A Wonderful Time of Year

I love the fall. I grew up in northern Ohio. The colors of the leaves started to change in mid-October until mid-November. I thought it was awesome. Now that I'm in northern Texas, the colors have barely begun to change. I've been in this area for almost four years and I'm still not used to the weather. I'm really not sure if I like summer for 3/4 of the year. Yet God has placed me here not to like the weather, but to love people. God placed me here in order to bring His Word to people in the communities where my congregation is. And that leads me to the true meaning of my title, "A Wonderful Time of Year."

This time of year is wonderful because of what is happening at the church. In three weeks, we will begin the season of Advent. The Advent season is a time of preparation. For what are we preparing? We're preparing for the arrival of Jesus to earth. And Jesus has two arrivals planned. The first arrival has come. It was His birth. So the season of Advent helps us to prepare for the celebration of His birth.

But it is not this event alone. Jesus has one more arrival to occur. In the first chapter of Acts, Jesus ascends into heaven. As His disciples are staring into space, two angels came to them and tell them that Jesus would return one day in the same way He left the earth. Also, Jesus told His disciples that He would return. Paul, in his first letter to the Thessalonians describes the manner in which Jesus will return. Throughout the world a trumpet blast will be heard and Jesus will be seen descending toward earth in the clouds. This will be the end of time. Jesus will come to bring the reality of eternity to people. We celebrate this arrival of Jesus too. We are looking forward for Jesus to come and take us to be with Him forever.

And that brings us to the here and now. We live in an era between two events. Jesus came to bring Himself to people. Jesus loved people. Through His love, Jesus changed lives. He changed lives through healing and even raising people from the dead. He changed lives by loving people so much that He was willing to die for them. You see, death occurs because of sin. He gave Himself to be the penalty for our sins along with the sins of the entire world. Later, Jesus will return in order to bring Himself to people. When He comes back, Jesus will start the era of eternity.

So what do we now? Simply put, we bring the reality of Jesus' life to the world. Our belief is based upon what Jesus did for us. Our lives as Jesus people are dedicated to serving. So we serve people with the grace of God in feeding the poor, helping the hurting, comforting the grieving, ... Through our serving, we bring the reality of Jesus' life to people. This wonderful time of year helps us to remember and continually serve.

Your servant in Christ.