Happy Thanksgiving weekend! I pray your holiday has been blessed with love and kindness from friends and family. It is good to take a break from our normal weekly schedule. And as we celebrate with food, football, and shopping, I hope you will consider making this a time to find peace among the busy and God among all of the consumption.

I wonder what we will have gained as the coming weeks have finished their rush toward Christmas and New Year? Hopefully, the opening of hearts and wallets will leave lasting memories of fun and joy. For many, it will leave mounting debt and, in my case, an expanded waistline.

I realize that many in our society view this as a time of indulgence mixed in with some holiday cheer. The nod toward the Christ child is often minimal, if at all. Even many of those who talk about keeping Christ in Christmas have few experiences different than those who do not believe in the Incarnation, Jesus, fully God, and fully man. We defend the concept of Jesus in Christmas, as if Jesus needs our defense. He needs nothing, but what he wants is our heart.

So at the end of the holiday, will we have missed another opportunity to let the true magic of Christmas work in our hearts and souls?

As followers of Jesus Christ, we have a yearly opportunity to step closer to the real mystery of Christmas, the love of God, and the birth of the Christ child. This weekend is the beginning of a season dedicated to celebrating the God-given blessings of life and the love given freely by our Lord Jesus Christ. And hopefully, may this time become one where we take Jesus at least as seriously as all of the other business and activity in our life. May we seek the true silent night. One that comes daily, not yearly. May this year be the year we open the door of our hearts to the child of Bethlehem. One where we learn to listen for the singing of angels in daily life. May we be filled with awe and love by the idea that God has come to us, for us, and lives among us.

May your joyful memories shine bright and new ones be made wherever you gather.

I hope you will be able to join us this Sunday as we worship at 10:30 am. Afterward, we will gather for fellowship and food, then join to decorate the church for the Advent and Christmas season. It is always a joy to see our church put on its Christmas decorations in preparation for the season of Hope, Faith, Love, and Peace, the celebration of the birth of Christ, our salvation.

May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Pastor Rick