St. Luke's Blogs

During this series we are looking at I Corinthians 13.  I’ve always been intrigued by the concept of “seeing in a mirror dimly” (verse 12).  It reminds me of a favorite passage in the book of James.  James 1:22 says “do not merely listen to the word… do what is says!”  James goes on in verses 23-24 to pose an interesting illustration about the person who looks in a mirror and then immediately forgets his own image.

Jaxson Turner understands that not every child has reason to expect a visit from Santa while they sleep. Jaxson wanted to do something about it. Jaxson is a 13-year-old young man from McKinney, Texas. Since he was 11, he has worked hard to give away big gifts for his birthday and Christmas. Jaxson has helped to create his own charity, “Never too Young to Care.” Through his charity, Jaxson raised $6,000 dollars for this Christmas.

As a child, I wanted a cute pair of glasses, braces on my teeth, and a broken bone with a cast.  The glasses came in elementary school, the braces in Jr. High, and I finally got that elusive cast this week!

One of the most exciting moments in any sport is when a baseball player stands in the batter’s box, faces down a pitcher, and awaits the pitch.  It is at this moment that so many possibilities exist.  The pitch could be a strike, leading to the batter being called out. It could be a ball, walking the batter to first base.  The batter also has the possibility of hitting the ball, resulting in a home run.  That moment in the batter’s box is full of possibilities and this is why it is one of the most exciting moments in sports.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful;

Sing to the Lord a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things;
his right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him.
The Lord has made his salvation known
    and revealed his righteousness to the nations.
He has remembered his love
    and his faithfulness to Israel;
all the ends of the earth have seen
    the salvation of our God…

Behold, I am doing a new thing;
    now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
    and rivers in the desert.

I am in the St. Luke’s youth group and every year we go on a mission trip called Youth Force. One year during worship, our speaker gave us a chant to which we would turn to one another and shout, “Get your shine on.  Get your shine on.  Get your shine on.  Are you gonna do it?”  The other person shouts enthusiastically in response, “Yeah I’m gonna do it!”

Since 1965, Charles Schultz’s A Charlie Brown Christmas has aired on television. For many people it has become as much a part of the Christmas tradition as Santa Clause, Christmas trees, and Christmas music. It is a television program that I have seen countless times.  In this animated show, the Peanuts gang is up to their usual antics, both in and out of school. The climax of the show is when Charlie Brown continues to ask, in great desperation, “Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?”

This year has thrown off so many traditions and disrupted our family events. Halloween came and went in a blur, and I realized we didn’t carve pumpkins this year. I’m concerned that we let this year take away our sense of tradition. This Christmas, I’m determined to do the best lights on our house that we’ve ever done! I don’t want our traditions to fade away because of 2020. I want our son to grow up knowing how important it is to light up our house. It will shine on the inside and the outside. A bright point of hope in all the darkness of 2020.