The Spirit of Christmas Past

ByDr. Dan

In “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens, Ebenezer Scrooge, surviving partner of Scrooge & Marley, grudgingly gave Bob Cratchit his Christmas check and went home on Christmas Eve. He dreamed of Cratchit and three spirits – first, the spirit of the past, reminding him of his youth before he became miserly. Then he dreamed of the spirit of the present and finally the spirit of the future. Before leaving Christmas, consider “The Spirit Of Christmas Past.” In Luke 2:17-20 there are numerous past tense verbs. It speaks of proclaiming (“made widely known”) the message of Christmas past. The passage speaks of Mary pondering the meaning of Christmas past. Finally the verses speak of praising God for the miracle of Christmas past – “they returned glorifying and praising God.” So before we get too far removed from Christmas 2009, let’s make the truth of our Lord’s birth widely known as we ponder on its meaning and praise God for its miracle. Merry Christmas past and Happy New Year to come.
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On January 1, 2010, I am starting a Facebook group that will read the classic devotional book “My Utmost for His Highest” by Oswald Chambers and interact with others. Once formed, the group will be closed so members can establish camaraderie, build trust, share honestly, and grow spiritually. If interested, reply to this Memo or send me an E-mail at dcrawford@swbts.edu. I will need your e-mail address. The book is available in Christian bookstores, online (free) and via E-mail daily (free). The group already has more than 40 members and is growing rapidly. In order to participate you must be on Facebook and be listed as one of my Facebook “friends.” If you are not, we can make that happen with one E-mail or one FB invitation from me to you.

Join me this week in praying for the following global concerns:
• Pray for missionaries who are traveling back to their assignments following holiday visits.
• Pray for the annual retreat for missionary youth held in Kiev this week.
• Pray for the “More Than Gold” Winter Olympic ministry in Vancouver/Whistler as the event gets closer.