Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas,
Few words say more than these two, as they speak of joy in the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, good tidings of great joy the angel’s sang. As I often say, we are drawn to the Christmas story because of its simple beauty and its powerful hope.
Christmas is special for many reasons. I think of the many Christmas’ my parents gave me as a child, from Santa’s gifts under the tree that I know they sacrificed to give their four children to the many candlelight services we attended as a family where we celebrated Christ’s birth. I enjoy the decorations, music and trappings of the season. O Come, All Ye Faithful is my favorite carol, and Rhonda and I both enjoy a glass of eggnog, something we only share at Christmas time. For me, all the symbols and events of the season are experienced through the filter of my faith in Christ, and I love sharing the Christmas “good news” in sermons and messages.
This last year has been eventful for the Ramsdell family. Our oldest daughter married Jason, and together they now have five children. They seem very happy, and we are happy for them. We celebrated Thanksgiving at their home in Lumberton, Texas, the first time this holiday was not at our home or my parents’ home. Kelly, our youngest daughter, along with her husband Chad and their two children, lived with us for a couple of months as he prepared for his third deployment, this time to Afghanistan. He is in Kandahar today, and Kelly will live with her sister as they help one another during this next year (Kelly needs support while Chad is gone, and Julie needs a nanny). It seems to be working. Our son Michael, who is married to Gladys, has our youngest grandchild, Henry, and recently was advanced in the company he works for, Caris Diagnostics. He loves computers, and this is what he gets to do. Our children are all doing well as are our eight grandchildren; we are deeply proud of who they are. Faith is the center of all our family.
Our church family has had an equally wonderful year. You are an amazing church family. I am proud of you and honored to be a small part of what God is doing in and through First Church. The God Is Big Enough campaign has taken off around the world, not only in the good news the wristband has given people in so many different situations, but also helping us define who we are as a church. God Is Big Enough continues to create a great United Methodist Church that is making a tremendous impact on its community, on the United Methodist Church and in the world. I appreciate all you do and pray God blesses your family as he has mine.
As a small Christmas gift, I have put together a few of the personal “quotes” I have written the last few years, ideas that have influenced me and I hope will bless you a little. I call them Simple Ideas from Simple Ramsdell (click on this link to read). I have learned it is the concepts I can grasp quickly and consistently that create the most positive change. Maybe an idea or two here can bless you a little as well.
Merry Christmas and a God Is Big Enough New Year,
Pastor Mike Ramsdell
Category: Weekly Thoughts
