Pastor Michele's 2008 Christmas Letter

Pastor Michele's Christmas Letter - 2008

Grace And the Word became flesh and lived among us...
full of grace and truth - John 1:14

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

There is an ancient legend about two angels who flew to earth to gather people's prayers. Wherever people bowed in prayer by their bedside at night, in a church sanctuary, or on the side of a mountain the angels stopped and gathered the prayers into their baskets. Before long the basket carried by one of the angels grew heavy with the weight of what he had collected, but that of the other remained almost empty. Into the first basket were put prayers of petition. "Please give me this....Please I want that." Into the other went the “Thank you” prayers. “Your basket seems very light,” said one angel to the other. "Yes," replied the one who carried the ‘Thank you’s.’ “People are usually ready enough to pray for what they want, but very few remember to thank God when God grants their requests."

It seems to be human nature to forget to say, "Thank you." It also seems to be human nature to think only about what we don’t have, instead of what we are blessed with. I think this is especially true as we journey through the Advent season heading towards Christmas. We often forget that the real reason for this season is not shopping, celebrating, singing carols and receiving gifts!

It is my hope that as the worlds financial situation worsens, as people struggle to pay bills, as more and more folks are in need of assistance, that we followers of Christ stay focused on the real reason for the season: The birth of the Messiah, the light that brings hope to our hurting world and has the power to change us from the inside out. My hope for us this Advent and Christmas season is that we have an awareness that it is through our ability to give of ourselves – to give of our time, talents and treasures -- that we fulfill our call to be disciples of the babe born in a manger in Bethlehem.

I give thanks to God for your incredible generosity! Through the past couple of years we have cultivated an attitude of “thanksgiving” in our faith community! All the gift tags have been chosen from the Angel Tree, and all the families who signed up for the Christmas food baskets will have complete dinners assembled for them. Thank you for making this outreach possible! I also thank you all for being willing to share what you are thankful for each Sunday. I believe that we at BVUMC would make a huge dent in the basket of the angel collecting “thank you” prayers!

As we journey through Advent and the season of Christmas, let us continue to love and serve our Lord with our hearts and souls, and let us continue to reach out with love and care to each other and our community.

May God Bless You.

Rev. Michele Ewers

Christmas Schedule

Dec 14 – 3^rd Sunday of Advent

Dec 21 – 4^th Sunday of Advent, Sunday School Christmas Pageant

December 24 – Christmas Eve Services:

7:00PM – Family Candlelight Service

11:00PM – Holy Communion & Candlelight