The Best Gift Ever

Yesterday a friend gave me a Scottish Black Watch wool tam that he had purchased in Scotland. As a Scottish-born admirer of the Black Watch, I will wear the tam proudly.

My friend paid for the gift, and I received it without having to contribute anything to the purchase price. He had paid for it in full.

Christmas is a celebration of the most costly and most cherished gift God has given to us. The angel who announced the arrival of the Gift, said: “Today . . . a Savior has been born to you.”

Don’t miss the importance of the Christmas message. The virgin-born Son of God came to Earth to save you and me, and He accomplished His mission on the cross. There, He announced, “It is finished,” which is the equivalent of saying, “Paid in full.”

Salvation—forgiveness and eternal life—is a gift that demands nothing from us (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8, 9). Indeed, we can contribute nothing to its purchase. Although church-going, good citizenship, generosity, and kindness are commendable, they cannot pay for even a small part of salvation. 

So what should we do? Just as I received the Black Watch tam joyfully and thankfully, so each of us must accept God’s gift of salvation by receiving Jesus as our Savior. The apostle John wrote that “as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God” (John 1:12).

May you rejoice this Christmas in the wonderful, priceless gift of salvation!

Another School Shooting!

Another school shooting—this time in Arapahoe High School! Armed with a shotgun, an angry young man, a senior at the school, intended to shoot the teacher who had dismissed him from the debate team, but upon learning he was targeted, the teacher safely exited the building. In his rage, the shooter critically wounded a 15-year-old female student before taking his own life.

I have always had a high regard for Arapahoe High School. Our family’s first home in Colorado was only a few miles from Arapahoe High. My roommate at Moody Bible Institute spent his entire teaching career there. Also, our son-in-law Jim’s brother teaches and coaches at Arapahoe. Education is serious business there.

In an effort to protect faculty, staff, and students, Arapahoe went on lockdown, and so did many other schools. 

How can we prevent future school shootings? That’s a big question that defies simple answers. Nevertheless, it might help to restore the right to acknowledge and honor God in the classroom. Doesn’t it seem to you that school lockdowns have increased since God has been “locked out”?

It might also help if parents would train their children to reverence and obey God. A proper relationship with God fosters a respectful relationship with others. Yes, what the world needs now is love—love for God and love for others.

Take time to pray for the critically wounded 15-year-old Arapahoe student and for all the students, faculty, and staff.  Also, pray for our nation. We have hurts that only God can heal.

Imitate God!

If imitation is a form of flattery, are we Christians flattering the culture or the Creator? Ephesians 5:1 instructs us to “be imitators of God.” So let’s examine our lives to see whether our words and actions resemble God’s character and ways or the character and ways of an antichristian culture!

What drives our actions? Are we obsessed with wealth and possessions? Do we neglect what is eternal in a relentless pursuit of what will soon pass away? The culture tells us to put ourselves first and obtain what we “deserve.” God commands: “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard 0ne another as more important than himself” (Philippians 2:3).

What characterizes our vocabulary? Have crude, vulgar words seeped into what we say and write? If so, we have flattered the culture instead of God. Either by osmosis or deliberate choice some Christians have copied the language of their pagan contemporaries. If we want to flatter God, we will abhor ungodly words and, instead, pray as the psalmist did, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).

Let’s imitate God at home, in the workplace, in the neighborhood, and even in Facebook!

Cellophane Golf Ball Wrappers

Here is an excerpt from my book, Straight Down the Middle.

"As a teen working in a golf course’s pro shop, I was impressed with the colorful appearance of the golf balls in our glass showcase. Penfolds, Titleists, Spaldings, U.S. Royals, and Dunlops came colorfully wrapped in cellophane, and each one sold for less than a dollar. Today, the price might be $25, $30, or more. Even an empty box that once held a dozen cellophane-wrapped golf balls may fetch nearly $100 today.

"The bright wrapping certainly enhanced a golf ball’s appearance, but it added nothing to its performance. Each ball’s true value was determined by what it was after the wrapping came off.

"God’s Word instructs us not to judge a person’s worth by outward appearance. When Israel demanded her first king, the people selected Saul strictly on the basis of his good looks. He was tall and handsome. If they had selected their first king on the basis of how he looked to God, they would have selected David, a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 8:19-20; 13:13-14; 16:6-13).

"James 2:1-5 rebukes those who judge others by their outward appearance, and insists God places the highest value on faith and faithfulness—spiritual qualities.

"If people could gain God’s approval by outward appearance, the Pharisees would have earned a triple-A rating in His sight. But God’s gaze penetrated the Pharisees’ robes and phylacteries and revealed their corrupt hearts. He accepted only those who believed on His Son—even beggars in tattered garments and lepers with ugly sores.

"When God measures a person’s worth, He puts His measuring tape around the heart and not around a designer dress or tailored suit.

"Read 1 Samuel 16:1-13."

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Indestructible JOY

Gloria and I lost some of our JOY! Specifically, we lost the Y from the lighted JOY sign we place on our front lawn every Christmas season. Perhaps, the Y lost its lights because a strong wind struck the sign. I tried to restore the lights by tightening each bulb, but the Y remained dark. Let’s face it, a lighted JO does nothing to brighten the Christmas spirit, so I unplugged the sign. We still have joy in our hearts, though, not only at Christmastime, but always.

Indestructible, permanent joy comes from knowing the real meaning of Christmas and responding appropriately by trusting in Jesus as the Savior. The angel who announced the Savior’s birth told the shepherds, “I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10, 11).

Even severe trials cannot steal joy from those who live by faith. While incarcerated, under guard 24-7 and facing the possibility of execution, the apostle Paul wrote Philippians, “the epistle of joy.” You can’t read that New Testament letter without seeing Paul’s joy spill from its pages.

Furthermore, the apostle James taught believers to “consider it all joy” when we “encounter various trials” (James 1:2). Neither ill-health, nor unemployment, nor a wrecked car, nor an empty pocketbook, nor frozen water pipes, nor any other trial can rip real joy from our hearts.

Let’s rejoice in Jesus and the abundant life He gives to all who receive Him. Lights may fail to shine from a Christmas decoration, but the joy in us can reflect the Light of the World and perhaps attract others to Him.