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Sunday, The Third Week of Advent - "Fear Not"

The tragedy at Newton is still on my mind as I sit down to write this morning.  Now we know the names and faces of the children, and of the adults - many of whom are now proving to have been heroes, even in their dying.  I think we owe a deep debt of gratitude to our teachers who love and care for our kids many days of the year.

 A week ago I received an invitation to watch a video.  It was from Pastor John Piper's ministry - "Desiring God".  It was a poem he wrote - more prose in style - about the Innkeeper.  That is what it is entitled.  It's a story of the sacrifice that the Innkeeper made in housing Joseph and Mary that night that Jesus was born.  For it was here in Bethlehem, less than two years later that Herod's soldiers came and slaughtered the infants two years of age and younger.

 So much of the Christmas story revolves around the words "Fear Not".  
Luke 1:12-13  
12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.
13 But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 
Luke 1:26,30  
26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,...
30 But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 

Matthew 1:20 (NIV) 
20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
Luke 2:8-10 (NIV) 
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.
9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.

It's entirely understandable that these various people...Zechariah, Mary, Joseph and the Shepherds...all of them had to face their fears.  Each of them were "afraid" because what they saw or heard was surprising and beyond their comprehension.  When we face things that are "out of our control", there is a certain sense of apprehension, even fear.  I'll come back to that tomorrow, but right now, I'd like to pause, and reflect a bit on God and our most recent fears.

The video that is linked here will direct you to this Poem - "The Innkeeper".  I hope you will take some time to listen, then pause...let us give God our trust over our fears...and then let's pray for our kids, our teachers, and Newton, Conn.


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