Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Project Ezra and the True Gift of Christmas

Hello brothers and sisters! We will be starting our True Gift of Christmas reading in just a couple days, and I pray that you all will consider joining us!

For those of you already finalizing your teams and getting ready to head out, thank you for your faithfulness! I would encourage you to decide who on your team will read which passage now, so they can go over it early. I know from experience that being familiar with the passage, and having thought about the setting of the passage and mentally placed yourself there, can make a huge difference in the quality and expression of the reading. We don't want any portion of the bible to sound dry or forced when it is read. Every bit of scripture is packed with meaning and nuance, and we should take the time give it the respect it deserves.

For those of you having trouble putting a team together, we will be praying for you, and don't quit! Even if you end up with only a couple of people, you can still do either the full reading, or even an abbreviated reading (although I recommend the full message if at all possible), perhaps of chapter 1 and chapters 18-21. It may seem strange that we are reading from a book that does not include the nativity story. But, while the story of Christ's birth is relatively well known, the connection to Christ's deity, as expressed in John 1, and His death and resurrection, recorded in chapters 18-21, tend to be neglected. They are just as much a part of the story, and people need to hear the whole gospel, the whole message of God's love, at Christmas. So if you need to trim your reading, those are the most essential points.

Finally, for those still on the fence, please join us. But even if you can't do the reading, please make sure to share the truth of the gospel during this season, and encourage others to do the same. Every day people are dying and walking off into eternity without Christ. We may have the unspeakable privilege of sharing the message of God's grace with someone and seeing them come to Christ. What better gift could there possibly be to give, or to receive, this year!

For the praise of His glory,
Dan

1 comment:

  1. Great going! I used to street preach At Ottawa University in Ottawa, Canada and at the Sparks Street outdoor mall during lunch hour. I was always amazed at how many people would try to ignore me as they went by.

    "Lord make us living signs and wonders for Your glory, so the people will stop to listen. Prepare the peoples' hearts for the message these Bible readers will be sharing. We bind the strong man operating in their lives and claim open ears and hungry hearts to hear the gospel message.
    Bless you as you go, in Jesus' Name! Amen."
    My blog is at
    http://www.greatcommissionhow2s.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete

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