Christmas Is Coming

“Christmas is Coming”

December 2, 2016

Matthew two

It was Friday morning and I was lying in bed about 5:00am debating whether to get up and make coffee or go back to sleep for another half hour or so. I decided on that latter choice but as I closed my eyes to sleep I prayed a little prayer for the coming day. Suddenly sleep wouldn’t come. My mind was filled with thoughts for a sermon and I thought I better get up and get it on paper before it faded into oblivion where my greatest works ended up because I thought I could remember them. I never can; never could. They are lost forever. My great works that would change the world and answer the great needs of people – gone forever – in oblivion. So I got up, scribbled a few notes, made coffee, made a fire, had devotions, sought the Lords blessing for the day, and began to work on my sermon. Of course right at the most critical place – someone came over. So the great message I was preparing – faded into oblivion. You have what is left. ?

Last week was pretty stressful for me, especially Thursday. The first part of the week was a blessing. Some of the guys met me at church and we put up the nativity scene and got a lot of yard work done and I was blessed. It was hard work but it is always a blessing working with you guys. Thursday I was still sore from all of the hard work but I only had two goals. First, was to get a security camera working that I had gotten from Amazon. Second, was to get a computer and program working that Bob could speak into and it would change his words into typing. It is a program to help him write his book. It was stressful and way above my skill level, but I got the computer and program running. The security camera was another issue. After much stress, I finally had to give up. I thought I’d pick Nate up after school and my 13 year old genius grandson would get it going for me. Unfortunately it stress him out, too, and he failed as well. I was left with the task of sending it back. I would have to download a mail sticker for UPS and go through the hassle of mailing it back. On top of that, I over did it physically by lifting something that was way too heavy for me to be lifting and I was worried I may have hurt myself. Then the mail came. I got a bill for $2000 for an ambulance ride I had a while back. The VA was supposed to pay that! So that stressed me out. Frankly, I was feeling stressed, anxious and exhausted. I was feeling sorry for myself and a little mad at the world or at God or something. I felt like I had it so bad. My problems were so huge – a lot bigger than anyone else’s in the whole world!

Have you ever been there? Ever felt everything was working against you and you had a little pity party for yourself? Maybe I am the only one who goes there to that place of selfishness and pain.

Well, it didn’t take long for God to show me a few things. He revealed to me the problems a friend was having. She made the news on TV. She was accused of having some sort of sexual thing going on with some football players. I don’t believe it. But I thought how embarrassing that would be. What shame her teenage kids must feel.

Then there is the young women that is trying to get out of the drugs and the alcohol environment being pushed on her. How difficult that must be. There is the young lady who was kidnapped for three weeks, tortured, beaten, branded with a hot iron and chained like a dog and after experiencing all that she had some people questioning her story.

There is a whole lot going on in people’s lives that make my problems seem pretty minor and me pretty shallow. God directed my thoughts to the first Christmas. Christmas is coming – but there is an enemy on the loose. Satan was at work back then, too. Talk about stress, anxiety and exhaustion! Think about the Mary riding on a donkey while nine months pregnant. Joseph worried about settling his tax problems then having to flee to Egypt with the baby Jesus because an evil king is after him. That would be pretty stressful – but there is more! King Herold had all the babies killed that were just infants hoping to kill the Messiah in the slaughter. Imagine the weeping and the pain of those mothers. I can’t imagine what they must have gone through.