The Fox and the Fleas

There's a wonderful Scottish story about a fox infested with fleas. So the intelligent fox gathers wool left on hedgerows from the flocks of sheep nearby. The fox rolls the wool into a ball and puts it in his mouth. He then heads to the stream and ever so slowly enters the water. As the fox slowly gets his entire body in the stream, the fleas jump onto the ball of wool in the foxes mouth. Finally the fox is totally under the water and he lets the ball of wool go, geting rid of the fleas.
At Christmas, we can celebrate the coming of the lamb of God, who by His sinless life would take upon Himself our fleas of sin. What a priceless gift! May you allow your fleas of sin to be placed on His wool. May you experience the joy and peace of a right relationship with your Heavenly Father. Merry Christmas!!!
These are the days my friend,
Jim "Train"

Silent Night

The still of the December night so moved the Austrian priest, Joseph Mohr, that he wrote a poem about the birth of Jesus. Later, Franz Gruber, would write a melody to the poem. The song was played on Christmas Eve of 1818 in the village of Oberndorf. Today, "Silent Night" is one of the most beloved Christmas carols.
It was in the silence of a cold December night that Jesus spoke to Joseph Mohr. He worshipped the Lord by writing the poem 'Silent Night." I wonder what the Lord would say to us if only we were quiet enough to listen. This week at Campus Life Breakfast Club, we dealt with the loud noises that often crowd out the still, small voice of God. We looked at Bible passage found in Mark 1:35 where "Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there." If Jesus needed the quiet to hear His Father, we certainly need the silence also. So may you intentionally make the time to get quiet before the Lord. Turn off all the noise in your room and listen for the Voice. Take a walk after a fresh snow, where all you hear is the crunch of your steps on the new snow. Listen, you just might hear a "new song" in your heart.
These are the days my friend,
Jim "Train"

Homeless in Narnia

Friday is the day "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" will be shown in movie theatres across America. I predict it will be a blockbuster. The story revolves around four children entering a wintry world with no Christmas. Eventually a battle looms between the forces of the Witch and the Lion Aslan. C. S. Lewis, the Christian writer of The Chronicles of Narnia says this about Aslan..."Lewis insisted the Narnia books were not allegory-where things are meant to represent something else-but were supposal of how it might have gone if Christ had come to a world of animals and becomes one of them." (USA Today 12/02/05)
And that I think is the point of Christmas, Jesus leaving His home in heaven and becoming man.
"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a Son, and they will call Him Immanuel - which means God with us." -Matthew 1:23 How amazing is this!!! God becomes homeless for our sake. Just think of all He laid aside to be with us. The willingness to be born as a defenseless baby in a barn away from home (there it is again - Jesus was homeless at His birth)
is mind boggling.
May you this Christmas Season be caught up in the beauty of God becoming man whether it is through worship at Connections this Sunday evening (with the theme being "Homeless"), seeing the movie, or meditating on "Immanuel!"
These are the days my friend!
Jim "Train"