This picture of God, mistaken though it is, nonetheless captures the view of many people still today whom we might call “cultural Christians.” Folks like these have a passing acquaintance with Christianity and perhaps a tie to the church through a pious parent or godly grandparent, but no real grasp of the Holy Scriptures or of what our Lord Jesus truly taught.

Sadly, this picture of God has sometimes poisoned the original intent of potentially powerful customs in the church. Take Lent, for instance. We can tell what our culture thinks about it by watching the excesses of Mardi Gras. The drunkenness and other debauchery, lasting in some places for weeks, seems to say something like this: “Let’s get in all the sin we can before Lent arrives and God’s angry fist descends to destroy our fun.”

While some Christians observe Lent and others do not, we all do well to prepare our hearts for the glorious celebration of our Savior’s resurrection at Easter. Such preparation goes much deeper than a superficial decision to “give up chocolate” for six weeks. The early Christian church used the 40 days before Easter to rehearse the key teachings of Christ and all he has done to rescue us from sin and death. New believers were instructed in the faith; more mature believers made use of this time of preparation to review the basics of Christianity they had come to confess as truth. 

Think of it this way: Medical doctors often treat patients with a newly diagnosed chronic illness. High blood pressure, for instance. After a week or two on medication, the patient’s symptoms begin to fade away. Some patients interpret this as a miraculous cure —and stop taking the medicine. The symptoms come roaring back, sometimes with disastrous results. Call it denial. Call it a failure to communicate. Call it what you will, the doctor shakes her head and the patient bears the consequences.

The spiritual version of this scenario may occur even more often. Pastors and other Christian workers face it all the time. The Holy Spirit leads a person to recognize her sin and her need for the salvation Jesus has won for us. She relies fully on the blood of Christ shed for us on his cross. True peace cascades into this believer’s heart and life.

Yet after a week or two, a month or two, life seeps slowly back into a routine, a kind of “new normal.” Satan subtly slips the key truths of repentance and faith out from her field of awareness. She—or should I say we, for it happens to all of us—fail to notice because we’re focusing on other areas of our busy lives. Without realizing it, we’ve stumbled back under the Law, back under the bondage of trying and of trying harder to please God.

Instead of recognizing the truth that in Christ, God is already pleased with us, we labor under what St. Paul calls in Galatians 3 the “foolishness” of works (vv. 2–3), the “curse of the law” (vv. 10–14). At heart, this curse involves primarily the burden of shouldering the doleful “have-tos,” “shoulds,” and “musts” that Satan hangs over our heads like an eternal sword of Damocles.

•  In Christ and his cross, God is already pleased with us—with you! He takes as much pleasure in you right this moment as he will on that day he welcomes you into his eternal presence in the heavenly home. His love is an everlasting love that began in eternity past and will never change (Jeremiah 31:3; Malachi 3:6; Ephesians 1:3–4).
• In Christ and his cross, your sins are gone. They have disappeared into the sea of God’s forgetfulness (Micah 7:19). God has removed them as far from you as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).

 Our culture, of course, fails to understand this kind of love and forgiveness. Even our own minds boggle at it sometimes. Consider, for example, Romans 4:5: 

To the [person] who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness (NIV, emphasis added).

 God justifies the wicked! Think of it! If we were good, we wouldn’t need a Savior! As we prepare for Easter, we do so remembering how much we truly need Jesus. We go back to the basic truths of sin and salvation. We recall that, though we once slaved for sin and Satan, we do so no longer. We instead revel in the deep, deep love of Jesus who died for us “while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8 NIV).

 And we exercise the freedom that’s ours in Christ for all it’s worth! Our heavenly Father wants our spiritual walk to be the exciting, joy-filled adventure of being who we are in Christ. We no longer have to do good works to earn our salvation. Instead, we get to! We can! We want to! (And for those times when our sinful nature tempts us not to want to, we have the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit working in us to renovate our desires.) Only the children of God can understand the joy of the psalmist:

I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free (Psalm 119:32 NIV).

Like children at 3:30 pm on the last day of school as summer vacation begins, we race down the steps and out the front door, free from assignments and term papers and the tardy bell. We get to do what we want. And what we want to do is to run in the path of Christlikeness, because at the cross, our Lord Jesus has set our hearts free.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

You are welcome to copy this devotion for one-time use in your organization as long as you will receive no monetary benefit from it. Please include this copyright line and submit an actual copy of use to CTA, attention Editorial Manager.

Used with permission grant #041008. © 2008 CTA, Inc. No duplication of this devotion is allowed without the express written consent of CTA, PO Box 1205, Fenton, MO 63026. www.CTAinc.com.

It’s also why more and more churches have begun to look for ways to “theme” major celebrations—like the weeks leading up to Easter (Lent, in liturgical churches). And it’s why CTA wants to work with you as you think about doing it, too. 

Whether yours is a house-church, a mega-church, or something in-between, this year’s theme, The Power of the Cross, will resonate with worshipers. Materials—many free—include:

• Day-by-day devotional materials based on the Power of the Cross theme.
• Free sermons tied to the Power of the Cross devotions
•  Discussion guides tied to the Power of the Cross devotions and sermons, written for small groups or Bible study. (You will find the appropriate study on the pages following the free sermon for each week.) 
• Materials for kids and youth, helping them to focus on thePower of the Cross theme, too!
• Free invitations and follow-up materials, all based on the Power of the Cross theme and art.

Ash Wednesday is February 17, 2010, so it’s not too late to order! But don’t put it off. Just think of what God might want to do in the lives of everyone in your church this spring!

God's Love is So Big it's Amazing Children's Valentines Book

Did you know that February 14 falls on Sunday in 2010? Have you considered ways you might “seize the day” for the children’s ministries in your church? Maybe you’ve been thinking about it, but aren’t quite sure what to do. Or perhaps you find yourself knee-deep in the planning process.

In either case, you may want to consider the new materials CTA has developed for children across a wide age range. Consider these two options:

• Host a Valentine’s Day party for kids in Sunday school and encourage them to bring their friends on this special day.
• Offer a three- or four-hour “parents day out” on Sunday afternoon and encourage both church members and community families to bring their children.

No time to plan a party? CTA offers a free planning guide. It includes tons of ideas for games, food, activities, projects, and everything else you need to make your event a success. The guide is so complete that you might consider giving it to a small team of volunteers and letting them run with it.

In addition, you may find one or more of these free devotions helpful in your planning. They will help keep everything Christ-centered.

Plus, if you need publicity, check out these free, downloadable tools (invitations, flyers, and postcards for follow-up).

If you’re looking for inexpensive reminders of God’s love, reminders that carry an age-appropriate Valentine’s theme, CTA has developed many new products just in time for February 14. Check them out!

Introduction

In just a few days we will celebrate Christmas. For most of us, Christmas is more than just one day; it is an entire season filled with so many different sights and sounds and memories. Just about everyone seems to have favorite foods, activities, and family traditions. For most of us, Christmas is a time of joy, excitement, and anticipation. Take a moment and think about some of the things that make Christmas special for you.

 (Pause—if time allows you might invite a few people to share with the group.)

One of the many traditions Christians have is gift giving. Many of us spend hours planning what we will give and anticipating what we will receive. Giving and receiving gifts is one way we show our love for one another. And yet, if I were to ask you to tell me one gift you received or even gave last Christmas, could you do it? Perhaps a few of you could, but by now most of those gifts have been forgotten, used up, or broken.

Getting to the Heart

Remembering what we received last year can be a challenge, but there is one gift that we cannot forget; indeed, it is the very reason we celebrate!

The whole idea of gift-giving began in the heart of the One who made us. In the beginning God created the world and everything in it out of pure love for us. He created Adam and Eve and all living things. When he was finished, “God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).

But as we know, it didn’t stay good. Adam and Eve disobeyed God and since then, each one of us has done the same. Our sin separates us from God. The sin in our hearts leads us to commit all kinds of sins that hurt us and those around us. Our sin breaks God’s heart. Yet, because of his great love for us, God devised a plan to save us from the punishment we deserved, a plan to bring us back to himself.

Isn’t it interesting to know God created us with the full knowledge that our sin would mean the death of his Son? Right from the start God knew the sacrifice he would have to make, and yet he did it anyway. Why? Because “God is love” (1 John 4:8), and from all eternity, he intended to share his love with us. God’s great love came to us as a Gift, the Gift of a tiny Baby born more than 2,000 years ago!

That first Christmas was so unlike the holiday we celebrate today. There were no sparkly lights, no warm food, no parties, and no tinsel or glitter. Instead, a man and woman, a group of shepherds, some barn animals, and one carol—the praise chorus offered by the angels—heralded the Gift, the baby Jesus. It is amazing to think that God would be so quiet about the event he had been planning since before the creation!

It is difficult to understand why God chose to send Jesus the way he did, but maybe the answer can come from what the angels said. As the shepherds watched their flocks out in the dark field that night, suddenly the sky lit up, and “the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10–11).

The message was for “all people,” but it was also a very personal, individual Gift. God could have shared the news with the whole world at once. Instead, he sent his messengers to a lonely field outside of Bethlehem, to a group of lowly shepherds. Those shepherds believed the message and went to see the baby. There, beside the tiny manger, they received the Gift of Jesus! Afterward, they went on to share the Gift with all the people they met, one by one.

Taking It Home

The Gift of Jesus is for you! Jesus came as a baby for you with the expressed purpose to save you from your sin. Perhaps the best known verse in the Bible is John 3:16:

 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

You may know that verse from memory, but today, right now, I want you make sure you know it not only in your head, but also in your heart. I want you to know that it is for you! If you were the only person on earth, the only person in need of God’s forgiveness and salvation, he still would have made the sacrifice. He would have sent his Son for just one, for just you. Jesus would have gone through all of that pain and suffering just for you and only for you.

In fact, while he was on the cross, bearing your sin, he thought of you! He stayed on the cross out of love for you! He died for you, and he rose again to give life to you! Now that is a gift worth remembering!

This devotion is adapted from This Gift Is for You © 2005 CTA, Inc. You are welcome to copy this article for one-time use in your organization as long as you will receive no monetary benefit from it. Please include this copyright line and submit an actual copy of use to CTA, attention Editorial Manager.

Used with permission grant #122209. © 2009 CTA, Inc. No duplication of this article is allowed without the express written consent of CTA, PO Box 1205, Fenton, MO 63026-1205. www.CTAinc.com.

Scripture quotations are from the King James or Authorized Version of the Bible.

Joy should be everywhere, shouldn’t it? Digging out from all the December craziness, we realize Christmas isn’t just a special day on the calendar. We’re journeying to Bethlehem in faith to kneel in awe and adoration at the little baby feet of the world’s Savior, Jesus Christ. We celebrate God’s gift of love, wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, his gift that brings joy from heaven to earth. Jesus brings joy for the world—for everyone, everywhere. 

Jesus brings joy and blessings abound—enough for everyone! Maybe joy comes to you in new memories you create with relatives from out of town, in an unexpected bonus you receive at work, or in an extra measure of the Christmas spirit you feel in your heart.

Still, even with joy surrounding us, some of us  experience the “merry side of Christmas,” only to slide quickly into despair. Our fa’s are strong early in the season, but before long, our la’s fall flat. Some of us find our joy crumpled up like a pile of discarded post-Christmas wrapping paper.

Are you lip-syncing both the fa’s and the la’s, hoping others don’t notice your struggle to smile? Certainly, not everyone agrees that it’s the most wonderful time of the year. Christmastime can be a highly charged, emotional time. So many variables toy with our level of joy. Think about it . . .

• Some dread their first Christmas without someone they loved, while others anticipate their first Christmas with someone they love.
• Some receive a helpful end-of-the-year financial windfall, while others find themselves falling more and more into debt with no help in sight.
• Some find the season invigorating, while others find it nerve-racking.
• Some couples celebrate their first Christmas as husband and wife, while others experience their first as ex-husband and ex-wife.
• Some come to life, surrounded with people, while others come to deal with loneliness, even when surrounded by people.
• Some feel overly blessed, while others feel overly stressed.

As we come to adore our Savior, each of us brings blessings as well as burdens to the manger. So let’s pause in our journey to the manger to notice the people around us. We’re traveling together, and it’s important to realize we all travel by faith. We come, only because the divine Child first journeyed from heaven to earth. His birth, death, and resurrection conquers loneliness, anxiety, stress, and all our other burdens.

 Jesus’ gift isn’t necessarily a jump-up-and-down joy, although it certainly can be that. It’s primarily a joy that settles deep in our hearts. It’s a joyful, contented peace. This divine present comes with Jesus’ presence.

Jesus brings joy to the world. He also brings joy for the world. He knows our world is filled with sin and its accompanying heartache, pain, and grief. But let there be no doubt that he’s also intimately aware of every breath you take, every word you speak, and every situation you face. And he’s aware of your need for joy. So he wraps his miraculous joy within his gifts of forgiveness, help, and hope. It’s true! Jesus brings joy for the world—for everyone, everywhere.

Come and receive. Come and worship.

Come and go . . . sharing his gifts.

Editor’s note: Several Joy for the World gifts are available from CTA this Christmas. Get yours before they’re gone!

© 2007 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for ruse within a church or other Christian organization.

 The Scripture quotation is from the King James or Authorized Version.

This time of year, many of us give gifts. In fact, most of us probably give more gifts at Christmastime than at any other time of the year. Gift giving has its own protocol. If we fail to follow it, that failure can lead to some uncomfortable moments—for us, for our friends, or for both!

For example, we don’t want to embarrass someone by giving them a gift when they have not planned to get anything for us. On the other hand, we don’t want to be caught empty-handed when a friend rings our doorbell, brightly wrapped gifts for every member of our family piled high in her arms. Some people I know (maybe some of you, too?) buy an extra generic gift or two to keep gift wrapped in a dresser drawer for just such an emergency!

Another thing. We want the gifts we give someone else to cost roughly what we imagine they will spend on us. It wouldn’t do to give someone a box of candy and then receive in return that antique baseball card we have been looking for since 1981 that sells for $815 on eBay!

And finally, as the Emily Post Institute makes clear, we would never, ever, ever try to “re-gift” a present we have received, unless we can be 210% certain that the person who gave it to us will never find out.

Getting to the Heart

God gives gifts at Christmastime, too, just like we do. (And throughout the year as well, of course!) But He stands our gift-giving rules right on their heads. He ignores the rules about “not giving more than you will receive.” He never warehouses generic blessings to have in stock in case He receives an unexpected gift. No, He gives and gives and gives and keeps on giving to those of us who live on earth, to people totally undeserving of those gifts—people totally incapable of “payback.”

We certainly have not earned our heavenly Father’s generosity. In fact, we have often defied His commands. We have, in selfishness, taken advantage of His goodness and sometimes even presumed on His mercy. Our heavenly Father knew we would do this. Still, He gave His most priceless possession to us anyway—His only Son, our Savior, Jesus.

In 2 Corinthians 9:15, Paul writes, “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” Let me set these words in context. Paul’s exclamation follows a “thank-you note” of sorts. At a time when the believers in Jerusalem had faced a serious lack of food, clothing, and other life necessities, the church in Corinth had come through for them—and had come through generously. So as Paul wrote about other matters, he also tucked in a paragraph of special thanks. Keep in mind that he himself had helped to organize the help drive in the first place.

The apostle doesn’t stop with a simple “thank you” though. He also wants his readers to know many people will praise God for their generosity. He wants them to know that the Jerusalem Christians will, in turn, pray for them. (Just imagine how surprising this sounded in that time and culture: Jews praying for Gentiles, Gentiles supporting Jews!)

Finally, Paul adds that the generosity of the believers in Corinth wasn’t something they dreamed up on their own or something they accomplished out of their own holy intentions. Rather, it came about almost incidentally as God’s love overflowed into their lives. Their generosity was created by the brimming-over, more-than-abundant grace of God at work in their hearts. It resulted from all the many gifts God had given, especially the gift of Jesus, the Savior, and His cross, the fountain from whom all blessings flow. That’s when Paul exclaims, “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!”

God’s good gifts—especially the gift of Jesus—defy description. One dictionary defines indescribable as referring to “a thing of untellable splendor.” Doesn’t that fit just perfectly? The forgiveness of sins, peace with God, the hope that defeats even death itself—these are things of “untellable splendor.” And all of them—all of them—came down to earth at Christmas when love came down—wrapped in the swaddling cloths of Bethlehem’s baby boy! Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!

We celebrate that gift, especially at Christmas time! We sing! We praise! We act in love toward our co-workers, toward others in our family, and with our neighbors and friends.

Even better, this is one gift we can “re-gift,” worry free! In fact, the Holy Spirit urges us to give this gift away generously, to give it to others as we share our Lord’s unbelievable love with everyone around us. Miracle of miracles, the more we share God’s indescribable gift, the more we have for ourselves. The more we give it away, the more brightly and warmly His love burns in our hearts, despite the winter chill outside. What an indescribable gift!

We can never pay that gift back. We can never compensate the Gift Giver, and so, we “pay it forward.” We pass it on to everyone around us, to those in need of the Good News Jesus has brought into our own lives.

The Scripture quotation is from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

© 2008 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for use within a church or other Christian organization, but not for resale.

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The year was 1620, the ship was the Mayflower, and the people were called Pilgrims. Their faithful God sustained them as they prayed and sang praises, despite their dire circumstances. 

They reached the New World three months later, but their challenges continued. It was November and winter was quickly approaching. They needed to build homes and clear land so they could plant crops the next spring. 

God did meet their needs. By the next fall the cribs the pilgrims had built held more than enough corn to see them through the second winter. Filled with gratitude, the Pilgrims wanted to honor God for his goodness. 

Governor Bradford declared a public day of Thanksgiving. Ninety Native Americans joined in the festivities, bringing dressed deer and wild turkeys. Together, the group celebrated with joy!

 Perhaps you’ve heard the story of the Pilgrims and that first Thanksgiving Day since childhood. Though fully historical, the events can seem like a “once-upon-a-time” fairy tale. So as you observe Thanksgiving Day this year, take a little time to think back on your own life. Consider the promise made by our Lord: 

God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 

When have you see this promise come true for you? 

• As you sat at the bedside of a sick child or dying parent?
• As you safely navigated the deadly blizzard or hurricane?
• As you heard the doctor’s welcome words, “The surgery was successful.”
• As your loved one said, “I forgive you,” and in those words heard your Savior’s pardon, too?

Having surveyed the past and seen God’s fingerprints on a life of blessing, we can then look forward to the future with hope. Perhaps you know these words of encouragement:

I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future. 

We know our Lord’s limitless love for us because we have seen his only Son hang, bleed, and die on Calvary’s cross for us. Blessed by him, we can in turn bless others, without reservation, knowing that in Christ Jesus, God will supply all our needs.

May you have a blessed and holy Thanksgiving celebration! And may Jesus continue to work in you joyful, thankful, generous hearts!

This devotion is adapted from one of the free resources CTA offers to encourage churches and support church staffs in their ministries. You’re welcom to browse for more resources on our website.

“I thank Thee that I have never been robbed before. I thank Thee that even though they took my purse, they did not take my life. I thank Thee that though they took my all, it was not much. I thank Thee that it was I who was robbed, and not I who robbed.”

 This almost unbelievable prayer reminds us that we always have something for which to thank our Lord. . . .

Read the rest of this devotion from CTA’s collection of free downloadable Ministry Messages. Pastors, are you looking for a jumpstart for your Thanksgiving Day sermon? You may find some ideas here! (Scroll down to find the Thanksgiving collection.)

By ignoring problems, though, we won’t make them evaporate. In fact, they will usually grow! Attendance drops off. Other volunteers suddenly remember previous commitments. The “misfit” becomes more uncomfortable, and perhaps irritable. Important work goes undone and goals go unmet. 

Are you facing an awkward situation like this? Then subscribe to CTA’s Grab N’ Go newsletter. It’s free, and the October issue (which will hit in-boxes October 6)  includes an article detailing eight ways to face the issue head-on, with kindness and compassion. You can use all or some of the ideas to create a plan. Then act. You’ll be glad you did!

Each month, CTA’s newsletter includes articles written with you in mind! We want to see you highly effective in your ministry so that the Kingdom of our Lord is strengthened and expanded.

NOTE: Link to CTA’s email subscription page.

Recently I cruised the CTA website and decided to check out some pages I hadn’t looked at in some time. Remembering that during October many churches set aside special time to honor their pastors in special ways, I headed to the CTA Pastor Appreciation link. As I pulled up the pages I discovered something I had no idea was on the site – a free, downloadable PDF file titled, CTA’s Favorite Ways to Show Pastor and Staff Appreciation. I love stumbling across new and creative ideas, especially if they’ve been used successfully in other churches. This list of twenty ideas came from the CTA staff, who likely have observed them used in their congregations. What a great resource. And it’s free!

I then found four other free downloads to help churches recognize and honor pastors … customizable postcard templates, name badges, a power point presentation, and a brochure by Sonscape Retreats titled, 50 Ways to Love Your Pastor. What great discoveries – even better than three dollars in a coat pocket!