Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Merry CHRISTmas!

We have a CHRISTmas season and celebration because over 2000 years ago there was a baby born in a little town called Bethlehem in the country of Israel.  This baby was the very son of God, born to a young virgin mother named Mary.  This little baby, born in most humble surroundings, was Jesus, the CHRIST, THE Savior of the world, the Savior of all mankind.  CHRISTmas is not about how many presents are under a tree or the frenzied madness of holiday shopping.  It is about remembering and celebrating THE Savior’s birth and THE greatest gift that has ever been given to mankind.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCsud5X3A54

 

Well, He cried when He was hungry,
Did all the things that babies do;
He rocked and He napped on His mother’s lap,
And He wiggled and giggled and cooed.
There were the cheers when He took His first step,
And the tears when He got His first teeth;
Almost everything about this little baby
Seemed as natural as it could be.

But this baby made the angels sing,
And this baby made a new star shine in the sky.
This baby had come to change the world.
This baby was God’s own son, this baby was like no other one.
This baby was God with us, this baby was Jesus.

And this baby grew into a young boy,
Who learned to read and write and wrestle with dad;
There was the climbin’ of trees and the scrapin’ of knees,
And all the fun that a boy’s born to have.
He grew taller and some things started changing,
Like His complexion and the sound of His voice;
There was work to be done as a carpenter’s son
And all the neighbors said He’s such a fine boy.

But this boy made the angels sing,
And this boy made a new star shine in the sky.
This boy had come to change the world.
This boy was God’s own son, this boy was like no other one.
This boy was God with us. This boy became a man,

And love made Him laugh and death made Him cry.
With the life that He lived and the death that He died,
He showed us heaven with His hands and His heart,
‘Cause this man was God’s own son.
This man was like no other one,
Holy and human right from the start.

This baby was God with us, this baby, this baby was Jesus;

this baby was Jesus, this baby was Jesus.

(“This Baby”, sung by Steven Curtis Chapman)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmacF-VZrqk

  

For just a moment

I wish I could have been there
To see Your first step, hear Your very first word
Tell me, did You ever fall and scrape Your knee?
Did You know Your wounds would one day heal the world?

For just one moment
I wish I could have seen You growing
Learning the ways of a carpenter's son
Just a little boy gazing at the stars
Did You remember creating every one?
If you passed by, would I have seen a child or a King?

Would I have known?
I wish I could have been there
My only wish is to see You, face to face
Wish I could have been there
Just to see You, Jesus, face to face

For just a moment
I wish I could have been there
When You left Your footprints upon the waves
To walk along beside You and never look away
Just Your whisper and the wind and sea obey
To see You feed the people
To feel Your healing in Your touch

I wish I could have been there
My only wish is to see You, face to face
Wish I could have been there
Just to see You, Jesus, face to face

To hear you pray in the garden alone
Laying down Your will with each tear
To see You walk that lonely road
Willing to die for me

And in that moment
I know I should have been there
You took my cross and gave Your life

And you live again, oh
And You live again!
Wish I could have been there
My only wish is to see You rise again
Wish I could have been there
My only wish is to see You, Jesus, face to face
Someday I'll be there, I'm gonna be there
I'll see Your face, Your mercy, Your grace
Someday, someday
I'm going to see You, Jesus
Face to face

(“Wish”, sung by Brian Littrell)

Celebrating CHRIST…