2011

PANTS


Come with me
To a third grade classroom..... There is a
Nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of
A sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and
The front of his pants are wet. He thinks his
Heart is going to stop because he cannot
Possibly imagine how this has happened. It's
Never happened before, and he knows that when
The boys find out he will never hear the end of
It. When the girls find out, they'll never speak
To him again as long as he
Lives.

The boy
Believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his
Head down and prays this prayer, 'Dear God, this
Is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes
From now I'm dead
Meat.'

He looks up
From his prayer and here comes the teacher with
A look in her eyes that says he has been
Discovered.

As the
Teacher is walking toward him, a class mate
Named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is
Filled with water. Susie trips in front of the
Teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water
In the boy's
Lap.

The boy
Pretends to be angry, but all the while is
Saying to himself, 'Thank you, Lord! Thank you,
Lord!'

Now all of a
Sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule,
The boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher
Rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts
To put on while his pants dry out. All the other
Children are on their hands and knees cleaning
Up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful.
But as life would have it, the ridicule that
Should have been his has been transferred to
Someone else -
Susie.

She tries to
Help, but they tell her to get out. You've done
Enough, you
Klutz!'

Finally, at
The end of the day, as they are waiting for the
Bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers,
'You did that on purpose, didn't you?' Susie
Whispers back, 'I wet my pants once
Too.'

In 2011
May God help
Us see the opportunities that are always around
Us to do
Good..

Remember.....Just going to
Church doesn't make you a Christian any more
Than standing in your garage makes you a
Car.

Each and
Everyone one of us is going through tough times
Right now, but God is getting ready to bless you
In a way that only He can. This new year keep the
Faith.

This prayer
Is powerful, and prayer is one of the best gifts
We receive. There is no cost but a lot of
Rewards. This new year let's continue to pray for one
Another.

My Prayer for you in 2011

Father, in 2011 I ask
You to bless my friends, relatives and those
That I care deeply for, who are reading this
Right now. Show them a new revelation of Your
Love and power. Holy Spirit, I ask You to
Minister to their spirit at this very moment.
Where there is pain, give them Your peace and
Mercy.. Where there is self-doubt, release a
Renewed confidence through Your grace. Where
There is need, I ask you to fulfill their needs.
Bless their homes, families, finances, their
Goings and their comings.
Amen.


HAPPY NEW YEAR

IN 2011 MAY YOU ALL SEE THE OPPORTUNITIES
THAT ARE ALWAYS AROUND YOU AND DO GOOD!

I'M NOT DISCOURAGED!

Scripture:

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 4: 4-7)

On my way home one day, I stopped to
watch a Little League baseball game that was being played in a
park near my home. As I sat down behind the bench on the first-
base line, I asked one of the boys what the score was
'We're behind 14 to nothing,' he answered
With a smile.

'Really,' I said... 'I have to say you
don't look very discouraged.'

'Discouraged?', the boy asked with a
Puzzled look on his face...

'Why should we be discouraged? We haven't
Been up to bat yet.'

DON'T BE DISCOURAGED, PLEASE GET
UP TO BAT AND BE ONE WITH GOD!

THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT

1And it came to pass in those days,
that there went out a decree from Caesar
Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

2(And this taxing was first made when
Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)

3And all went to be taxed, every one into
his own city.

4And Joseph also went up from Galilee,
out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea,
unto the city of David, which is called
Bethlehem; (because he was of the house
and lineage of David:)

5To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife,
being great with child.

6And so it was, that, while they were there,
the days were accomplished that she should
be delivered.

7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and
wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid
him in a manger; because there was no room
for them in the inn.

8And there were in the same country shepherds
abiding in the field, keeping watch over their
flock by night.

9And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them,
and the glory of the Lord shone round about them:
and they were sore afraid.

10And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for,
behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people.

11For unto you is born this day in the city of David
a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall
find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying
in a manger.

13And suddenly there was with the angel a
multitude of the heavenly host praising God,
and saying,

14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace,
good will toward men.

15And it came to pass, as the angels were gone
away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one
to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and
see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord
hath made known unto us.

16And they came with haste, and found Mary,
and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

17And when they had seen it, they made known
abroad the saying which was told them concerning
this child.

18And all they that heard it wondered at those things
which were told them by the shepherds.

19But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them
in her heart.

20And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising
God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as
it was told unto them.
Luke 2: 1-20 (King James Version)

THIS IS WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT

GOD BLESS YOU AND HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS

CHRISTMAS

PRAYER: O holy Child of Bethlehem, Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin, and enter in, Be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us, Our Lord Immanuel! Amen.

A Gift We Will Love
December 25, 2010
Christmas Day(A)

Isaiah 52:7-10; Psalms 98:1-6; Hebrews 1:1-6; John 1:1-18

"The Word became flesh and He lived among us" (John 1:14).

It was December 22nd and the mother of several children suddenly realized that she hadn't sent out any Christmas cards. In dismay, she sent her 10-year-old son to the drugstore for a box of Christmas cards. "Hurry," she said, "I'll barely have time to get these in the mailbox before the day's final pickup." The boy ran all the way to the store and soon returned with a box of twenty-ive cards, all alike. Quickly, without even looking at them, she signed them, addressed and stamped the envelopes, handed them to her boy who promptly deposited them in the corner mailbox. Later, the mother noticed that there was one card left in the box. She picked it up and looked at the verse. It read,

"This little card is just to say,
a gift you'll love is on the way."

Most of us get caught up in the Christmas hustle and bustle: The Christmas cards, the Christmas trees, the Christmas lights, the Christmas lists, the Christmas shopping, the Christmas presents, and on and on. But these are not the essence of Christmas. All of the hustle and bustle is the tinsel of Christmas, the icing on the cake, so to speak: the trappings. And they can be wonderful, but they also can be so distracting that the real meaning of Christmas somehow gets lost.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... The Word became flesh and He lived among us" (Jn. 1:1,14).

Puccini's operas -- La Boheme, Tosca, Madama Butterfly -- are among the world's favorites. After he was stricken with cancer in the early 1920's, the great composer was determined to write a final opera. He entitled it "Turandot," and it is considered to be a magnificent work, his most polished score. Struggling as he was with the cancer, Puccini was implored by his students to rest; to save his strength. But he continued to work, saying, "If I do not finish my music, my students will complete it." In 1924, he was taken to Brussels for surgery. He died two days later. His students did finish "Turandot" and, in 1926, the premiere performance took place at the famous LaScala opera house in Italy, under the direction of Arturo Toscanini. When the point came in the score where Puccini had been obliged to put down his pen, Maestro Toscanini, his face wet with tears, put down his baton and said to the audience, "Here ends the master's work." After a pause, he picked up the baton, smiled broadly, and said, "But his friends finished his work."

Our blessed Master came into this world to do the Father's work. Before leaving this world, He asked His friends to carry on and move the work toward completion. We who claim to be his friends are privileged to pick up the task; to enlarge the score with beautiful harmonies of peace, and soaring arias of love.

WHAT IS CHRISTMAS ABOUT?

Christmas is supposed to be about giving!

The Story:

This is about the difference between heaven
and hell.
Seems these two fellows get together one day. One
is from heaven and the other from hell. The man
from heaven asks what is hell really like
"It's terrible, says the man from hell. We get really
hungry feeding the furnaces , and every night they sit
us down at these big beautiful banquet tables piled
high with food. And the devil comes out and says,
"all you can eat, seconds even thirds. There's
just one rule, you got to be polite down here and use
your forks." "Their we are already to eat this food,
and we reach down and pick up our forks, and every
one of those forks got handles 3 feet long, there
is no way in the world we can get that food into our
mouths." "And that old devil just stands there and
laughs at us every night over and over again, laughing
and laughing." " I tell you it is torture something
awful." "Well, says the other man, we got big tables
of food like that in heaven too, and our forks have the
same long handles, no way we can feed ourselves
either." "SO WE JUST SIT DOWN AND FEED EACH OTHER!"

Reflection:
What and idea, what and amazing thing to do. Makes the
whole difference between feast and famine, happiness and
torture. How come nobody down in hell thought of that, not
one soul. Why, because that's not the way they think, that's why
they are down there in the first place. It wouldn't occur to
them to do anything for anybody else. That's the real curse,
that's the real pain of living in hell. You see it is the curse
they laid upon themselves when they walked the earth.

THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON HOW WILL YOU WALK THE EARTH,
LIKE ONE FROM HEAVEN, OR ONE FROM HELL. IT'S YOUR
CHOICE.

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT(A)

Isaiah 7:10-14; Psalms 24:1-6; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-24

"The virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son and they will call Him Immanuel, a name which means God-is-with-us" (Mt. 1:23).

A woman named Betty tried to cram all of her Christmas preparations into a single day. Starting at 9 a.m., she shopped her entire Christmas list, bought a Christmas tree and poinsettias, ordered a turkey, carried home the groceries for Christmas dinner, brought up from the basement the big box of Christmas lights and tree decorations and, finally, at midnight, finished carefully gift-wrapping presents for her husband, Herb, and their three daughters.

Wearily, she began to congratulate herself on a job well-done -- and then, suddenly, she remembered: "The Christmas cards! I forgot to send the Christmas cards." Tired, but determined, she signed and prepared for mailing all eighty-nine cards on her list. Then she topped off her day's work by writing a check to a department store. When the holidays were over, the extent of her exhaustion at the end of that busy day became apparent. Her check to the department store was returned by the bank with an "Incorrect Signature" notation. She had signed the check, "Betty, Herb and the girls."

In a Roman Catholic elementary school, a few days before Christmas, the curtain was about to go up on a Nativity play. The centerpiece of the set was a creche, complete with statues of Mary, Joseph, the three Wise Men, shepherds, sheep and other animals. Two nuns were busy making last-minute adjustments to the children's costumes. The school principal was standing by, keeping an eye on the preparations. Suddenly, in a panic, one of the nuns rushed up to her and said, "Mother Superior, we forgot the Baby Jesus." With a wry smile, Mother Superior replied,

"THAT'S EXACTLY THE TROUBLE WITH THIS WORLD!"

Christmas is nearly upon us. And even though you may have forgotten a thing or two in your Christmas preparations, it's "Don't-forget-the-Baby-Jesus" time. It's time to ponder the meaning of the Incarnation, for your life and for the lives of all others.

In today's Gospel Lesson -- Matthew's account of the birth of Jesus Christ -- we read ...

The virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son and they will call Him Immanuel, a name which means "God-is-with-us" (Mt. 1:23).

We ponder the Mystery of the Incarnation as we prepare our hearts and minds to celebrate on Christmas Day the indescribable Gift of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The Mystery of the Incarnation is at the very heart of our Christian Faith. God gave us His Son to be our Immanuel: God with us. And that is at the very essence of the Christmas Message.

A DEAD STUMP

Scripture:

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit (Isaiah 11:1).


We were so excited when we brought the Christmas tree home, but it never went into the house until the next day. My Dad knew the tree would never last unless it soaked up plenty of sugar water. So he cut a few inches off the bottom and soaked it in sugar water until the next night. I still recall holding in my hands that piece of dead stump he had cut off. It was only an inch or two high, but it was definitely dead.

The Old Testament Lesson speaks about a dead tree stump, "There shall come forth shoot from the stump of Jesse."

Jesse was the father of King David and all his descendants who ruled over Judah-the Southern Kingdom. When those kings turned away from God to lead their people in the worship of false idols, the Lord cut off their kingship and sent His people into exile. The strong family tree was cut off and only a dead stump remained. For centuries not a single king rose from that stump to rule on their throne. All that could be seen was the dead stump of the line of David.

But in the fullness of time a shoot began to grow out of that stump. That shoot was Jesus Christ. He was born a baby and laid to sleep in Bethlehem's manger. He didn't come to claim any earthly kingdom as His own. Instead, he came as our King to battle our enemies: Satan, sin, death, and hell.

Though He Himself was cut down on the cross, and His lifeless body was laid in the tomb, Christ rose again from the grave with power and great glory. Through Baptism He makes us alive to God though we were dead in our sins. Through His Word He makes us wise in the ways of His salvation, and in Holy Communion He gives us His body and blood by which He paid for our sins and won our redemption. Now He lives to guide us on our journey to our heavenly home.

THE PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son as a tender shoot out of a dead tree stump. He has saved us from our sins and opened the Kingdom of heaven to us. Help us tell the whole world of His wonderful salvation. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

by Pastor Ken Klaus

TAKE TIME TO CARE

Scripture:

17 If anyone, then, knows the good they ought
to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.
(James 4: 17)

Reflection:

I'm not sure why, but this short, powerful
verse comes to my mind, especially this
time of year.
We have just celebrated Thanksgiving and
we are about to celebrate Christmas. There
is meaning to these celebrations and somehow
we loose it. We get so wrapped up in the
physical trappings of this world, we forget
what these celebrations are all about.
It seems to me the celebrations of
Thanksgiving and Christmas are about
knowing what is good and doing it. God
knows whats good and He provides for us.
I know that many of us are is some bad
situations, life has not been easy. I have to
admit that this economy has had a big
affect on my life. But there has also been
good in my life and I am so thankful for all
the good things. I'm very thankful for
the good thing God did for us. He gave us
His son and His Son changed my life. That's
the good I celebrate.
Can I make a suggestion for this holiday
season just take some time, in all the
confusion that is about to take place,
and do something good for someone else.
Just as God has done something good for us.
YOU CAN DO SOMETHING GOOD FOR SOMEONE ELSE.
THESE HOLIDAY SEASON PLEASE TAKE TIME TO CARE,

Prayer:

Oh Lord I think about Your goodness
especially this season. Thank you God
for all the good You have done for me. Oh
Lord show me the good I can do for others.
In Jesus Name AMEN

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT(A)

It's Time To Move On
December 12, 2010
Third Sunday of Advent(A)

Isaiah 35:1-6,10; Psalms 146:6-10; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11

"Happy is the man who does not lose faith in me" (Mt. 11:6).

One Sunday morning a certain country preacher opened a sermon on faith with these words: "My dear brothers and sisters, your fields are drying up and you have come here to pray for rain. But where are your umbrellas?"

At the age of four, I knew that God was everywhere. I spoke to Him...But as I grew toward manhood, the more I learned, the less I believed in God...When I was twenty-one, my superior intellect told me that God was a fake. Heaven could not be "up" and Hell could not be "down" because in space there is no up or down. And I knew that everything in creation dies, including the smallest insect and the biggest star.

These words were written by Jim Bishop, the author of many best-selling biographies and histories. "Then one day," he said,

I felt a new experience. I saw the miracle of birth -- Virginia Lee, a child of my own -- and it turned my wandering mind around. I began to doubt my doubts. Gradually I lost faith in my intellect. It was not supplying the needed answers.

I could not see the air, but without it I would die. Thus it is, I decided, with the spirit of man. I needed something to breathe life into a soul that had been crushed by the dominance of the human mind.

What Jim Bishop needed was faith. "I was a slow learner," he said, But, somehow, somewhere, as I groped my painful way, I found my soul...I knew it was there -- wounded, bleeding perhaps, but alive.

I began to pray, and as faith returned to me, I feared that it might dissolve again. So I prayed for continuing faith.

It was only when I gave up -- when I let go and allowed myself to be carried by God -- that I began to really feel His Presence. He was there, and I knew it!

I had wanted proof -- something for my eyes or ears or hands. He wanted me to believe without it. Faith and trust are what He required of me! And He never rested till I found them.1

We think of faith in terms of belief, and rightly so. Faith is believing something. It has been said that faith is believing what you know is true but cannot prove on any rational level. But in Gospel terms, belief is simply the doorway to the House of Faith. Matthew's Gospel contains an incident in which Jesus spells this out clearly and directly. In the story, the people are trying to bring their children to Jesus and the disciples are trying to get the children out of His way. In their view, Jesus has more important things to do than to be bothered with the antics of little children, and so they are trying to protect Him. But Jesus insists that the children be allowed to draw near to Him. Then He tells the people that if they want to become the kind of persons God wants them to be, they must follow the example of those little children. "Let the children alone and do not stop them from coming to Me," Jesus says, "for to such belongs the Kingdom of Heaven" (Mt. 19:14). Earlier Jesus had said to the disciples, "I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Mt. 18:3).

SOMETHING TO REMEMBER

Scripture:

They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy
mountain; for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover
the sea (Isaiah 11:9).

Reflection:

Here is something for you to remember
especially during this holiday season.

(from a devotion by Pastor Ken Klaus)

Jesus Christ-our brother and King-is here with us.
He guides us in humility and meekness and teaches
us to treat one another in the same way. He who
came to this world as a little baby shared our
humanity, our sorrows, and our disappointments.
He suffered from the cruelty and murderous hatred
of His own people. He wore a crown of thorns and
died on the cross for all the sins we committed
against our God and against one another. But now,
risen from the dead, He works to bring healing,
peace, and harmony to us and each one of our
broken relationships.

Prayer:

Holy Lord, tame our wild impulses, forgive our sins,
and change our rebel hearts so that we may no
longer cause any hurt or harm. We pray this in
Jesus' Name. Amen.

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT(A)

Take A Flying Leap
December 5, 2101
Second Sunday of Advent(A)

Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalms 72:1-2,
7-8, 12-13, 17; Romans 15:4-9;
Matthew 3:1-12

"Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven
is close at hand" (Mt. 3:2).

On his return from a trip into the wilds,
a birdwatcher told this story of an encounter
with a bear. "I was hiking through the woods,
" he said, "and came to a big clearing.
When I got into the middle of the field
I found myself face-to-face with the
biggest bear I had ever seen. He was
at least twelve feet tall and his paws
were at least a foot wide. I turned
and ran for my life toward the only
tree standing in the field. It was a very
tall tree and the first branch was a good
twenty-five feet above the ground."
"What did you do?" cried one of his
listeners. "What could I do?" the man
replied. "The bear was right behind me.
I could feel his hot breath on my neck.
So I took a flying leap for that branch."
"Did you make it?" the listener asked.
"Well, no," said the birdwatcher, "not
going up. But I caught it coming down."

In today's Gospel Lesson, John the
Baptist is preparing his followers for
the coming of the Lord. John was a
powerful preacher. He called the
Pharisees in the crowd a "brood of vipers.
" He laced into those who were always
trying to flee God's judgment, instead
of coming under it. Many made their way
to him, "and as they were baptized by
him in the river Jordan they confessed
their sins." Then he issued a call for
radical reform, radical change. He told
the people that unless they took that
flying leap into a whole new way of life,
their souls would wither and die, like
the tree that doesn't bear good fruit and
is thrown into the fire. Matthew tells us
that "In due course John the Baptist
appeared; he preached in the wilderness
of Judea and this was his message:
'Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is
close at hand'" (Mt. 3:1-2).

Repentance penetrates the crust of piety
we wrap around ourselves to keep us
from facing it.

Repentance begins deep within and
turns life upside-down for us, and right
side up for God.

Repentance reverses our priorities,
upsets our values, turns our pockets
inside-out.

Repentance shatters our systems of
security and hangs us on the thin thread
we call the Will of God.

Repentance revolts against the sin we
have loved and reconciles us to God,
whom we have not loved.1

Anything worthwhile demands a high price.
If you want fullness of life, if you want your
life to come to something better than the
kind of dull, gray existence you see going
on all around you, there is a price to be paid.
John the Baptist sums it all up in one word in
today's Gospel Lesson: Repent! That is the
price of Faith in the Lord Jesus: change; turn
your life around; forget the shabby old life you
have been living. It is not worth remembering.
It is not worth keeping. This means giving up
the pleasure of blaming others and looking
deep into your own soul for a clue to what
ails you. This also means that pursuing the
fullness of life Jesus offers will put you at
odds with much that is going on in today's
world. This means that a committed Christian
is likely to be out of step with things as they
are. This is part of the price to be paid when
one chooses to answer "Yes!" to the call for
repentance.