“Where is the line to see Jesus?”
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This time of the year we are all standing in line and hurrying to find that perfect gift for others and at times for ourselves. I think it is amazing that a young woman and her family have answered God’s call to bring this message to us. The following is Becky Kelly’s story behind the song:
“While at the mall a couple of years ago, my then four year old nephew, Spencer, saw kids lined up to see Santa Claus. Having been taught as a toddler that Christmas is the holiday that Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus, he asked his mom, “where’s the line to see Jesus”?
My sister mentioned this to my dad, who immediately became inspired and jotted words down to a song in just a few minutes. After putting music to the words, and doing a quick recording at home, he received a great response from friends. He sent the song off to Nashville without much response, except for a Christian song writer who suggested adding a bridge at the end of the first chorus. My dad then asked if I wanted to record the song to see what we could do with it. I listened to the song, made a few changes to the words to make it flow better, and we headed to Shock City Studios.
It was at the studio where Chris, owner and producer, rewrote the 2nd verse and part of the chorus… with goose bumps and emotions high, we were all hopeful and felt like we had something special. The demo was recorded in just under 2 hours and sent off again to Nashville… still no response.
Then 2 weeks before Christmas last year, my cousins Greg and Robbie decided to do a video to see what we could accomplish on YouTube. The first day we had 3000 hits and it soared from there. We received e-mails, phone calls, Facebook messages from people all over asking for the music, CD’s, iTunes, anything… we had nothing. After a couple of meetings with Chris following the amazing response, we got serious. We headed back into the studio this past spring… this time with guitars, drums, bass, pianos, choirs… the real deal…. and here we are today.
Getting iTunes set up, a website put together, and loving that thousands upon thousands of Christians have come together… remembering the true meaning of Christmas. Out of the mouths of babes come profound truths that many adults cannot understand. Hopefully Spencer’s observation will cause people all over to reflect on the love of Jesus, and that one day we will all stand in line to see Him. We are most thankful to our Heavenly Father to have this chance to share our music with you. Merry Christmas everyone.”
I don’t believe I could have said it better! We should all slow down and remember that we already have the greatest Gift. “…for today in the city if David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” The greatest gift if indeed ours… We don’t have to rush out and buy it nor do we have to stand in line. We simply need to slow down and remember what has been done for us.
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“Glory to the Newborn King!”
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“Glory to the newborn King; peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!”
One of the best known lines from one of the most sung Christmas Carols. The words of this carol were put to paper by Charles Wesley and published by the same around 1739. While the original wording was altered somewhat by George Whitfield, a friend of Wesley, the text has remained nearly unchanged. In 1753 Whitfield changed the opening line to what we know today from the original, “Hark, how all the welkin rings, Glory to the King of kings.” The only significant change in the hymn would be the music. Wesley originally had the hymn set to a more somber tune. In 1840, Felix Mendelssohn composed a cantata that celebrated Johan Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press. The second movement of the cantata was adapted by William H. Cummings, in 1856, for the singing of the hymn. The present harmonization used with this hymn is a stark contrast to the original tune that the hymn was set for.
I find it hard to select a favorite Christmas song. Indeed, I love them all! However, this song ranks in the top ten of all of them. I can only imagine the hillside and the shepherds who were surprised by the pronouncement of the arrival of the Messiah. God found these people at work, on a cold night to bring them the news that would transform their lives. I find that fitting and such a poignant example of how we should be. Christmas is most certainly a time for us to be reminded of the coming of the Christ. It is a time that we should take a step back from work and other things and dwell on what is important. As Wesley so succinctly paraphrased Luke 2:8-14, “…born that we no more may die, born to raise us from the earth, born to give us second birth.” Let’s thank God today for the GIFT!
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Advent and Advent Wreath
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The importance of the Advent season remains to focus on the coming of our Lord. (Advent comes from the Latin adventus, meaning ‘coming.’) The Catechism stresses the two-fold meaning of this ‘coming’: ‘When the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent each year, they makes present this ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the long preparation for the Savior’s first coming, the faithful renew their ardent desire for His second coming’.
Therefore, on one hand, the faithful reflect back and are encouraged to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord’s first coming into this world. We ponder again the great mystery of the incarnation when our Lord humbled Himself, taking on our humanity, and entered our time and space to free us from sin. On the other hand, we recall in the Creed that our Lord will come again to judge the living and the dead and that we must be ready to meet Him.
A good, pious way to help us in our Advent preparation has been the use of the Advent wreathe. The wreathe is a circle, which has no beginning or end: So we call to mind how our lives, here and now, participate in the eternity of God’s plan of salvation and how we hope to share eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. The wreathe is made of fresh plant material, because Christ came to give us new life through His passion, death, and resurrection. Three candles are purple, symbolizing penance, preparation, and sacrifice; the pink candle symbolizes the same but highlights the third Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday, when we rejoice because our preparation is now half-way finished.
The light represents Christ, who entered this world to scatter the darkness of evil and show us the way of righteousness. The progression of lighting candles shows our increasing readiness to meet our Lord. Each family ought to have an Advent wreathe, light it at dinner time, and say the special prayers. This tradition will help each family keep its focus on the true meaning of Christmas. In all, during Advent we strive to fulfill the opening prayer of the First Sunday of Advent.
“Lord, our god, we praise you for Your Son, Jesus Christ, for He is Emmanuel, the Hope of all people. He is the Wisdom that taches and guides us. He is the Savior of us all. Oh, Lord, let your blessing come upon us as we light the firs candle (purple) of the wreath. May the wreath and its light be a sign of Christ’s promise of salvation. May He come quickly and not delay. We ask this in His Holy Name.” Amen
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More Information on Sylvia
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Paul and I went to see Sylvia McMinn Wednesday, November 23rd. She is in Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson and Melody is staying with her most of the time. When we walked in she gave us a big, big smile. Melody said that about 2 hours before we got there she said her first word which was “scrapebook”. She held our hands with her left hand but right now has no use of her right arm. She has feeling down to her elbow but not below. They feel that she will regain use of it though. She has walked some with assistance also. Her speech is slow but that too should come back. They worked her pretty hard on her first day of rehab today and she will fight to regain everything. When I asked her what she felt when she said her first word she said “excited”. She looks great! I believe with prayer and determination she will be back to the Sylvia we know and love very soon. Keep Sylvia and her family in your prayers.
Happy Thanksgiving
Pam
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Wednesday Night News
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Fred Curry, Director of Rice and Beans Ministries will be speaking this Wednesday night at our evening service. Rice and Beans Ministries is dedicated to serving families in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras with ministries in medical areas, ministries for children, ministries in food and prayer, ministries for school uniforms and ministries for feeding families. Chris Cornett and his family has been instrumental in starting up this program so come join us Wednesday night to hear all about Rice and Beans Ministries.
Reminder: Hunters Lunch is this Saturday, November 19th from 11 am to 1 pm. Come early to help and bring a large dish to share. Money raised will be donated by the Lois Redmond Circle to various charities during the holiday season.
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Wonderful Fellowship with Ben Mathes
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Ben Mathes, founder of Rivers Of The World (www.row.org), spoke at our Wednesday night service and in his humorous and enthusiastic way described how God is working miracles in people’s lives along the remote rivers around the world. The youth joined the adults to hear Ben’s message of hope, light and outreach.
The night began with the unveiling of a new fundraising project for ROW that Pastor Gary Howse and James Randall have been working on. The plans were to create a full sized Christmas tree and then sell the lights on the tree for $20 each with the money going to ROW to purchase solar light bulbs to be delivered to people in the darkest jungles. James did an awesome job of cutting out a huge wooden tree and drilling one hundred holes to insert Christmas lights. Pastor Gary then painted the tree and made it look fantastic. As individual lights are sold, they will be lit on the tree to show our progress. By the end of Wednesday nights’ service, we were a quarter of the way to our goal and we were able to light the first 25 lights!
Ben then took the stage and gave us the details about all the ROW projects taking place around the world. The tour included the Congo, Vietnam, Belize, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Iraq and the Dominican Republic. He told us about the dangers he has encountered and the miracles he has seen. He reminded us that we should not underestimate the power of God to work miracles through items as simple as bubble gum.
Then he opened up the floor to questions and answered any and all questions from the youth and adults. Including the questions that made some people a little queasy!
The night was a great blessing and on the way out, Ben said that Lauderdale UMC was a very friendly and welcoming church that he had enjoyed his visit. Based on everyone’s reaction to Ben’s presentation, we found him just as friendly and just as enjoyable!
Be sure to help us light our Christmas tree and help ROW take God’s light into a dark world!
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Ben Mathes of ROW to Speak Wednesday Evening
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This Wednesday, November 9th, Rev. Dr. Ben Mathes of Rivers of the World (ROW) will be joining us for dinner and fellowship. You may have heard some of his messages on KLOVE. He is a wonderful preacher, a warm and entertaining speaker.
Please join us to welcome Rev. Mathes as he tells us about his adventures with ROW and we unvail our Solar Light Christmas Tree fund raiser to help ROW purchase solar lights and take them to families in the darkest part of the jungles around the world.
Get to know Rev. Dr. Ben Mathes from Paul Tarver, webmaster of ROW:
Rev. Dr. Ben Mathes is a man on the go. Constantly moving between countries, states and cities, Ben’s mission takes him all over the world either ministering to the needs of people who live in desperate conditions or raising funds to keep the Rivers Of The World ministry moving forward.
Rivers Of The World (ROW) is the name of the organization Ben founded and currently leads. ROW is based on the idea that rivers are the highways of the jungles and the logical way to get to those who need help the most is by using the rivers to get there. Ben founded ROW with the principle that ROW will never do for others what they can do for themselves, but will work with people in a partnership based upon mutual love, grace and respect.
Ben’s approach to ministry is unique in that it focuses on meeting basic needs such as clean water, food, and medical or dental services and then when he is asked why he does what he does, Ben then replies, “Let me tell you about Jesus who makes all of this possible.”
ROW is actively working in over 13 countries, has built multiple medical ships running on the Congo, the Amazon and other rivers, maintains multiple orphanages in countries like Honduras and Vietnam, invests in installing clean water wells in Africa, and sewing schools in Belize, Honduras, and Africa.
ROW is delivering solar powered bibles in whatever language the people need them giving even people who cannot read an opportunity to learn from the Word of God. Using solar powered DVD players, ROW distributes the “Jesus Film” that provide a visual testimony of the power of Christ. And now ROW is taking light to the darkest areas with solar light bulbs that give families alternative ways to light their homes, burn fewer trees and even improve their health.
And yet, with all this activity surrounding him, Ben Mathes still finds time to be a blessing to everyone he meets. His stories of his adventures in jungles all over the world are exciting and in the past he has shared many of those stories via KLOVE and his one minute devotions. While he is currently not appearing on KLOVE, you can still read his ROWVotions anytime you want at www.row.org/rowvotions and you can hear his audio devotions at www.rowradio.net. You can learn more about Rivers of The World at www.row.org.
You won’t want to miss Ben Mathes when he comes to Lauderdale United Methodist Church to tell us about ROW’s mission work, youth programs and opportunities to serve and support Rivers Of The World.
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Shoe Box Party a Success
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The Shoe Box Party was a wonderful success!! We packed 210 boxes to send to Samaritan’s Purse for Operation Christmas Child. What now you may ask? Our boxes are taken to a collection point in Meridian and then to a processing center. From there they must go through customs clearance before being put on hundreds of trucks/lorries and then sea containers ready for transport across the world. Our boxes and millions like them will be delivered to local churches and ministry partners in their receiving country. The shoe boxes are given to children unconditionally. Where appropriate, children are offered a copy of The Greatest Gift of All booklet in their own language by local churches and ministry partners to share the love of God.
Many photos were taken while we packed these boxes so don’t forget to take a look. Click here for picture page!
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Pastor Howse is a Grandfather
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Our Pastor, Gary Howse is now a grandfather.
Reed Howse was born today!!
Details to follow later.
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New Photo Galleries Posted
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Many new photo galleries have been posted including pictures from Breakfast for Fielders, Playground and Pastor’s Office Dedication and Pastor Appreciation Picnic. Check them out!!!
