OzThoughts Monday 15th December 2008

OzThoughts Monday 15th December 2008

Last night our Band and Singers were involved in an outdoor Christmas Carols night which is organized by a Rotary Club and a local television station and a radio station. It was said there were more than 10,000 people there, so is a wonderful opportunity for the Salvation Army to be seen and heard.

What a challenge Christmas is for us as Salvationists to carry the message of the Christ of Christmas to the people in our community. It is a challenge for us to be more than a pleasant sounding band or singers and to share music with a message.

While that is a challenge for us as a group of musicians, there is also a challenge for us to share our personal belief in a Christian Christmas. It is easy for us to talk about the secular side of Christmas like parties and gifts and holidays but the challenge is to share the message of Christmas with workmates and other friends.

While we might see it as a challenge, what does God say about it? We should seek his guidance through prayer. The Holy Spirit will help prepare our communication with others. It is God’s work we are his servants.

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, I will have lots of conversations with people about Christmas. Show me the ones I ought to share with spiritually. Give me the message and the words to speak, if it be your will. Amen.

When Christ drew near to dwell with men
And bear with man his earthly lot,
He brought the knowledge of the Lord
To sinful hearts which knew him not.

When Christ drew near with pardoning love
And free men from remorse and tears,
His triumph over death assured
Their victory over sins and fears.

When Christ draws near his own today,
The fullness of his power to give,
The Holy Spirit makes him known,
And by his life we all may live.

Draw near, O Christ, unveil thy face,
The God of glory and of grace;
My heart reveal, with pardon seal,
And bring me to thy holy place.
Author: Miriam M. Richards
The Salvation Army Song Book: Song Number: 102

Ephesians 2:17-22 (The Message)
Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father.
19-22That's plain enough, isn't it? You're no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You're no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He's using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he's using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.
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