May your truth of resurection

Yesterday at the end of my set devotions there was a short prayer too use. The words at the end of this prayer struck a chord with me and set me thinking about them all day. The words were;

May the truth of your resurrection fill and thrill my soul every moment of the day.


Now like every Christian out there I know the story of Jesus, of His miraculous birth through his ministry and on to His great sacrifice. I also know that 3 days after His sacrifice on the cross He rose from the dead, He was resurrected. But most of the time I don't think about that, I think about how my life is, am I doing what Jesus wants me to do, am I being a good Christian. I pray, I read the Bible and I attend Church I try to live a life that is as free from sin as I can. And though I know I fail I know that He forgives me and I can pick myself up and try again.

But How often does the resurrection figure? I know for me that except at Easter I am probably guilty of not paying that much attention to the resurrection at all. But the truth is that without it all we have is a story about a good man who had a few good ideas about how to live together. With out the resurrection we just have a collection of teachings from just another first century Rabbi. But the truth is that He is a risen Saviour who conquered death. And not only conquered death for Himself but for everyone of us too.

The thing is that none of the Bible makes any true sense unless you have the key to unlocking the secrets. Until you realise who the main character of the Bible is and see Him in all of it then you have missed the point. Jesus is as much in the Old Testament as He is in the New, it foreshadows His appearance and tells us what to expect from Him in the New Testament and beyond. Jesus is the hub and centre of the Bible and like the resurrection, without Jesus the Old Testament is just the history of the Jews and Israel.

So if the Bible is nothing without Jesus, and Jesus is nothing without the resurrection then surely it deserves much more attention. I think we often "ignore" the resurrection because it is so alien to us, because it is so strange and unnatural to us. But think about it, death, the one thing we all will face, the end to our lives on Earth, the only thing you can guarantee for everyone was defeated by Jesus. Think about it, really think about it, He died, He was dead for three days, and then He rose from the grave. This isn't a sci-fi zombie movie, it is not some fancy special effects for the big screen, but it is absolutely mind blowing.

May the truth of your resurrection fill and thrill my soul every moment of the day. In Jesus Christ we ask it. Amen.

Last day of the holidays

Well it had to come round eventually didn't it. Today is the last day of the holidays and everyone in my house goes back to normal life tomorrow. It doesn't feel that long ago since I was writing about the Christmas period looking forward to it and thinking about its meaning. Now it has come and gone did I get anything from it except a bunch of new stuff and indigestion?

What did Christmas mean for me this year? Well the memory that will stand out the most for me for a long time is possibly that of my Godson eating his first Christmas dinner, pushing food in to his mouth as soon as there is even a tiny bit space and passing his turkey to the dog. Or the other major memory of the period of going to the cemetery and visiting the graves of my family who passed this year. Both of these are mile stones in my life this year, but are not hugely important in the scheme of what Christmas means in reality.

However Christmas did afford me some amazing opportunities for fellowship and prayer. The first came on Christmas eve while out carol singing with the young people from my Church. Many of us have had a tough year and this chance to get together and have fun while standing in public declaring our love for God and our joy at His gift was something special. Not only that the reception we received from both members of our Church and members of the public was amazing, we sang to people right across the age spectrum, from a week old baby to a couple who were in their 90's. The way these people smiled, laughed and even at one point cried(the happy sort of crying) was testament to the work God is doing even in the lives of people not currently connected to a Church.

The other was on Christmas day itself. In the past services on Christmas day at our Church were cancelled by certain ministers and as such a valuable fellowship time and worship time was lost. However in recent years our current ministers have reinstated this service, and this year was the most amazing one I have ever attended. People battled the elements and drove through the most snow we have seen in years just to make it there. People made huge efforts and postponed present opening and dinner just to attend Church on our Lords birthday. The atmosphere there, for me at least was electric, there was an expectation, a longing in the congregation I have not felt in my Church for a long time. Sitting there in the Church I felt that people were there not just because it was the day to be in Church, not just because it was expected, but they were there because they wanted to be there, they wanted to worship and thank God. During the service there was a chance to give testimony and those that did showed that the real meaning of Christmas is still alive in many people. Being in that Christmas day service was a blessing the likes of which I have not felt for many months.

I don't know how your Christmas was, I don't know how you felt this Christmas or if God was actively in Christmas for you this year. However as these holidays draw to a close for many people now may be a good time to look back and see what Christmas meant to you this year. Was it everything it should have been? Was it God filled and Christ centred?

New years and the end of the holidays gives us a prime opportunity to look back and see how things were. But use this opportunity not to feel happy with your effort or even to be disappointed with your journey last year. This is a chance to look and see how you can make this coming year the best and most God filled you have had yet. That is my prayer for myself and all of you guys reading this.

Make this year God filled and Christ centred so that through us others may see You. Give me the strength to follow Your guidance and walk Your path in all that I do. Amen.

Advent Challenge Christmas Day

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

Well yesterday my task was to wish everyone I met with the greeting Merry Christmas. I would love to say I completed this task, but I honestly can not say if I did manage this task. I certainly wished a very large number of people a merry Christmas. Being out carol playing and then carols singing made this task very easy but the shear number of people I came into contact with yesterday I can not be certain that I wished absolutely everyone a Merry Christmas. However I am certain that I wished enough people Merry Christmas to consider for myself that I completed the task.

As for the Christmas Day challenge it was almost completed for me. In the service this morning at church we took out time to sit and pray for all those who have nothing and no one this Christmas. We prayed for those people who hope for visitors but never get them, the people who have lost everyone they have and are all alone this Christmas. We also prayed for those people both in our Church and in the world as a whole who have lost people this year and are struggling to get through the day.

I will also spend some time today once all the hustle and bustle is over to sit down on my own and pray. I will take the time to think about the people who really need God and who would benefit from being wrapped in His loving arms. This Christmas for me is a watershed moment in my Christian life. I have begun to see just what it means to be a Christian, it is about my relationship with God and about being serious enough about my faith to include it everything I do in all of my life.

I hope that you all have a great Christmas, that you enjoy spending time with your loved ones and that you have a most enjoyable day. But most of all I pray that you will all find the Christ in Christmas this year and celebrate the birth of our Saviour. For the final time this year I wish you all a Merry Christmas and pray blessings on each and every reader of this blog.

Special midnight Christmas message

I don't know about anyone else but my Christmas eve has been absolutely mental. It has been so busy but a lot of fun. Almost the whole day has been spent singing or playing carols proclaiming the forthcoming birth of our Lord and Saviour. It felt great to be out and about amongst the secular residents of my town and being so openly Christian, it is something I intend to carry on through as a new years resolution.

So why am I writing this special extra Christmas post? Well tonight has been such a wonderful night of good Christian fellowship and great Christmas cheer in the company of my extended family and the people I grew up around. Jesus came to earth to bring us together in to one family and tonight was a great example of this to me.

This year I want to take the excitement of Christmas, the fun and feeling and infuse it into my life. I want to try and take note of what Christmas means and how it makes me feel when I realise this and work it into my life as a Christian.

I know Jesus loves me and I love Him too. But this Christmas I want to make a commitment to God, I want to do something I never have before. I want to say, at last, that I don't want to hold back anymore, I don't want to keep anything back for myself. I am not going to hold the door ajar anymore, instead I plan t fling it wide open for Jesus to walk through in all His glory with full access. 

Christmas is all about celebrating the birth of Jesus and His entry in to the world He created. It is quite fitting that this year I can celebrate His entry fully in to my heart and life. I know Jesus loves me, now it is time to begin to show how much I love Him.

Merry Christmas Everyone.

Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat

There is an old rhyme I used to sing as a child;

Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat,
Please put a penny in the old man's hat,
If you haven't got a penny a Ha'penny will do,
If you haven't got a Ha'penny the God bless you.

It is just a silly nursery rhyme but for some reason it is one of the few I remember. I have no idea why I stuck in my mind so much, but I do have vivid memories of my Gramma singing this rhyme to my younger brother. But I do like the rhyme, even though it is a christmas rhyme which is about the trappings of Christmas with the geese and the ever present need for money to buy gifts. The best line however is the last one, it brings us back to the real reason for Christmas, God, specifically in the form of Jesus.

Last year we were blessed as a family to celebrate Christmas with a lovely 3 week old baby and a manic but memorable Christmas was had by all. This year it will all be a bit different, where as last year we had a lovely addition to the family, this year we will be missing two grand parents. Thinking about Christmas this year has been somewhat different for me in that all of the material things do not matter to me so much, and I have centred my thoughts on my family and the memories we have and of things with a sentimental value.

For me I think this is a lot closer to the real reason for Christmas. We are celebrating not just the birth of our Saviour but a family which he created. We are celebrating the fact that through Him we were all reconciled to God and that our family is now complete again with God as our Father. Although my earthly family is mourning a number of losses this year, we need to remember that they are not lost at all and that we will see them again when we reach the heavenly palace, when we are all born again through Jesus.

Christmas is a reason to celebrate, a time to realise what we have received, not just now, but also what we have received in the past too, the fact that we have been given Jesus and that it was the greatest gift of all. I have no idea what the people who read this blog will be doing for Christmas this year, but I hope that you can take a small amount of time to consider the baby who grew up and died just for you. Merry Christmas, I hope you have a God filled day.

Advent Challenge Day 24

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

Christmas eve, who would have thought it. Well everyone I guess since it falls on the same date every year, but that is not the point. So this means I have almost come to the end of the Advent Challenge and that also that tomorrow I get to spend an insane amount of time with my family, this may or may not be a good thing, I'm hoping that tensions don't boil up and that we remember the good times with the family members no longer with us rather than get depressed about them being gone.

But what you really want to know is about how the challenge went, well we sang and played carols and we had a generally good time. We took Christmas cheer to the masses out shopping and had fun doing so. I hope that in going out and playing the carols and singing at times we were able to remind people with the lyrics just what this season is about and that it is not just about a jolly fat man in a red suit who brings presents down your chimney.

There is probably a lot more I could write about this task and challenge but today is after all Christmas eve and that means I have a stupidly busy day. I am carol playing with the band, then I will be going to visit the graves of my grand parents followed by playing family Santa and dropping presents off all over our small town. Once all of this has been done, in the evening, I will be co-organising the Church carol singing round the homes of various Church members. This is a tradition that has gone on for many many years and that we all love doing. It is stupidly difficult logistically and this year with the weather requires much careful driving, but there is almost nothing that would stop us doing this fun filled tradition. Once all this is finished we are likely to be well in to the early hours of Christmas day.

I will be posting tomorrow at the usual times and will be updating with the final challenge tomorrow and also letting you know about the Christmas day task too. As you may have worked out there remains only one task left to complete and that is to wish everyone I meet today a merry Christmas. If you are not online tomorrow I really hope you all have a great day with whoever you are spending it with, and I hope you take out some time to consider the reason why we celebrate the day. But until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 23

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

This challenge really has been a bit of a challenge for me, I know I have a lot to be thankful for but it is very hard to think of when we are all gearing up towards the first Christmas with out my Gramma and my Grandad.

But as I said, I know I have a lot to be thankful for and after spending some time reflecting on the things that will be missing this year I began to pray for the things I do have. The thing I am most thankful for is my family, after losing so many family members this year I am thankful for all the family I have left, specifically my nephew and Godson.

In addition to this I am thankful for the friends I have. These people have put up with a lot and been there for me when I have needed people most. My friends are a fantastic bunch of Christian people who really live out what they believe and who have been a great example.

I am thankful that I am blessed with a great job and the opportunities that it provides and the financial stability that comes from having a regular income for the first time in a long time. I am blessed to work in a challenging environment where I come in to contact with a huge number of different people with a range of issues to work with. It is a job that I enjoy hugely and have the opportunity to learn new things every shift and develop my skills and to grow as a person myself.

Most of all though I am thankful that I have come to know God this year. That through the examples and guidance of some fantastic saints I have grown to know the Saviour who was born at Christmas who went on to die that I might be saved. I am thankful that this year I will appreciate Christmas for what it really means, not just a time to look forward to presents and gifts.

The next task in the challenge will be task number 7. Attend a Christmas service. Check back tomorrow to find out about what happens in this task, but until then Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 22

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

When the task to help someone came up I was unsure as how to go about completing this task, so I decided just to wait until the opportunity arose. I trusted that God would give me an opportunity to complete the task in a way that I wouldn't be able to do myself.

Turns out my Dad needed some help with something he had planned for work. As it is coming up to Christmas he is having a small party in his office this lunch time and he needs food cooked for them to eat at the party. Since I love cooking and am told I am quite good at it my Dad asked me if I would mind cooking some things along with my Mum for the party.

And so I managed to turn out a few dishes before I had to go to work. My Dad requested that I make wings and glazed sausages to go with the savoury dishes my Mum was making and some sweet lemon tarts for a tasty desert.

This is not the way I thought I would be completing the task when it was selected but since I had no idea what I would be doing I guess it is not a bad thing. It also helps with the slightly strained relationship with my Dad at the moment, hopefully repeated acts like this will lead to him being more accepting towards the plans for the future, but we will see.

I am now drawing close to the end of this series of challenges with only 3 days to go and then it is Christmas. These next 3 days are going to be very busy and fitting these last tasks in is going to become increasingly difficult, but after getting this far into it I will endeavour to complete all of them satisfactorily. But to find out you will have to check back each day until the end of the tasks. In addition to this I am going to make the first mention of a new much shorter series of tasks I have been challenged to do over the holiday period. I will go in to much more detail in another post nearer the time but basically between the 26th and the 31st all my posts will be single words. You have my friend Caron to thank for this, please check out her blog its really quite interesting. I am not quite sure how this will work or how I will complete this but it may be interesting to check out and see ow it does work out.

But anyway back to the task in hand, the next task in the Advent Challenge will be task number 24. Pray for what you are thankful for this Christmas. Check back for tomorrows post to see how this challenge goes, until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 21

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

This task was one which was quite important for me to do for myself. The reason being is that this year has produced a number of people close to me who are going to find at least Christmas this year difficult. There are different reasons why people may find this season difficult, but I have worked out recently that most issues eventually boil down to loss or relationship break down.

There is another reason I wanted to do this task too, because the last two Christmas seasons have not been the most fun for me with one thing and another and I can appreciate people finding the season difficult to bear. I don't want to go into too much detail about specific people I prayed for in this task, although there are a number of them. All I will do is outline the rough ideas behind it, and hopefully it may encourage others to pray for those people in the world who struggle with the same.

The main area I prayed around was the people I know who have lost loved ones this year at some point, the people who will be spending their first Christmas without specific people there to enjoy it with. In addition to this I prayed about those who have lost people in or near the Christmas season in the past or whose loved ones who are now gone had strong connections to Christmas.

As well as this I thought and prayed about those people who find Christmas for other reasons, it could be they have financial problems and can not celebrate in the way they would like, the homeless or those seperated from their families for whatever reason.

I finished up by thinking about the armed forces of Christian families world wide who will be spending Christmas away from their loved ones due to wars or other military engagements. Specifically I prayed for the Children of the members of the armed forces who will miss parents over Christmas and who are unlikely to understand why their parents can not be there.

I know there are many other cases and situations of why people may find Christmas difficult, but it is hard for me to think and cover them all. Yet I have faith that God is aware of it all and although I can not articulate it all into one prayer He knows about it and has something planned for each and everyone who is prepared to accept His help.

The next task in the challenge is going to be task number 4. Help someone in need. Now I am not sure how this task will pan out, but I am at work today, hopefully, and I am sure that some opportunity for me to help someone above and beyond the call of duty will present its self at some point. Until tomorrow, Merry Christmas.

The most adequate Christmas ever

God-Hello, Stan.
Stan-If you know who I am, then you know why I'm here.
God-I know everything.
Stan-I guess that makes two of us, huh?
         Look, Sir--
God-You, uh,unplugged the sun. 

Stan-Oh, sorry!

God-Look, I'm just gonna cut to the chase. I'm not gonna help you.
Stan-What? Then just help my family. You can't let them die.
God-Look, everything happens for a reason.
Stan-What reason could there be?
God-Stan, I'm gonna level with you.
         If your family isallowed to live,
         Stanford's tennis team will go oh-and-eight in conference play.
Stan-What?! 

God-I'm just messing with you.
         The point is, mysterious ways,
         have a little faith, I'm in the details...
         Now c'mon, you can be triceratops.
         I know he's your favorite.

Stan-We're out of time!
          Now send me back so I can save my family!
God-Not gonna happen. 

Stan-You have to!
God-Oh, okay, so you know better than me?
         Is that it? You're all-knowing?
Stan-No. Yes. I-
         I don't know. 

God-Exactly! You don't know.
         You can't know. So stop trying to control everything.
Stan-I don't do that.
God-Stan, you're holding a gun to God's head.
         I mean, I can't even think of a metaphor that's better than this.
Stan-But my family...! 

God-Stan,
         put the gun down and let My will be done.
Stan-I'm sorry.
God-So shines a good deed in a weary world.
Stan-What? 

God-That's all I wanted.
         One small act of humility.
         Okay, you can go back. 

Stan-Really?
God-Eh. It's my kid's birthday.
Stan-Thank you! Thank you! Oh! I'll never ask for anything again.
          .....There's just one more thing.

I wonder how many people know where this script comes from? It is from the season 3 of American Dad, episode 8, the Christmas special. American Dad is one of my favourite TV shows of all time, Seth McFarlane is an absolute genius when it comes to animated comedy. But not only are these shows funny, but they actually make you stop and think about the stories too. Some of the stories while on the surface seem quite crude, the beauty of the show is that they are actually very intelligent and well thought through.

While watching this episode last night I was thinking about what I may be able to write today and had no intention of writing about this at all. But the above scene seemed an absolute gem, it is a perfect opportunity to talk about something I often have a problem with. Arguing with God.

How many times do we pray and pray about God's plans for us, we say we are desperate to know what His plans are. We start off wanting to know, we seek and seek for the answer. But then when God finally starts to reveal His plans to us we stop and say, "Hang on a minute, how about we do this, or that first, how about we do this instead." I am sure I am not the only one who has done this, I am sure I am not the only one who has at times questioned the wisdom of what God is doing in our lives.

Yet we claim to be obedient followers of God, we claim to desire to follow His will and His plans no matter what. I am not saying that by questioning His plans we are being a bad Christian or that by having our own plans we are disobeying God. But if we are asking God for His plans and then when we hear them we decide we don't like them, have we totally given ourselves over to God.

It is never going to be easy to give God 100% of ourselves, we are only human, we can not be perfect. We need to understand that although we have our own, wants and desires it is only God who knows the real needs of our souls. God created us, He knows us better than we know ourselves and because of this His plans will be better for us.

Advent Challenge Day 20

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

Support a Christmas appeal. There is one appeal that I support every year without fail, The Salvation Army Christmas Appeal.As someone who was raised in The Salvation Army it is something that I have always felt strongly about, and even when I was not a part of the Church I still actively supported the Christmas Appeal.

Both through personal donations and playing with the band every winter I do my part in supporting the local Salvation Army in raising money towards the charity work this organisation does. I always fills me with a sense of pride and privilege when ever I see people collecting for the same appeal or when I see the TV ad campaigns.

Also with working in the area where this sort of fund raising goes I have come to a much greater appreciation of what these efforts are for, who is helped by this money and the reactions that it creates. Seeing first hand the sorts of changes it can make has given me an even greater appreciation of what these efforts actually mean in real terms.

I know some people may call cheat on this task as they may claim it is something I would have done and supported anyway with or without the task. However to complete this task was somewhat of a challenge for me. Being slightly incapacitated this week with an agonising neck and shoulder injury causing me to take the week off work sick to complete this task caused me a fair bit of suffering. Standing playing carols in the freezing weather with snow on the ground with constant pain from my shoulder was not easy, and I could have easily skipped it or gone home early. But I did not, and I played with good cheer for the two hours we were out, after all some things are just worth the effort.

The task which is next in the Advent challenge is task number 10. Pray for those who find Christmas difficult. Check back tomorrow to see how this task goes, until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 19

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

When I did the task picked yesterday I thought I knew exactly how it would go, I would thank God for all the blessings and gifts I have received and pray for those who would have little or nothing this year at Christmas. And to a certain extent that is how it went, at least to begin with.

After I had prayed and thanked God for everything He has blessed me with in my somewhat comfortable life and prayed for those who are not as fortunate as myself I began to pray for something I had not previously thought about. The scripture quote above from Matthew 10:19-20 is something I strongly believe in, the Holy Spirit can guide our words and provide us with the words we know we need to say but can not figure out ourselves. And so I believe that what happened next was a Spirit led prayer, which in itself I feel is a major break through in my personal growth.

The reason for this is that once I was praying I began to feel a need not to pray for those who wont be able to send gifts or feast in the way most people do at Christmas but to pray for those who do not have God in their lives. Surely this is a more pressing need in reality than the lack of material and worldly goods and possessions. There is a real need in the world for people who have nothing to be supported by those who can afford to give, but this is just as true if not more so for those who are poor in spirit.

This time of year is a great opportunity for us to tell people about our faith, it need not be in a forceful or direct way but it is a time for planting seeds. The seeds you sow this Christmas time may take many years to develop fruit, some may never develop at all but we should use every opportunity to grow God's kingdom when it comes our way. It may be that something as small as a kind act of helping a stranger in the snow, or singing a religious carol while going about your business gives you the chance to tell someone why Christmas is so important to you. As I said yesterday, be brave and courageous, be ready to act in faith when He calls. And remember that the Spirit of our Father will always supply the words that we need.

So the next task to complete is going to be task number 11. Support a Christmas appeal. Check back tomorrow to see what happens with this challenge, but until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 18

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

So, Advent. We all know about Advent, its the run up to Christmas, we hear the prophesies and stories about the preparation for Christ, we light candles and open our chocolate filled calendars. But what does Advent really mean, where does i come from and why do we celebrate it in the way that we do?

The word Advent comes from the Latin Adventus which translates as "coming", however the word Adventus is the Roman translation of the Greek word Parousia which is used to describe the second coming of Christ. The reason that this word is used is because Advent is not just a time where we remember the waiting and build up to the birth of Christ, but a time where we remember that we ourselves are awaiting Christs return.

In the western Church Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year and begins four Sundays before the 25th of December, this means the beginning of Advent falls anywhere between the 27th November and the 3rd of December. In the western Church the colours used in the time of Advent are either purple or blue, purple being more traditional and blue coming in to favor due to its ties to the feeling of hope. In the eastern and Orthodox Church the colours associated with Advent, or the Nativity Fast as they call it, are red or gold.

Advent calendars were the product of the Germanic countries and Lutherism, as far as I can find out it was pretty much common practice in Germanic countries from about the 17th century with the first commercially produced printed calendars coming late in the game in about 1903. I can not find out a date for the first chocolate calendar but the idea of receiving a small gift behind each door has progressed far in the time since the first printed ones were produced. These days it is common to find many different types of calendar, my favorite being the Lego calendar where you receive a piece of Lego every day over lent, pretty awesome right.

There is much more I could tell you that I have learned about Advent, from the fasting to the Advent dolls often displayed in Norther England for luck. But to do so would vastly increase the length of this post, but I would advise you to look it up yourself, there is some very interesting reading to be done. So what is the next task? Well that is to be task number 5.Pray for those who don't have anything this Christmas. Check back tomorrow to see how that goes, but until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 17

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

So the task for yesterday was to place a Christmas Bible verse on my Christmas tree. I spent a while thinking about this and which verse I could chose to put on, in the end I asked my friend who selected the following verse.

John 1:14 (NIV)
     The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

As soon as I read it I knew it was the right one to put up, this verse sums up everything I would want to say about Christmas into one short passage. It tells of how Jesus who was there from the beginning came and dwelt among us, how He in His awesome glory and perfection came from God to us to give us the grace of God which leads to eternal life and the truth of the word through which we can live right.

I have placed this verse on the tree almost exactly centre stage so that everyone can see it. There will be many people coming in and out of our home between now and new year and who will see our tree. It is my hope that they will view the tree and take the small amount of time required to read the Bible verse which is quite prominent. Hopefully this Christmas a small reminder of the reason for Christmas is Christ, that without Him all we have is a pointless mid winter festival which means nothing.

The task which I am doing today is task number 16. Research the season of Advent. I enjoyed the google St Nicholas task I did at the weekend and hope that this one is as informative and interesting as the last. Check back tomorrow to find out what I have learned about Advent. Until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 15

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completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

Yesterday the task I completed was to pray for someone lonely this Christmas. This task for me is quite personal as the person who I have chosen to pray for is my Grandma. This year has not been an easy one, and especially not for Grandma. This will be the first Christmas my Grandma will be having on her own, yes she will be surrounded by family, yes she will have people there all the time, but it is the first Christmas without Grandad there too.

It has been hard on my Grandma to adjust to being on her own now, as someone who cared for my Grandad for many years she often finds herself at a lose end and not knowing what to do. Christmas has always been a busy time of year for us with lots of things happening in our Church and with our family. But for many varied reasons this year has been exceptionally quiet and there has not been much to be getting on with. Because of this my family and specifically my Grandma have been finding it difficult to get in to the Christmas spirit and enjoy the season.

I have prayed that my Grandma and my family find a sense of peace this Christmas through Jesus, that they can remember the good times spent with the family we have lost this year and not find ourselves wallowing in grief. But I prayed not only for my family, but all families, all friends, all parents, all children, anyone who has lost someone this year. I pray that although they will never forget their loved ones that it will become easier for them to remember the times they enjoyed together and know that one day we will all be reunited together in God's glory.

The task which I will be attempting to do today is task number 23. Read Isaiah 9:1-7. Please check back tomorrow to see how this task goes and my thoughts on it. But until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 14

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

Yesterday my task was to give myself a Christmas treat. Let me tell you that I really needed something yesterday after the day I had, I wont go in to it but read here if you want to know more. So I was out Christmas shopping with my parents and younger brother and was on the lookout for something for myself.

After almost finishing my Christmas shopping, only one present left to get now, I began looking around for things for myself. There are really only two things I want this Christmas, one is a new crucifix and the other is a watch. Since I already have a crucifix I like I am waiting to see if there is one that I think is more personal for me, something that not only expresses my faith but one that I feel personally connected to, some people may think that is the wrong way to think of it but that is my feelings on it. And for the watch I know I am already getting a very nice watch from my brother as I picked it out.

So wandering round the shopping mall I couldn't think of what to get myself and was feeling that maybe some sweets or a book may be in order. In the end I settled on getting myself a new watch, It was bought in a shop that I though had a special offer on, turns out I need to open my eyes more, but I bout 3 watches in there, one for my Mum one for my brother and one for me. Its not the most spectacular treat or even what most people would think of as a treat but in my family presents normally tend to have a practical theme to them, why buy something people don't need or won't use. But the main thing is that I am happy with it and that is the main part of a treat.

Today's task is task number 3. Pray for someone lonely this Christmas. Check back tomorrow to see how that task goes and what I do for it. Until then, Merry Christmas guys.

Advent Challenge Day 13

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

How much Christmas cheer have you got? Do you like to spread it or are you sometimes a bit of a Scrooge? My task yesterday was to spread some Christmas cheer amongst the people I was with. I had the advantage yesterday of being in two places, not quite at once but at least in one day. Because of this I managed to send time with a lot of people who are important to me and who I would want to spread some cheer too.

I began the day by sharing a bag of lollies with my my friends and the young people of my Church and spent time talking to all the older members of the Church asking how they were and giving my time for them to have someone to chat with. The nice thing about this was I managed to spend time talking to people I wouldn't normally talk to. After the service I went for lunch with one of my friends who I have not talked to for quite some time. After treating her to lunch we sat and talked for a long time, catching up on what has been going on, plans for the future and generally discussing our faith. I would like to think that although none of this was specifically Christmassy there was at least some joy and cheer that was spread in the morning with my friends there.

In the afternoon I drove back home after a great weekend with my friends and although I had a difficult drive home due to closed roads I did make it home in time for the evening service at my home Church. After the evening service I spent time laughing and chatting with the young people of the Church talking and planning things for over Christmas. We talked about organising Christmas carolling on Christmas eve when we tour the homes of people in our Church singing carols and sharing fellowship.

The fun and enjoyment that I had from this weekend especially yesterday I feel fulfils the task of spreading Christmas cheer, the laughter and good feeling that was experienced was certainly good cheer and Christmas was a significant part of a large part of it. The task I will be completing today will be number 18. Give yourself a Christmas treat. Check back tomorrow to see how it goes, until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 12

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

So, day twelve, is it just me or does a certain Christmas song come to mind? Hope everyone reading this is having a good month so far and that your Christmas preparations are going well. I my self am almost sorted with everything I need to get and do before Christmas with only a few more presents to get and then wrap or post to the people who will be receiving them. But lets face it, your not here to find out how my shopping is going or even if I have my tree up yet, which I don't, but to find out how yesterdays Advent Challenge went.

It is a shame that I did not happen to have this challenge on the 6th of December which is St Nicholas' feast day. But on reading about Him, he is a very interesting character. St Nicholas became the original Santa Claus due to his habit of secret gift giving which is something I suspect most people already know about, of course good old St Nick gives out presents.

Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, thieves, children, and students. He is also the patron saint of Aberdeen, Amsterdam,Barranquilla, Bari, Beit Jala, Fribourg, Huguenots, Liverpool, Siggiewi, and Lorraine. As if this was not enough St Nick was also a patron of the Varangian Guard of the Byzantine emperors, who protected his relics in Bari.

Not bad really is it, this guy seems to have made quite an impression on a lot of people and places. He is one of the Saints who is recognised by both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches and is also recognised by some Anglican and Lutheran Churches too. But what about some facts about St Nick that you might not know.

Saint Nicholas who was orphaned at a young age was raised by his uncle, who was also named Nicholas, who happened to be the Bishop of Patara. His uncle founded the monastery of Holy Sion at which Saint Nicholas spent some time. His relics are situated in Bari, and at the site there is both a Catholic and an Orthodox Church. The relics of St Nicholas are said to exude a clear liquid known as manna which many people believe to have healing properties, this is collected every 6th December and can be bought at the site of his relics in Bari.

Interesting facts? Well I thought so anyway but I have been told in the past that I am interested in the dullest things, for example science. But what do we learn from him, what can we gather form these original foundations on to which the modern Santa Claus has been built?

Well for me he exhibits some of the best aspects of someone living a Holy life. He was a highly religious man in his life and obviously lived a life which was well respected by those who knew him, respected enough that he was recorded so that future generations would recognise him and show him to be a saint. This is all well and good but how does this affect us living today ion the modern age?

We can learn form Saint Nicholas that material goods are not important to living a good, wholesome and holy life. We can see that through right living we can influence people far outside where we are geographically located, by showing God in our lives in small ways but with true conviction we can have a measurable effect on the whole world. Who ever said that even the smallest thing you did does not have huge implications in the future?

So I think that task went quite well personally, let me know what you think of it in the comment section below. Moving on to which task I will be completing today, and the task which has been chosen is task number 15. Spread some Christmas cheer. I have some good ideas of what to do with this one but if you want to know you will have to check back and read the Advent Challenge post tomorrow, until then, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 11

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

Yesterday my challenge was to pray for those people who I know who do not know Christ. Rather than praying for everyone that I know who does not know God and His son Jesus as that would be a considerable number of people to pray for individually. I will pray for everyone in time and do spend time as it is at the moment but for me this challenge I decided to be specific and lift up some specific people to God.

I don't want to embarrass the people who I have selected for this task but I chose two people who are close to me and who have a real need for Christ in their lives for very different reasons. When I prayed I asked God to reveal Himself to them this Christmas time, that something in their lives will shine through and in some small way show them that you are present in their lives.

Romans 8 tells us that there is nothing that can possibly separate us from the love of God through Christ Jesus. And the poem Footprints is a fantastic example of how even when we feel as though we are on our own God is always there supporting us, and when necessary carrying us. I try to show this in my day to day life, knowing that I will never know quite who is watching me and how my actions in life portray Christianity to them. But these two people who I have uplifted to God I feel are ready for that little extra push, to be challenged that little bit more in order for them to start making the steps towards God that I can see they are ready for.

Today the task that has been chosen is task number 21. Google St Nicholas. This is a fairly simple task that wont take much time at the end of the day but it is something interesting to look at and think on about how this man has become the symbol of Christmas yet people do not knw how or why he is linked to Christmas and Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour. I am going to have a very Christmassy day today and spend time with some friends I have not seen for a while, I hope you guys all have a great day today too. Until next time, Merry Christmas.

Advent Challenge Day 10

This challenge is now complete, please feel free to browse all of the 

completed tasks via the Advent Challenge tab.

An email to my friend Katy;

Katy,


This might seem like a strange message, but probably no stranger than most from me, please read it all the way through though. 


Christmas, its all about presents, family, drinking too much and having fun right? Wrong. I know the arguments you usually make about Yuletide and the many other midwinter festivals where gifts are given and some religious event is celebrated. But these are not Christmas. The time of year, the presents and all the rest of it are really not that important in Christmas, yes our commercialist society has made them important but it's not what it is all about.


Christmas is about an amazing event that happened over 2000 years ago. A small child was born in humble settings who went on to make a huge difference in the world. Even if you do not believe He was God you must recognise that He made such and impact that we set our calendar's by his birth. But if you take the time to think about what He did in life, who much He achieved in His 3 years of mission it should become clear that He was not working alone. Why would someone who was just a good man not recant and try to save Himself from the cross, why sacrifice yourself if there is no cause. 


Jesus is, was and always will be the reason for Christmas, many people have forgotten that or find it to uncomfortable to think about. I know you do not believe, but we are good friends, we have known each other for years and because of that I ask for one thing from you this Christmas. In stead of buying me a gift could you read the Bible. You are a scientist just like me, do some research into Jesus and discover what His life really was about. Look at the stories of Jesus in the New Testament and when we meet up in the new year we can discuss your thoughts on the matter of Jesus and Christianity.


Missing you loads and I hope everything is going well for you.


Sam


So yesterday the task was to talk to someone about the true meaning of Christmas. There is one friend I have who means the world to me, who has always been there when I have needed her since I first moved away from home. The only thing is that as a scientist she is one of Dawkin's band, a firm and complete denier of all things religious. To be fair on her, until about 18 months ago I was hiding from Christ in the same boat. However as a fellow scientist she is slower to shoot me down in such discussions as I can phrase my arguments in the same way as she does hers. The common ground gives us a neutral ground to discuss all manner of things including faith.

My hope is that one day she will see the change that has occurred in me since I allowed Jesus back into my life and that she will question the cause. I pray that I can be the Christian that lives up to expectations but is still the friend she always knew who can show her the reality and truth of Jesus. How this goes I don't know but maybe this email could be the first step in the right direction.

That brings us to the task I have for today, again I am going to choose today's task as I feel there is another one that progresses naturally on from this one. That task is number 19. Pray for those close to you who do not know Jesus. Please check back tomorrow to see how it goes, but until then, Merry Christmas.