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Monday, December 17, 2012

The Music of Christmas



Bill and Gloria Gaither said it best, Jesus Christ “started the whole world singing”. If I’m not mistaken, Christmas is the most musical holiday of all. Christmas music literally encircles the globe. Some people complain about the commercialization of Christmas, but I like the Christianization of the marketplace. At no other time can you walk through the mall and hear beautiful gospel music pouring out of the speakers. Some of the music is about Santa Claus and reindeer, but I enjoy that too. The imagination is a marvelous gift of God and Gene Autry’s “Rudolph” song is lots of fun to sing and I think really entertaining. Even if the words are a secular fantasy, all real music is a gift of God because music itself is a gift God built into the DNA of the universe.

I love the special Christmas services, especially when I get to sing. This year our First Church of God choir (St Joseph, MI) did the cantata “Child of Wonder” and this marvelous choir really nailed it. I doubt if many have done it better. Just a few minutes ago I heard “There’s Something Going on Down in Bethlehem”, one of the fun (but incredibly inspirational) songs in this cantata being sung on the Purdue University Christmas Show. They did a marvelous job and it’s always a thrill to hear Christ proclaimed over national television, but the truth is, as good as they were, they didn’t do it as well as our choir! I shouldn’t brag, especially since I’m in the tenor section, but we probably did one of the best it’s ever been done.

Pastor Chad Harlan knows how to get the most out of a choir—the perfect combination of pastor, disciplined taskmaster and gifted teacher. Last Sunday evening we sang the cantata at First Church and this morning we sang “Hark the Herald” in the 9:30 am service in St Joseph and then scurried over to Benton Heights to sing the full cantata at the First Church at Benton Heights 11 am service.

For more than a year I was one of the associate pastors at the Benton Heights Church and I remember some young black men who checked us out and weren’t too sure they even liked us. But Campus Pastor Mary Shawl-Ranke and now Pastor Colt Slack have, together with a host of lay volunteers, shared Christ’s love with those young men and what a blessing it was to look out into the congregation from the choir and see so many of those young men sitting in the pews, participating in the service, obviously very much a part of the congregation. The congregation is white, black and Hispanic, young, old and in-between, and they all made our choir feel so welcome. We all had a marvelous time and God was glorified in the worship, the music, and the marvelous voices. Pastor Colt even did a little preaching to close it out. God’s glory shows best in the lives of people whose hearts have been transformed by the gospel of Christ.

But I digress. This post is about the music of Christmas. It’s just the best. Whether “Silver Bells” or “Silent Night”, it is Jesus who gave us something to sing about and when we sing songs of joy and happiness, we bring glory to God!

Carol and I were blessed to grow up in musical families. We shared that heritage with our children and now the grandchildren too are singers and musicians. Our extended families have always been and still are gifted singers and musicians. We give all praise to God who gave us this gift of music.

Thank you God for this gift—the ability to sing (or listen), and play instruments. I especially, thank you for the gift of your Son, who created us to sing and gave us all a reason to do so!

I’m Rick Blumenberg and that’s “My View from Tanner Creek”.
   

Saturday, December 08, 2012

The Generosity of God


In the New Testament book of Matthew (20:1-15) is a parable known as the “Parable of the workers in the vineyard”. However, I call it the "Parable of the Generosity of God" because the most important point is given by the landowner (representing God) who asks the complaining workers, "...are you envious because I am generous?"
We all experience the generosity of God but do we deserve God’s kindness? Blessings of health, the ability to work, raise a family and enjoy recreation and leisure? And most of all do any of us deserve the blessing of heaven? Can anyone say we deserve to spend eternity in the presence of God? Do any deserve the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross? In every instance the answer is no—none of us deserve God's unlimited generosity. And yet, in Psalm 103 we read "as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love toward those who fear him." No doubt the generosity of God is best expressed in this unlimited love poured out on all creation.
However, if we try to use the love of God, and thoughtlessly neglect eternal values of life we run the risk there will be no time or desire for repentance and we could be eternally separated from God's generous love by our own selfishness and carelessness.
God's reward of eternal life is freely given to all who willingly accept. It is not limited to those who have served him a long time but it is limited to those who accept by faith in Jesus Christ, God’s Son. If you have not accepted Christ by faith I urge you to do so now. It is a simple, but life-changing process. The following straightforward prayer, prayed honestly from the heart, can be your doorway into eternal life and into the bounties of God.
“Lord Jesus, I believe you are God’s Son and the Savior of the world. I am sorry for my sin and especially the great sin of not believing in you. I ask your forgiveness and seek your help to live a godly life. I know I can’t do it in my own strength. Please come into my heart and be my Savior. Help me serve you faithfully all my earthly life and throughout eternity.”
This gift of salvation is God’s supreme act of generosity and his highest joy! The greatest joy of heaven is found when we repent of sin and gain this wonderful salvation.
You would think God could have found an easier way to provide for our salvation than to send his only beloved son to die on a cross! But God didn't look for the easy way. He wanted the best way—for you and me and for the whole world—and that Way is the Lord Jesus Christ.
The danger is that we depend too much on the generosity of God. Simply because he is generous, loving, compassionate, and understanding—does not mean God is a soft touch. We must not presume to put off eternal decisions to a later date and then depend on God to give us the added time necessary to accept him at the last minute. Don’t wait until it is time to die before making provision for eternity. If we deliberately do so, we gamble with our eternal souls and may be tempting God. We have the clear warning in scripture that we should not be so deceived because the norm is that “a man reaps what he sows." (Galatians 6:7 NIV)
The good news is that the person ready to die is the one most ready to live. If we prepare now for eternity we also experience abundant life in the present.
I’m Rick Blumenberg and that’s
 “My View from Tanner Creek”.