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Second Sunday of Christmastide-Jan 4

04 Jan

Those who feel forgotten.  (1/2/2021) 1/1/2022 Christmas is a time when we remember that Christ came to His people to reveal the nature of God and to show us a better way to live; a way of peace and love. This should be a time when we should draw together as a family and draw together as a church family. We need to bring some light into their life just as Christ brought light into the world for us. We should seek those around us who will not know the joy of Christmas unless we share it with them We need to take time to reach out to those around us who may be alone, whose families are gone or far away, and have no friends close. By visiting, we remind them that we have not forgotten them and God has not forgotten them either. Some may be able to invite them to share Christmas with their family so they do not have to spend Christmas alone. There are also many who are burdened with heavy cares, or who have lost loved ones, are shut-in and cannot get out, and let them know they are not forgotten and are not alone. We need to bring some light into their life just as Christ brought light into the world for us. Some will not share the joy of Christmas because of financial needs and cannot afford special gifts. The church can help brighten their Christmas. A growing number of Christians are deciding that instead of giving each other gifts they don’t need, they will put that money into buying gifts for those that might not otherwise receive gifts, or by supporting Christmas programs by organizations in their local area like The Salvation Army, or abroad like Samaritan’s Purse or simply giving gifts to neighbors they know who might not otherwise know the joy of Christmas. Christmas is also a great time to teach your kids the value of giving and the greatest gift they can give is themselves. Volunteer as a family to help a local church, social service agency, day care, hospital, or nursing home. Many have special programs at Christmas that need volunteers.

 

 

New years Day intro-video

04 Jan

 

Economics-III-J-J

04 Jan

The media also gives a false impression of the economy. During the terms of President Obama and President  Biden, they reported jobs gained but not jobs lost. That gave the impression of increasing employment. For instance, when President Biden took office, he laid off all the Census workers and hired new ones. They promoted the number of new hires but failed to mention that they were replacing existing workers  so there was no job gain. They also failed to mention that they were Census workers and the positions would have been filled even if the economy collapsed and government workers were the only ones working. It also varies by State and the media highlights  losses but doesn’t tell people they are in liberal States. President Trump has lowered taxes and reduced costly government regulations which has enabled businesses to expand and stimulated the economy   however, liberal States have continued to maintain their own high taxes and government regulations  so businesses are fleeing those States to conservative States where taxes are lower and there are fewer government regulations. The media tells people how many jobs are lost when businesses close  but does not tell people that those jobs are not lost but simply moved to other States. Stores are also closing in liberal States due to high theft due to lax law enforcement and high wages required by higher minimum wage requirements and inflation in those States. That is not due to President Trump’s policies but to policies in liberal States.

 

 

Economics-III-J-I

04 Jan

Many people are turning against President Trump because of the problems with inflation but fail to realize how complex the economy is. You can’t fix it with a simple change of policy. President Biden set Trump up with massive expenditures after he lost the election which fueled even more inflation which kicked in as President Trump took office. While Trumps tariffs did cause some increase in prices, they were necessary to force other countries to remove their tariffs. The US has allowed foreign goods in free while other countries have tariffs to protect their industry preventing them from buying American goods which destroyed American manufacturing and has created a massive trade deficit for years. We have been spoiled on cheap foreign goods but they have come at the expense of American jobs. American’s demand for higher wages have made it  difficult to compete with cheaper foreign goods. It will take a while to rebuild America’s manufacturing. Some companies are hesitant to expand because they will face a return to higher taxes, renewed inflation, and more government regulations, if liberals return to power in 2028.

 

 

First Sunday of Christmastide-Dec 28

27 Dec

Many people are glad that the mad scramble to get ready for Christmas is over. Many were so busy they forgot what Christmas is all about. Most people don’t realize that Christmas isn’t over, it actual runs for twelve days from Dec 25th to Jan 5th (few people think about the words in the song-“Twelve days of Christmas”). This time is called Christmastide. Now that the commercial Christmas is over, we can relax and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas occurs on the shortest day of the year to remind us that when things were darkest and it seemed there was no hope, God came down to us in the form of a baby and dwelt among us. God revealed Himself to His people and He is with us. His presence changed the world forever. He isn’t someone up there in heaven, who is unreachable. He cared enough to come to us in our time of greatest need and is still here when we need Him. However, He didn’t just come to share a meal or something, He came to show us a new way to live. Our ways are selfish and filled with conflict but He came to show us a way to live in peace with one another and help one another. As we start the new year, let us commit ourselves to learning more about how He wants us to live and seek to grow in faith and seek to walk in the way He set before us.

 

 

Christmas Day Dec 25

27 Dec

The True Meaning-The color for Christmas is White symbolizing purity and light reminding us of Christ’s coming.-Many people work frantically to get things ready for Christmas Day and then suddenly it is over and past. Often the true meaning of Christmas is buried under the hurried rush to buy gifts. It is a time when we give gifts but we should remember that almost 2000 years ago, God gave us the best gift of all. He sent His Son to die on the Cross and opened the way to fellowship with God and enabled us to find everlasting peace through that fellowship. Christmas Day should be a time to resolve to work this coming year to draw closer to God and work to bring peace to that area that we touch in our daily lives. When you open your gifts this Christmas, open the Bible and reread the story of the Nativity and reflect on the greatest gift of all.

 

 

Introduction to Christmastide

25 Dec

 

Fourth Sunday of Advent-Dec 21

19 Dec

Hope While we know Christ was not born on December 25th because the shepherds would not have been out on the hillsides with the sheep in the winter, we actually have no idea when He was born because no date is recorded of His birth so one day is as good as another. The early church felt His birth was very important since it changed the world and felt it should be remembered. Dec 25th was chosen because it is the darkest day of the year. After that date, the days begin to get longer again. It is a good time to celebrate Christ who is the Light of the world, because it reminds us that when things were darkest, Jesus came to bring us hope. Like the days, the world isn’t instantly better, but it begins and builds little by little until we can see that things are brighter than they used to be. Many churches continue to provide valuable social services to individuals and Christian social services have a success rate far beyond that of government and even for-profit organizations because they often provide individual attention by individuals who care about their clients They often provide far more comprehensive services than other agencies as well. In addition, they provide hope of individual transformation through the power which comes from God

 

Economics-C-G

19 Dec

Welfare has hurt African Americans more than Whites because it was very difficult for males to get work that paid a living wage and a higher percentage of African-Americans families are single parent families, so a higher percentage of them have had to depend on it. Slavery destroyed families and men did not have to support a family. Jim Crow laws prevented Black men from getting work and an education so mothers had to support the family.  Welfare continued to disrupt the families by keeping men out of the home. Since desegregation, some Black men have taken responsibility to better themselves and have worked to build strong families but most grew up without a father in the home and few have any role models to guide them. They have been helped as they have been able to get an education and get better jobs which has enabled them to move out of the slums and see White families that are functioning well but they are struggling to overcome two hundred years of broken families.

 

 

Economics-C-F

19 Dec

Many of our major cities have been controlled by those who push welfare as a way of controlling the people. While they claim to be helping people, they create serious problems that create frustration and anger. Until recent welfare reform, welfare made people dependent and discouraged recipients from developing their abilities to help themselves. In addition, welfare required that the husband leave the family before they could get welfare unless he was disabled, which tore families apart. While welfare reform now puts limits on how long people can be on welfare and tries to encourage self-support, it has had to overcome three generations of families dependent on welfare. Many welfare recipients have never known anyone in their family who supported themselves and wasn’t on welfare. It is hard to overcome that.