oil, make sure the tire pressure was correct, fill up the car with gas, and make sure there was somebody willing to look after the dog. Charlottetown was forty five minutes away. In fact, you could drive from one end of the province to the other in three hours and that would include a couple stops for food and Tim Hortons. Our last minute decisions to go to ‘Town’ for just the afternoon were often viewed with surprise but we were no strangers to travelling.
With You Are Special Ministries (an itinerant children’s ministry), we were constantly journeying from one location to another. Since 1986, our family has travelled across Canada and into the US to tell kids about Jesus through the art of storytelling. In order to accomplish this, I would make lists of what we needed to take. Mary would make lists of what to put in the suitcases and the girls would make a list of books and shoes. My job was to pack all the equipment, luggage and dog paraphernalia into our vehicle, while making sure there was enough room for the five of us and our one then two dogs. I was always amazed as what looked like a living room full of stuff always managed to fit in and on our vehicle. It was all part of the preparation.
Our friends were heading to Florida this week. They stopped by our place to drop off a few things. I asked them if they were packed, knowing they were leaving the next day for their extended trip. Our friend responded, “Are you kidding? We have too much to do before tomorrow to think about packing.” Hopefully, they didn’t forget anything of importance.
There is another journey we are all on, no matter our age or health status. This journey of Life begins with our birth and continues beyond the moment we draw our last breath when we reach our eternal destination. Where do you plan to spend it? I hope it is in heaven with Jesus.
Here are the preparations needed to reach this destination. Is Jesus Christ your Lord and Saviour? God’s plan is as simple as ABC.
Admit: First we have to admit we have sinned against God. The Bible says we are all in this boat together. “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard” (Rom. 3:23 NLT). Think about it.
We may not have killed someone but Jesus said if we have hatred towards someone it is the same as committing the act.
There is no such thing as a little white lie in God’s sight.
Rebellion is ranked on par with witchcraft.
The consequences of our sin or our selfish actions is death and eternal separation from God.
Believe: We need to believe Jesus, God’s Son, died on a cross in our place so the penalty of our sin is completely paid for. To God, our account is stamped “Paid in Full.” We also need to believe Jesus rose from the dead three days later which proved He could make full restitution.
Confess: We need to confess our sins to God and ask his forgiveness. Sure God knows everything but He still requires that we seek his forgiveness. He did His part now it is our turn to do our part.
Determine: Then determine you will follow after God and live according to His agenda.
It will be too late if you wait until your journey is complete. Make your preparation for the most important trip of your life now. The Bible tells us, “Indeed, the right time is now. Today is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2 NLT).
If I didn’t prepare for our travels, most assuredly I would forget something of importance. If you fail to prepare for heaven, when the time comes, you will face the biggest disappointment of your entire life.

OK, I Won't Say Merry Christmas!

Some are offended because we say Merry Christmas. Some because of their faith belief may choose not to celebrate the Yuletide. So to be politically correct, I want to give you some seasonal tidings.

“Irresistible Incarnate Day!”

“Immanuel Season”

“Vicarious Victory Celebration!”

“God with Us Time”

Whatever we call it, It is the time of peace, goodwill towards men.
The angels did not shout Merry Christmas on that starry night. They did tell the shepherds to not be afraid. So maybe a new name for this joyous season should be “Don’t Be Afraid Day.” They also said, “We bring you good tidings of great joy.” So maybe Christmas should be known as “The Coming of Hilarious, Wonderful Good News To Change Your Life Day.”

If you want good news, do not turn on the 11 o’clock late news. Turn to the announcement of the angelic host. “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11).
What do these seasons greetings mean?

Irresistible Incarnate Day: Irresistible - You cannot stand back but are drawn into the reality of the incarnation - Jesus, who is God, became a man like us and lived among us but never sinned so that He could reconcile us to God.

Immanuel Season: “And they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated God is with us”. God is with us throughout this season and all the time, and we should ever be mindful of His presence.

Vicarious Victory Celebration: Vicarious - Jesus willingly took our place and bore our punishment so that the penalty of sin is completely paid for. Victory - Knowing that our sins are forgiven and taken away should make us want to rejoice and be exceedingly glad.

God With Us Time: A wonderful promise that whether we are up to our necks in snow or basking on a warm beach God is with us. He is with us in the good and in the bad times. What a wonderful promise.

So God sends his greetings by saying, “May you have an irresistible incarnate celebration of Immanuel’s vicarious victory knowing God is with us for all eternity.”

Or as we would say including all the new names of this season,
Have a Blessed and Joyous Christmas.
Joel & Mary

How Big is the Sky?

How far did you travel this summer on vacation? This year, we have seen license plates from many of the states and provinces as we drove west to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. The mice on Muppets Treasure Island sing “I’ve Got Cabin Fever” and the song swam around in my mind as we sat for what seemed like endless hours of driving. It took us over 40 hours of car time just to reach there.
I do praise God that the air conditioning worked well and the ride was somewhat enjoyable. Some of you travelled to camps, family or other favourite vacation spots. Whether you drove or flew, I am sure at some time the scenery changed. In our case, we crossed the great Canadian Shield, leveled out onto the plains, and watched the trees and forests give way to the flatlands of the prairies.
Numerous times, the horizon blended into the flat lands and you could see for miles. Our daughter, Charity commented on the bigness of the sky. Land and sky seem to stretch on for miles. In Ontario, with our landscape of trees, hills and buildings, the sky seems to close in on us and we lose perspective to how vast our country really is. Our perspective can be even narrower if we live in a valley surrounded by mountains.
Many times our vision is obscured when we try to focus on God and His goodness. We have difficulty seeing His plans and purposes because our vision is blocked by mountains of pain, trees of regret, and man made obstacles in our way. Overwhelmed by the bigness of our problems, we think God is small and insignificant.
Some people joke about tunnel vision. They say the light you see at the end of the tunnel is probably a train coming. When our sight is clouded or obscured, we need to take a trip to the prairies. I am not advocating a road trip to Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta to see the vastness of the sky but we need to stop long enough to see that God is bigger than all of our doubts and fears.
One of the ways I catch a glimpse of God’s greatness is by studying His word. Over and over again, I read how God holds the universe in his hands. He counts the stars and gives them each a name. He creates every distinctive blade of grass. He knows and calls every one on this planet by name. God is so magnificent, he knows every thought we think and every word we say. With this knowledge, it is like looking up into the vast prairie sky that never seems to end.
God is bigger than all our problems. He desires for us to look up and see his infinite greatness. A promise to put things back into the right perspective when problems seem overwhelming is “Casting all your cares upon Him, FOR HE CARES FOR YOU” (1Peter 5:7).
When everything seem to be closing in and the terror of claustrophobia seems to be smothering you, take a few moments and look up into the clear summer night sky. Try to grasp how big our galaxy is and then remind yourself you are not some cosmic speck of dust but you were individually created by God who truly does love you.
Then with courage say aloud, “God I thank you for caring for me and that you are bigger than my problems.” Maybe God will even give you the privilege of crossing our great prairie provinces where you will be reminded of how big the sky, and God, really is.