Tuesday, December 22, 2009

December 13

The Bible is the only book where the Author is always present.


According to the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, both male female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year. Males drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, while females keep theirs until the spring. Therefore, according to everything we've seen, every one of those reindeer on Santa's team is FEMALE. "We should have known this when they were able to find their way."

In the good times and in the bad times _ Jesus is Lord.
Perhaps the merriest season's greeting of all time was given by the angels when they announced Christ's birth: "Unto you is born this day a Savior..."
• "Unto you".......That is personal!
• "Is born this day".......That is present!
• "A Savior"........That is precious!

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them." -- Mother Teresa
In one hand I have a dream, and in the other I have an obstacle. Tell me, which one grabs your attention? Henry Parks

Man is so made that when anything fires his soul, impossibilities vanish. Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695) Poet

"Jews and Christians are different in a lot of ways. Some Christian people will actually have religious bumper stickers on their cars. Like 'Jesus is King', 'The Lord Saves'. Jews don't do that. You'll never see, 'Honk If You Love Moses.'" - Gregg Rogell
Flee temptation and don't leave a forwarding address.
Oh, what fun it is to ride with one horse, soap and hay
O come, froggy faithful
You'll tell Carol, "Be a skunk, I require"
Good tidings we bring to you and your kid
Gloria. . . . in a raunchy stable.
"While shepherds washed their socks at night"

Gracie Allen's Classic Recipe for Roast Beef
1 large Roast of beef
1 small Roast of beef
Take the two roasts and put them in the oven. When the little one burns, the big one is done

I watched a movie about a baby hen, it was a real chick flick.

"I do the best I know how, the very best I can, and I mean to keep doing so until the end." -- Abraham Lincoln

"Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul." -- Samuel Ullman


Finding Approval from God Alone
There is a story told of one of Verdi's operas. The composer was young and this particular work had been produced in a hurry. Verdi knew that it was not his best. It was produced for the first time in Florence and at the end the enthusiastic yet undiscriminating audience went into quite unwarranted raptures and cheered the composer. The cheers echoed down the halls of the theatre. But Verdi paid little heed.
He had eyes for only one man. He looked to the box where this one man sat. All the plaudits of the crowd would not compensate for the lack of this man's approval. The man was Rossini and he was not smiling.
Much is wrong with our society. We can all make a list; broken homes, the increase in violence and dishonesty, the lack of integrity in public life, the slow slide of the church into adopting the ways of the world, the decay of sexual morality. Who is willing to be the watchman who sounds the alarm? Who will call us back to God in repentance? It will not be a popular task.
This Advent we salute the forerunner who prepared the way by challenging the people's sins. He was not after the popular vote. He had eyes only for God. Are we ready to share his work and mission?

Christmas Means Hope
Senator John McCain spent 5 and a half years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam in the 1960s. During that time, he was frequently tortured or held in solitary confinement. He reports that his lowest point came on Christmas Eve 1969. McCain was giving up hope of ever getting out of Vietnam alive. To compound his homesickness, the captors played the song "I'll Be Home for Christmas" over the PA system.
Just then, McCain heard tapping on his cell wall. This was the communication code the POWs used to communicate with one another. On the other side of the wall was Ernie Bruce, a Marine who had been imprisoned for four years already. In spite of his dire situation, Bruce was tapping out, "We'll all be home for Christmas. God bless America." These simple words of comfort restored John McCain's hope. The message of Christmas is always one of hope. This world needs saving, but God began that process of salvation two thousand years ago with the birth of a babe in Bethlehem. There's something about Christmas that elevates us. Christmas is about hope of a better world to come.


Top Ten Things Wives Don't Want to Hear Their Husbands Say on Christmas Day
10. "You like it, hon? Almost look like real diamonds, don't they?"
9. "That cheese ball was for later?"
8. "I never imagined a deep-fried turkey would flame up like that."
7. "Timmy, why is Mommy's present hissing?"
6. "It's the thought that counts, right?"
5. "Hey, the game's about to start!"
4. "That's right, hon. Your own subscription to "Guns & Ammo."
3. "Wow, thanks, Uncle Ted. Bagpipes!"
2. "It's two sizes smaller, darling- - you know, for motivation."
1. "Well, if it isn't Roy and Angela and their seven kids - - with suitcases! What a pleasant surprise!"

"The glory that goes with wealth is fleeting and fragile; virtue is a possession glorious and eternal." -- Sallust

"Example moves the world more than doctrine." -- Henry Miller

"Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas." -- Calvin Coolidge

"This is Christmas: not the tinsel, not the giving and receiving, not even the carols, but the humble heart that receives anew the wondrous gift, the Christ." ~~-- Frank McKibben

"The message of Christmas is not about the proclamation of a holiday or the declaration of a season. It is about the proclamation of a Person and the declaration of Salvation. The birth of the child in the manger was an event that prophets had written about, the people of Israel had spoken about, the patriarchs of old had wondered about, and the angels of God shouted about on that glorious night when Christ was born." -- Roy Lessin,

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