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Family Worship Resources Email
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| In This Issue: |
Christmas 2002
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One consistent comment on
the FW newsletter has been that people really
appreciate the jokes, so despite the new format,
don't worry, the jokes will remain! Here's a
seasonal selection:
Two little boys were
staying with their grandparents. While kneeling to
say their bedtime prayers the smallest boy began
yelling his prayer at the top of his lungs: "DEAR
GOD, FOR CHRISTMAS I'D LIKE A PLAYSTATION, A BIKE,
A SCOOTER, NEW VIDEO GAMES..."
His brother
asked him, "Why are you yelling? God can hear you;
He's not deaf." The younger brother replied, "I
know God's not deaf, but grandma is..."
Do
you know what would have happened if it had been
Three Wise Women instead of Three Wise
Men?
They would have asked directions,
arrived on time, helped deliver the baby, cleaned
the stable, made a casserole and brought practical
gifts.
This is my favourite Christmas joke
(draw your own conclusion about what that says
about me!):
Good King Wenceleslas went out
to Pizza Hut and ordered a pizza. The assistant
asked: "What kind of base do you
want?"
"Oh, the usual", said the King :
"Deep pan, crisp and even!"
And my second
favourite:
Father Christmas and Mrs
Christmas were arguing about the weather - Mrs
Christmas was insisting that it was going to rain,
but Father Christmas was sure it would snow.
Father Christmas asked her: "How can you be so
sure?" "Oh, I asked Rudolf", she answered. "Ha!
What does Rudolf know?" Father Christmas retorted.
"Now, then" said Mrs Christmas gently, "Rudolf the
red knows rain, dear!"
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This article by Luis Palau
is reprinted with kind permission
"Many
years ago a wealthy family decided to have their
newborn baby baptized in their enormous mansion.
Dozens of guests were invited to the elaborate
affair, and they all arrived dressed in the latest
fashion. After depositing their elegant wraps on a
bed in an upstairs room, the guests were
entertained royally. Soon the time came for the
main purpose of their gathering, the infant's
baptismal ceremony. But where was the child? No
one seemed to know.
The child's governess
ran upstairs, only to return with a desperate look
on her face. Everyone searched frantically for the
baby. Then, someone recalled having seen the child
sleeping on one of the beds. The baby was on a
bed, all right--buried underneath a pile of coats,
jackets and furs. The very object of that day's
celebration had been forgotten, neglected, and
nearly smothered!
I can't help but
remember that story as I walk along busy city
streets during this holiday season. Everywhere I
look I see lights, tinsel, trimmings and
trappings. Shoppers loaded down with expensive
gifts that may take the next year to pay off. And
I ask myself, "Is this Christmas?"
Where
is the Child whose birthday we celebrate?
During the first Christmas, wise men from
the East came to the city of Bethlehem, looking
for the Christ Child. They came searching for One
who would become the Savior of the world. Today,
if we were to search for Jesus in the homes and
streets of our towns and cities, would we find
Him?
The Other Christmas
You see,
there are actually two Christmases. One Christmas
is that of commercialism and the excesses of
overeating, overdrinking, and overspending. The
other Christmas is one of love, joy, hope, peace,
and adoration of the One whose birthday we are
invited to celebrate.
According to the
Bible, the real Christmas is a vivid demonstration
of God's love--"This is how God showed His love
among us: He sent His one and only Son into the
world that we might live through Him. This is
love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us
and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our
sins" (1 John 4:9-10).
Jesus Christ was
God's love gift to the world. He came into the
world, was born of a virgin, and lived among men.
The Christ Child of that first Christmas became
the One who sacrificially died for the sins of the
world and who rose again by the power of God. That
is why, as we read in Romans 6:23, "the gift of
God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
To experience and know God's gift of
eternal life, you must receive Christ. "To all who
received Him, to those who believed in His name,
He gave the right to become children of God" (John
1:12). "
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