Merry Christmas - Oh, Come All Ye Faithful
We hope all your days are merry and bright; this year our Christmas was white with fresh snow. Isaiah provided many prophetic scriptures--one seems to have inspired Handel when we wrote the Messiah, another reminds us of the great gift of redemption Christ brings to those who come unto Him and follow Him. (Matt 7:24)
Isaiah 6:9 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." 2021 Messiah (thetabernaclechoir.org) at 1:48'37" if you'd like to hear it sung today.
When Christ comes again, He will not be the babe in a manger, but He will come with the glory and majesty that Handel's music accentuates!
Isaiah 1:18-19 "Come now, and let us reason together, said the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land."
Jesus Christ's Atonement enables forgiveness of sin as to the metaphor of our sins being cleansed like a fresh snowfall. "For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:17)
We were grateful it was our missionary turn to have a Christmas call with our kids and grandkids. With technology we were able to talk with 7 different locations at the same time. Though they live outside London, U.K., near Minneapolis, MN; Boise, ID, Ontario, OR, Provo-Orem, UT, we were grateful to visit with all. May your family gatherings and calls be sweet as well.
Last Friday, we took a few YSAs in Brno away from home to Christmas Eve dinner (3 students: 2 from Ghana, 1 from Angola) and 4 missionaries in our district. On Christmas Day we invited our Morovia district (4 young elders and 3 young sisters) to our home to celebrate Christmas together. We prepared Texas fajitas of course, we exchanged gifts and played charades, and other new Christmas games/gifts they received. We love our young missionaries, their zest and energy is uplifting.
I spoke in our church the day after Christmas: key points of my message:
Good Morning Sisters and Brothers, Dobré Ráno Sestry a Bratři,
Oh Come All Ye Faithful,…O, pojdte, vy věrni
…Oh Come Let us Adore Him, Christ the Lord. O, podjme
Kristu Pánu slávu vzdát
Today, I would like to expound 3 powerful words to strengthen
our faith in Christ:
1st, Trust Důvěra
Let us follow the ever wise
counsel found in Proverbs (3:5) “Trust
in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding”,
Psalms 56:11. In
God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do
unto me.
The scriptures warn and caution
us not to put our trust in the riches of the world, nor in
man, nor in our own knowledge and understanding (Psalms
52:7-8, 2 Corinthians 1:9-10,13, Mark 10:24)
2nd , Believe Věřit
Believe in God;
believe that he is, and that he created all
things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and
all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth
not comprehend all
the things which the Lord can comprehend. (Mosiah 4:9).
To me, it is not difficult to
believe in a Creator, even God, our Father.
When I consider all things both in heaven and in earth, both realms are overwhelmingly
grand and intricately designed. After
centuries, humans have barely scratched the surface to see or to understand
both realms. The immensity of space,
stars, galaxies, energy—the depth and wonder is beyond comprehension. The creations of the earth: the spacing of
the earth from the sun, the energy and source of light and heat, the sun. The complexity, beauty, the interconnections
of animal and plant life. The processes
of photosynthesis, water cycles, weather and seasons... The complexity of the human body, nerves,
muscles, brains, bones, organs cell repair and bodily functions.
To not believe in God takes
greater faith in mathematical probabilities and man’s limited theories that have
changed over the centuries, decades, and each year, than it is to simply
believe in God. [Alma
30:44]
3rd , Faithful Věřici
When we are faithful, our
Faith is increased. Faithful is a word
of action; faithfulness is a pattern of life.
Faithful people keep promises, they believe in God and trust his words
and works to do. I would like to share
the meaning of Faithful in Japanese, I hope you can better understand its
meaning, as I explain the pictures from which their written language derived.
忠実 Chu-jitsu -- center one's heart in truth [I will explain these Chinese/Japanese
characters]
Center (中）heart（心）
Truth, reality
(家 top section is a home, 主 lord is the
center, a 人 person on the bottom)
Věříci in Czech, I could not 100% confirm,
but Veri likely derived from Latin: (truth and geniune)
After Jesus wonderful preaching, oft called the
Beautitudes, he tells his listeners that those who go and do what he taught, will
be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock and that when the storms
came, the house stood still. And those
who do not go and do what he taught were like a foolish man who built his house
upon the sand and it did not stand the storms and trials of life. [Matt 5-7,
7:24-27]
May
we be wise and Do the things the Lord taught.
Our faith will increase as we faithfully do and live the teachings of
Christ.
Oh Come All Ye Faithful,… ,…O, pojdte, vy věrni
…Oh Come Let us Adore Him, Christ the Lord. O, podjme
Kristu Pánu slávu vzdát
Let us Trust Him and Have Trust in Him;
Let us Believe Him and Believe in Him;
That we may be Faithful in all places, and in all
things.
That our Faith might increase and we might be humble enough to say at times, “Oh Lord, help thou my unbelief” until we meet Christ face to face and know that He is and will give us His rest.
We were busy finalizing an apartment set up in Třebíč for the sister missionaries. President Fejta was a big help 3-4 times on our visits. We purchased their beds and they were set up this week. Sestra Schroedter and I made up their sheets and they moved in last week.
We enjoyed another zone conference in Prague, 15-December. We helped the other senior couple, the Strattons, serve a nice lunch. The messages by the missionaries: word and music were uplifting and encouraging. They had a gift exchange and enjoyed gathering. We stayed late and walked the Charles Bridge again and the Prague Square. It was unseasonably warm and very beautiful. Christmas squares in Czechia are amazing. Hopefully, next Christmas, the stores and shops built on the square will be open. I hope you enjoy the pictures and travels we had these past 2 weeks. The angel ice sculpture on our town (Jihlava) square is very well made...it started to melt, Christmas Eve day, but the snow and cold returned on Christmas day to let it stay a little longer.
Christmas Day:
Fajita Time!
Christmas Eve:
Dinner with the 3 YSAs alone away at college in Brno, Czechia. Ray and Anita from Ghana and Delton from Angola. Such great young people who love the Lord and us missionaries. Grateful the Jihlava and Brno young missionaries could join us for a meal at the Steakový a pivni bar. Good steaks, pork chops and chicken...more importantly, great company!
Our district leader Starši Davis and his companion, Starši Dahlke quite pleased with their sunglass purchase on Christmas Eve--they walked to the restaurant from their apartment wearing them (6pm)...
Apartment in Třebič, baptism in Brno, Starši Virga birthday in Jihlava:
Zone Conference in Prague 15-Dec-2021:
post Zone Conference on Prague Square 15-Dec-2021:
It was a pretty balmy evening, so beautiful with the Christmas decor (our first funnel cake like treat with ice cream and a brownie, we shared one)
Jihlava Square Ice Angel History 19-Dec thru 26-Dec:
A father and son first fashioned the ice as we were returning from church last Sunday, 19-Dec. We came back during the week to see a beautiful ice angel. As the weather warmed, 24-Dec, we captured it melting some. It solidified today with the cold return.
21-Dec --- magnificiently sculpted ice angel!
21-Dec
Thanks for sharing your beautiful Christmas. :)
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