God with us, revealed in us, his name is called Emmanuel

It’s hard to believe that as I write this that Christmas is less than two months away, but they are calling for snow tomorrow so it must be true! You know, it always seems to me that beginning the day after Thanksgiving, everything sort of speeds up as we begin hurtling towards the big day. There are so many expectations and demands on our time during these days that it is very easy to forget that we are in the season of Advent, a time of prayerful waiting and reflection. I don’t know about you, but it’s pretty tough for me to hold onto that side of Christmas when I’m jumping into the crowd at the mall.

My hope for each of you is that you can find some quiet time during Advent to simply reflect on the one very special gift that we have already received; while we pause to celebrate the birth of Jesus we also live with the knowledge that he is already among us. Take advantage of what is being offered here at church. Let it be a place of peace and sanity and a place of warmth and fellowship. Indeed, Christmas is a season that brings many gifts, all wrapped in pretty paper and beautiful bows but none of these can compare with the gift of worshiping our God together each and every week…no matter what the season may be.

May our prayer for 2012 be like that of the prayer of Jabez; “That God would bless us indeed, and enlarge our territory” bringing to us those who are yearning for a place to worship and a place where they are accepted and loved. We have such a great opportunity to be a beacon of light and hope here in our community. May it be so, this Christmas and every day!