WORD From The Woods


Galatians 3
   " O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”? Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith. To give a human example, brothers: even with a man- made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ. This is what I mean:the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise. Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one. Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise."


     Paul asks one of the most foundational questions in the beginning of this chapter, "are we saved by works or by faith?" That is really the most important question we can ask! And if you are saved, then Paul asks again, "are you being sanctified by works of the flesh or by faith?" Paul makes it abundantly clear that it is by faith in Christ's sacrifice on the cross that we are saved! And as true Christians we have the Holy Spirt living in us, doing the work of sanctification! There is so very much to be learned in this passage, but what I really want to focus on is the fact that we are saved by Grace through faith in Christ. I also want to look at how the promise of blessing to Abraham, was the promise of Christ's redemption through faith. As Paul points out, the law showed people how much they needed a savior! God promised Abraham that the whole world would be blessed through his offspring, not "offsprings plural" but "offspring singular." Who is this offspring? It was not Isaac, but it would be a descendant of Isaac. The offspring that would bless the whole world is Jesus Christ! When Christ came as savior, He tied all of scripture and even history itself together. We as Christians today share in the promise to Abraham. Believers before the cross all the way back to Adam, and believers after the cross all the way up to right now and into the future, all share in this same promise of blessing. This promise was and even now is the promise of Salvation! It is the promise of redemption and sanctification through faith in Christ who came as the ultimate sacrificial lamb, fulfilling the law but not nullifying it! As Paul puts it at the end of chapter 3, " if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, and heirs according to the promise." I don't know about you, but when I read about this incredible plan that God had, as He said, since before the foundation of the earth, I am absolutely astonished that a sinner like me can be a part of this promise of redemption! If you are not sure that you are an heir according to this promise, then put your trust in Christ Jesus today for your salvation!


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

​WORD From The Woods


Psalm 19
     “The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple;
the precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the LORD is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules of the LORD are true,
and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
Who can discern his errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.”


     This Psalm is one that many of us probably think about a lot when we see the incredible sunrises that we as loggers are privileged to witness each day, since we’re usually up on a mountain somewhere long before the sun comes up.  We get a front row seat to the creative, wondrous, glory of God from the tops of the mountains, as we see the valleys blanketed in fog being touched by glorious colors of a new day that the Lord has made being unveiled before us.  I’ve seen thousands of these incredible sunrises, and yet, they still cause me to stop in awe of the splendor before me, as the heavens declare the glory of God and the sky proclaims His handiwork! I feel so bad for people who don’t get to see it as often as us loggers do! This Psalm is very familiar to a lot us in regard to this glory. But, many of us may not have given the rest of this passage a lot of thought before. Just as the rising sun coms out to meet the new day like a groom coming to his bride, so the law of the Lord  comes to meet us. And, as a well trained athlete runs a course, so the sun runs the course of the day, finishing its’s cycle without fail, in the same way, the testimony of God is right and sure. As the sun brings glory and light and warmth to the morning after a dark and cold night, the commandments of the Lord bring light and warmth to a dark, cold world. I love verse 9 where it says that “the fear of the Lord is clean,” and His “rules are true and righteous altogether.” As the sun lights and guides us through the day, the law of God warns and guides us through the days of our life! King David wrote so many beautiful psalms like this abut the goodness of God’s law and His precepts. In our modern Christian era, we don’t talk a lot about God’s law or rules. We tend to focus more on love and liberty, which are actually only possible because of the goodness and truth revealed to us through His law. Just read Psalm 1! It is God’s law, written into the tablets of our own heart that points us to our rock and our redeemer, our savior Jesus Christ! So much more could be said about this passage, but I hope as you go about your week and see the glory of God on display each morning, you will think about the glory of God displayed though the scriptures and fulfilled in the finished work of redemption on the cross by our Lord and savior Jesus Christ!


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


Colossians 2:16-23
    "Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.
If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh."


  At first glance this passage seems like it has nothing to do with the things we face in our day to day lives, but it's actually one of the most relevant passages in the New Testament. Asceticism was a kind of false humility that people had because of all the things they didn't engage in, simply because they thought that abstaining from things they saw as "taboo" would bring them closer to God.  Paul says here, not to let anyone pass judgement on you in questions of food or drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath. There are many groups today that teach of you don't drink alcohol, if you go to church, if you read this translation of the bible , if you sing a certain kind of music in church, if you dress a certain way, if you have certain spiritual gifts, and so on and so on, if you do certain things then you are closer to God and more holy than others. This is exactly what Paul was warning against when he wrote these words 2000 years ago. It was a big problem in the church then and its a big problem in the church today. Next month, we will be at the Oregon Logging Conference, and our booth is in the same building where the “Sawdust Bowl” is held on Thursday and Friday nights. One of the reasons we chose that spot was to be there during the Sawdust Bowl, which is social gathering for a couple of hours with hosted beer and wine. It’s a great time to visit with folks. One of the reasons we’re there is to show people that we aren’t there just to cast judgement on them! Now, the Bible is clear about sin and sin is wrong. There is nothing wrong with having a couple beers if you don’t go to far. This is an issue that each of us needs to seek God on, some people should stay away form alcohol completely because it can be a very slippery slope that they need to avoid. But being a Christ follower isn’t about keeping a set of man-made rules I order to please God, it’s about being in a relationship with Him! We've all tried to do things by our own strength to tried and be "holy enough" for God. The bible is abundantly clear, there is nothing we can do to be good enough for the Kingdom of God. That's why we needed a savior, it's why only the perfect, sinless lamb, Christ Jesus could be that savior!  We must hold fast to Christ alone, not what we do or don’t do. As we grow in Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit living in us, we will produce good works, not of our own power but by the power of Christ! All these things that people come up with as ways to be holy have no power to stop the indulgence of the flesh. Only the power of Christ can overcome the sinful flesh of man!


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


John 1:1-5
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”


   Happy New Year! It’s that time of year again, when people feel compelled to make all sorts of resolutions and set goals to achieve during the next year. This can be a really good thing to do. We all need to grow and change, wether it’s a health issue we want to resolve, a bad habit or character flaw, or even some kind of blatant besetting sin that we’ve struggled with for our entire life, it’s good to be introspective and desire to make changes in our lives for the better. The problem with most of these resolutions and goals we set is that, they are usually very self-motivated, and self-centered. And we all know how utterly weak and prone to failure we really are! The beginning of a new year is always a good time to evaluate as it’s a kind of new beginning for us as we look ahead and think about the next 12 months. The reason I choose this text of scripture in John 1 this week, is because the apostle John had some really awesome things to say about beginnings. Beginnings are important because they set the stage for what follows next. When we set goals at the beginning of things, we reveal our intent and purpose for whatever we’re about to do. God revealed something through John when the Holy Spirit moved his hand to write these words. In fact, John was actually just paralleling the beginning of the entire bible. The first few verses of John are a parallel of the first few verses of Genesis.
Genesis 1:1-4
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.”   
   There is a lot to learn from the passages. One of the most important things we learn from John is that the “Word,” referring to Jesus Christ Himself, is fully God and has eternally existed as a person of the one triune God, and was present at the beginning of the universe as we know it. John teaches us that there is not one thing in all creation that wasn’t made without Christ! Our pastor preached one of the greatest sermons I have ever heard today on Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” John MacArthur said “everything that could be said about everything that exists, is said in that one verse,” These passages that we’re looking at this week, are so important for us to study when we’re thinking about the beginning of this new year. They are about the beginning of all things and set the stage for the rest of scripture and really, every area of life! I say all this, because it’s vital for us as we make resolutions and plans for the next year, that we make sure Christ is central in all of it. The Christ we claim to serve as “CHRISTians,” the Christ we just celebrated last week on CHRISTmas, is the Christ of creation, the eternal God who brought everything that has been made into existence by the awesome power of His word! It’s vital that He is central and preeminent in our lives. We cannot change ourselves for the better on our own. We must bow to His will and authority in our life, if we want to see true and lasting change. Let Christ be your beginning for this new year, let Him reveal Himself to you though the scriptures, let Him set the stage for the next 12 months and beyond to the rest of your life!


God Bless, have a great week, and Happy New Year! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


Psalm 139:1-17
“O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.
Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.
For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!”


    We can get so caught up in the crazy busyness of life, especially in the timber industry. We all work to hard and try to do more in a day than we have time to do. It’s so easy to forget that God is in control and start to think that maybe we are the ones that are in charge. It’s easy to do. The “make it happen” attitude is how we operate most of the time. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, God doesn’t want us to be lazy. He wants us to be the kind of people who will get up in the morning, show some initiative to go out and get something done. This isn’t usually a problem for loggers! Our problem is that we think we are the ones in charge and we tend to leave God in the dust of our own foolishness. I love the words of King David in Psalm 139. He makes it so clear to us that God knows our every thought and every move. Even before a word is on our lips, He knows it. That should be a sobering thought when we say some of the things we do at times! David tells us that we can’t go anywhere apart from God, He is always there. This is the God that knit us together in our mother’s womb. This is the God who knew every day of our life, thousands, even millions of years before the earth was even formed by the power of His spoken word! And we think that we are the ones in control….. How foolish can we be? God has a plan for each one of us. He has a specific calling for our life, and it’s a good plan, an awesome plan! Far greater than anything we can come up with. I’m not saying that God wants all of us to drop what we’re doing and go into “full time” ministry. Most of the time God call us to serve Him faithfully right where we’re at. For a lot of us that’s in the woods working day after day, seeking to glorify Him in all that we do. I hope and pray that the words of King David will remind you how great our God really is and that He is intimately familiar with every thought and step you take. In the middle of all the craziness, remember that God is sovereign over it all. Let Him take control and guide your way.


God bless and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


Isaiah 53:1-5
   “Who has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.”
Matthew 1:21
  “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”


    Well, Christmas is almost here! The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is coming to and end. As you gather together with family and friends this next week, or however you plan to celebrate, I hope and pray that you won’t forget reason we celebrate Christmas. I hope that you will be mindful that the reason for the incarnation of God through Jesus Christ is for the salvation of sinners. The very name Jesus, embodies salvation. Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Yeshua, meaning “Yahweh Saves.” The entire bible is God’s unfolding plan of salvation from the fall in Paradise to the promise of Paradise restored. This coming year I hope that you won’t forget the reality that God has chosen you and I as the means through which the free gift of the water of life is dispensed to a parched and thirsty world, and the world needs it now more than ever! Perhaps you yourself are thirsty! If so, the concluding words of the last book of the bible have direct application to your life, “And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.” (Revelation 22:17). There are just three simple steps you need to take to find this fountain of living water, you need to realize, repent and receive.
    First, you need to realize that you’re a sinner. If you don’t realize that you’re a sinner you wont recognize your need for a savior. Romans 3:23 says “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
    Second, you must repent of your sins. Repentance is an old english word that describes a willingness to turn from our sin toward Jesus Christ. It literally means making a complete U-turn on the road of life. It’s a change of heart and a change of mind.  It means that you are willing to follow Jesus and trust Him as your Savior and Lord. Jesus said, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15).
   Third, to demonstrate true belief means to be wiling to receive. To truly receive is to trust and depend on Jesus Christ alone to be the Lord of our lives here and now and our Savior for all eternity. It takes more than knowledge, the devil knows about Jesus and trembles at the thought. It takes more than agreement, the devil agrees that Jesus is the Son of God. What it takes is knowledge, agreement and trust in Jesus Christ alone. The requirements for eternal life are not based on what you or I can do, but on what Jesus Christ has already done. He stands ready to exchange His perfection for your imperfection.
    According to Jesus, those who realize they are sinners, repent of their sins, and receive Him as Savior and Lord are “born again” (John 3:3), not physically, but spiritually. The reality of our salvation is not dependent on our feelings but rather on the promise of the Savior who says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (John 5:24).
    If you have confessed your faith in Jesus Christ, then you can rejoice in the angelic proclamation of salvation given to the shepherds on that very first Christmas, “And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11) If you have never confessed your faith in Jesus Christ, then do so today and start 2023 off right as a new person in Christ! If you have already done that, then take this moment to renew your faith and commit to share the good news of salvation with the world around you throughout the coming year!


God bless, have a great week, and Merry Christmas! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods 


1 Corinthians 15:3-8, 12-17
    “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.”
    “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.”


    There is less than two weeks left until Christmas and as we prepare for the celebration of our Savior’s birth, I think it’s important to stop and think about the resurrection and what it really means. Without discussing the resurrection of Jesus, there’s not much  point in celebrating Christmas at all. As the apostle Paul put it to the Corinthian Christians, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” In light of Paul’s words, it’s important that Christians proclaim the truth, that the Christ of Christmas had the power to lay down His life and the power take it up again, demonstrating that He is God in human flesh. God alone is the only one who could ever accomplish what needed to be done to bring salvation to sinful mankind. If each and every one of us had to to die to pay the price for our sin we would just die and stay separated from the love of God forever. But, when Christ died to pay the price sin in our place, He broke the power of death by walking out of the tomb on the third day, forever victorious over death! I don’t know why we always wait until Easter to talk about the resurrection, it really is the most incredible part of the true Christmas story! As you gather together with family and friends to celebrate, share the whole Christmas story with them. The nativity scene is only the beginning, it’s what that baby laying in a manger came to do that really matters.


God bless, have a great week and Merry Christmas! -Terry-




     ​

WORD From The Woods
    Last week, we talked about keeping Christ at he heart of CHRISTmas and the significance of who the Messiah really is. This week, I’d like to look to Matthew’s account of the Christmas story and another word that he used for Jesus. As Matthew records, this baby was the ultimate fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy of “Immanuel.” The word Immanuel means “God with us” the ultimate self-revelation of God to mankind. Jesus Christ was and eternally is God incarnate, He is literally “God in flesh.”


Matthew 1:21-23
    “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”
(which means, God with us).”
John 1:1,14
    “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
    “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Philippians 2:5-11    
    “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”


   The clear teaching of scripture is that in the incarnation, Jesus was fully God and fully man. He existed as the perfect unity in one person of both a divine and human nature. Paul beautifully expressed the incredible truth of the incarnation in this passage from his letter to the Philippian church. As the only sinless man to ever die a sinners death, Jesus Christ, Immanuel, was the only person who could sufficiently atone for the sins of the world once and for all! Without both natures, it wouldn’t have been enough. His sacrifice was sufficient to provide redemption for the sins of mankind. He did what Adam and every one of us since then could not do.
“For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:22 ESV)
     Christmas is now less than 3 weeks away. As you prepare to gather with family and friends to celebrate, remember the first and greatest Christmas gift of all time, who is Jesus Christ, Immanuel!


God bless, have a great week and Merry Christmas! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods


    Over the next few weeks, as we prepare to celebrate the Christmas holiday, I’d like take take a look at the true heart of Christmas. This week I’d like to look at the familiar passage in Luke’s Gospel about the birth of Christ.


Luke 2:1-21
     “In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.  And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.”


   This passage is probably very familiar to most of us. It’s often read on Christmas Eve with family and friends sitting around the Christmas tree or shared in a Christmas Eve service by the pastor at your local church. If your like me, it brings back warm, wonderful memories of my childhood and the excitement and anticipation of waking up Christmas morning to open presents and spend the day with my family. These are all good and wonderful things, but as much as we try, as Christians we still very much buy into the selfish commercialism of the Christmas season. Somehow we think if we just read a story about the birth of Jesus and put a Nativity scene on display that we are keeping Christ at the center of it all. But, I’d ask you to really examine your heart and seek God to see if Christ is really at the center of your heart this Christmas season. The word Christ is thought by many in this day and age to simply be the last name of Jesus, but it was a term that held awesome life changing meaning for the people at the time of His birth. The word Christ is the greek rendering of the Hebrew word Messiah, it means anointed one. The Christ of Christmas is the long awaited Messiah who fulfilled all the types and shadows of Old Testament prophecy. God’s people had been waiting for the coming Messiah for thousands of years. Ever since Adam and Eve chose to break their relationship with God by rebelling against Him in the Garden of Eden, mankind has been plagued by a life of perpetual sin. The only hope of restoring that broken relationship and having eternal life with the Creator was though the promised Messiah. As we spend the next few busy weeks preparing for Christmas, please take the time to make sure your family and friends understand the significance of who the Christ of Christmas really is and truly keep Him at the center of it all. Giving gifts is a great way to communicate the love that God gifted to this broken world through sending His Son. The evergreen trees that we decorate with lights and display in our homes are a symbol of Christ, who is the Light go the world and the only way to everlasting life. Don’t let another Christmas pass without using it as a way to point your family and friends back to Christ, the true heart of Christmas!


God bless, merry Christmas and have a great week! -Terry-

WORD From The Woods
  
    I shared this last year, but I think it’s good to remind ourselves again, where we came from as a nation as we’re preparing to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday this week in the USA. I hope that you keep a heart of thanksgiving to our creator for all the blessings He has given to us. Thanksgiving is not about "turkey day" and football, though those are wonderful things for us to enjoy and be thankful for. The Thanksgiving holiday should be about honoring the Lord God above all else. Here are a few Psalms of thanksgiving, followed by President Washington's proclamation of thanksgiving. I hope that, wherever you are gathering with family and friends this Thursday to celebrate Thanksgiving, you will consider reading Washington’s proclamation to everyone you are with. Most Americans today have never even heard of it, and it’s a great way to point us back to our Christian heritage!


God Bless and have a great week! -Terry-


Psalms 69:30 (ESV)
" I will praise the name of God with a song;
I will magnify him with thanksgiving."


Psalms 106:1 (ESV)
"Praise the LORD!
Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!"


Psalms 138:1-2 (ESV)
" I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word."


   President Washington declared the first national day of Thanksgiving in 1789.  He sent the following, along with the proclamation, to the Governors of the United States:


"I do myself the honor to enclose to your Excellency a Proclamation for a general Thanksgiving which I must request the favor of you to have published and made known in your State in the way and manner that shall be most agreeable to yourself."


Here is the proclamation the President sent:


[New York, 3 October 1789]


By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation.


"Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor-- and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.


Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be—That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks—for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation—for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his Providence which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war—for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed—for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted—for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.


And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions—to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually--to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed--to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord—To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us—and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.


Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789."