Day Twelve of “Getting Ready for Christmas.” Read Philippians 2:1-11. This passage tells us as much about the profound meaning of Christmas as any other. Christ left His throne above to redeem lost human beings. He humbled Himself and died on the cross for us.
Because of His humility, we should also humble ourselves as we look to the needs of others. This is the virtue no one wants, but it is the reason we have Christmas. He humbled Himself and became obedient to death–even death on a cross!
Thank you for your support for international missions by giving to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. The Lottie Moon Christmas Offering is named for a missionary to China who starved to death in the late 1800s. Her burden for the world has helped inspire Southern Baptists to go and give for world evangelization.
The Lottie Moon Offering provides about one half of the support for the largest missionary force in the history of Christianity. The other half comes from your weekly giving through our church and the 44,000 other Southern Baptist Churches. This offering and the ongoing support of the churches makes it possible for 4500 missionaries and their 4000 children to stay of the field of service.
As a church we have chosen to voluntarily associate with the Southern Baptist Convention. We are a convention of 44,000 plus churches united with the desire to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. In recent years the International Mission Board has focused on Unreached People Groups. These UPGs are groups of people without churches or believers. For the most part they have never heard the gospel.
Part of your offering each week goes to support this world mission effort. Because of its importance, we also ask you to give an extra offering each Christmas to make this mission effort possible. You have received an offering envelope to facilitate your giving.
Would you pray and give for the work of international missions?
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2 Responses
My wife and I were having this discussion this morning when she was asking me why God was enabling the disruption of the lives of people we feel a responsibility, as our own income has been compromised significantly. I reminded her, no one ever feels happy when they are in the midst of difficulty, unless of course they have a screw loose or God has given them a vision like Stephen, being stoned. I reminded her of the prophet who invested in land when ruination was known to him to be right around the corner. I reminded her of him being thrown into a pit where all manner of nastiness joined him as he was enjoined. Then I reminded her of his confession: that it was not his own strength that brought him to be point of being able to write. “Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. My soul has them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me. This I recall to mind, therefore Have I hope. It is the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness.” We were in that moment able to give thanks; and remind ourselves we Know Who Holds the Future and prayed for Guidance in the midst of what we don’t know. Then we set ourselves about the daily tasks at hand. It is good to have tasks, a Blessing.
Blessings
Thank you, Waylon, for promoting the Lottie Moon mission emphasis. Our IMB missionaries often leave the comforts of life in America and the cherished opportunity to be close to other family, to answer God’s call and command. In our state (MS) Baptist paper this week, an article depicts eight such families spending a month at an IMB-sponsored “boot-camp”: a remote Amazonian village with little electricity, running water, or commonly-used foods and other items readily-available back home. This month of learning the ropes in such an environment helps prepare the families to survive and thrive when they face a similar lifestyle on the field.