We act as though we have all the time in the world.

What happened to the urgency in our mission work to reach the lost with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and fulfill the Great Commission? As I read testimonies and watch the stories of modern day missionaries and their clandestine work in many of the countries of the world that have been or are closed to the gospel message, I have to wonder where would we be today if the Apostle’s had just set up coffee shops and neutral community centers and gathered to chit-chat and play games until the opportunity presented itself to get to the message of Jesus. People, we don’t have time to waste and we have a message everyone needs to hear, whether they accept it or not.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m finding myself guilty of the same thing. As pastor and church planter of an organic church I find myself being more concerned with building relationships with people to hopefully open the door of opportunity to share the good news of Jesus with them when in reality I need to be knocking on those doors a little more diligently to deliver a most important offer that may expire at any moment. We think we have all the time in the world but in actuality we don’t know how much time the world has and we need to return to the urgency we once had and get our message out. It may turn some away, it may get us persecuted or even cost us our lives, but this we should know and already take into account when we answer the call of God into His service. The time to act is now, tomorrow may be to late, quit waiting for the opportunity, grab it and make the most of it for the sake of those who are perishing.

Do we need a National Holiday to celebrate Christmas?

With the push in recent years to secularize the National Holiday we all know as Christmas and disassociate it in the public mind with the birth of Jesus Christ and the Christian faith, I for one am in favor of having it struck from the National Calendar and we Christian’s will celebrate it on our own way just like the Jews in this country celebrate Hanukkah each year.

What is my reasoning for this you ask?, well my position is if we can’t recognize the day for what it has been for decades in this country I don’t need any Happy Holidays just so the retailers can make a killing selling items for a holiday they don’t want to recognize. As for all the Happy Holiday signs that have taken the place of Merry Christmas, I think I’ll contact the ACLU and complain that I don’t like the use of the word Holiday since it is actually telling me to have a Happy Holy Day which is a violation of the nonexistent Church and State clause.

Do I sound like a nut? well I’m not, at least I don’t think I am. I just think if they want to take away our Holiday, lets take away theirs and see who cries the loudest. I’ll bet all that money disappearing from the coffers of the manufacturers and retailers would cause a massive outcry to our national leaders much more than the Christian voice seems to be accomplishing. I do not need a National Holiday to Celebrate the birth of my Savior we should be doing that each time we gather together for worship just as we celebrate and remember his death, burial and resurrection. Lets take back Christmas for ourselves and leave the world to figure out what to do about their nonexistent holiday. I know we will still rejoice.

Pastor Dennis Miller
The Orchard