Merry Christmas!
I
hope this letter finds you hopeful and grateful as we move through the
Christmas season. I love this quote by
W. J. Cameron: "There has been only one
Christmas -- the rest are anniversaries."
So we are celebrating
another anniversary of the coming of Christ into his world! The Apostle John put it this way, “He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize
him” (John 1:10 NLT). More than 2,000 years have passed and still today, many do not
recognize him! Our great desire is for
college students and everyone to ‘recognize him’! When we do we’re welcomed into his family and
experience the new life, the abundant and eternal life as a gift! This is the joy of Christmas!
God continues to do great
things in and through the students in Marlin Ministries! It is a great privilege to build up young
people in the faith. The conversations,
the insights from the Scriptures, students stepping up in leadership and
hearing how God is at work among our alumni are all great sources of
encouragement to me personally. There
have been numerous times over the semester where I’ve been able to share the
story of Jesus with a student who is unfamiliar with the story and in a couple
cases, the students have never heard!
Wow, to share the greatest story ever told is a phenomenal delight.
If you have been at one
of our Christmas worship gatherings or Life Groups, you may have heard me share
my favorite Christmas Carol. It is Hark,
the Herald Angels Sing, written by Charles Wesley. As I write this, there are students next door
are singing it, getting ready for our annual caroling of the campus! When I was in college the words to this
marvelous hymn became reality to me, as I understood them for the first time!
Mild He lays His Glory by
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the new-born King
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the new-born King
I had recently received
Jesus as my Savior and my Lord as a junior at Old Dominion University. In that moment, this song that I had sung
every Christmas without understanding and without the life of Christ in me,
gave me understanding as to what had happened in my life! The eternal Son of God willingly set aside
the glory of heaven and the glory of the presence of his Father. He came to earth! And his purpose in coming was to raise us, to
give us a second birth!
This Christmas know that
you are loved with an everlasting love!
And the proof is the life of Jesus.
I want to challenge you and your families to read or reread the
Christmas story in the Gospels. You can
cover this in just five chapters: Luke 1 & 2; Matthew 1 & 2; John 1.
Consider
well Christ this Christmas, his birth, his teachings, his example, his claims
& promises, his death and his resurrection and finally consider his LOVE
for you and all of us . . . then act!
A
blessed Christmas to you all,
Greg
West
