Anapology from Frank Becker: I’ve been unable to update the web site properly because I was in the hospital for four days, and am still not recovered. I hope to catch up soon.
Week Fifty-One, 2018
THE CRADLE, THE CROSS AND THE CROWN
By John Grant
She gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. Luke 2:7
Like a three-legged piano stool which requires all three legs tostand, the Christian faith rests upon three Biblical events…….The cradle, the cross and the crown. Jesus was born in an obscure manger, suffered a painful and humiliating death upon a cross and then received His crown as He gloriously ascended into heaven.
At this season, we celebrate the first of those three faithfoundations. The Christmas message is relevant, revolutionary and reassuring to us today. It can be summed up in three words: a cradle, a cross and a crown.
What a difference the baby born in Bethlehem’s manger 2,000 yearsago makes to our world today. The educational systems He has inspired, the social reforms that His teachings have instituted, and the transformation of families and lives that have come about as a result of a baby born at Bethlehem! The whole world was thinking of Caesar. The whole world was thinking of Rome. But in God’s eternal plan, He was thinking of a baby in a manger in the little tiny town of Bethlehem.
The central message of Christmas is that Jesus Christ, by Hisdeath and resurrection, can transform both individuals and society. At the cradle, He was in the stall of an animal. At the cross, He wore a crown of thorns. But when He comes again, it will be as Commander in Chief of the armies of Heaven.
He will take control of this war-weary world and bring the peace that we strive for and long for. A new world will be formed, a new social order will emerge. Sin will be eliminated. Tears will be wiped from every eye. Disease shall be no more, and even death will be eliminated from the human scene. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, and war shall be no more.
This is the promise of Christmas. This is our hope. This is theChristmas star that lights our darkness. This is the assurance that a new day is coming, through the Messiah, whose name is called by Isaiah the prophet, “Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).
This is God’s gift of Christmas: the cradle—His Son; the Cross—His life; the crown—His coming kingdom.
This faith of ours, it all begins with Christmas.
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SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES
Ken Whitten’s words on stability:
Stability Comes When We Are Sensing God’s Presence
Stability Comes When We Are Trusting In God’s Power
Stability Comes When We Are Resting In God’s Promises
When I Become Unstable – I Remember the Stable
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Thoughts of President George H. W. Bush:
Hatred controls the container in which it is held.
Die young, but do it as late as possible.
Never be defined by failure.
When death comes, life is not ended; it is just changed.
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WATCH:
Watch your thoughts, they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions.
Watch your actions, they become habits.
Watch your habits, they become character.
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny!
— o —
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right,persevering, and steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)
— o —
If you leave earth and travel to the nearest star traveling at 150,000 miles per hour, it would take 18,000 years to arrive at your destination.
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QUOTES YOU CAN USE
Unlike the gifts beneath the tree, God has planted unique abilities into all of us and we forget to open that package! DwightShort
Don’t mistake God’s silence with His absence in your life. Ken Whitten
Those who travel the high road of humility aren’t slowed by heavy traffic.
Senator Allen Simpson
If you don’t know where you are going you will be lost when you get there. Yogi Barea
When you recognize where God is working you can join Him in what He is doing.