new birth (2nd try)

Christmas, by definition, is the celebration of a birth. We celebrate the birth of Jesus. But Jesus already had an existence, before He was born. He was with the Father in the beginning at Creation. He showed up on Earth in spiritual form before He was born as a baby. But Jesus needed a human birth to become a man so that He could demonstrate the greater power of God and the greater plan of God to deliver men from the grip of self and sin. You might say that Jesus was "born again".

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First of spirit and then of flesh, His two births exactly mirror the two births we need.....first of flesh and then of spirit! He came from Heaven to earth that we, who start on earth might enter Heaven. It is our choice whether or not to accept the gift of His life and love....He didn't have to come to earth as a baby. That was a choice... and it is your choice as well, whether to respond to His great gift to you.

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Micah 5:2b-4 ...Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf...And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord's strength, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.

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He was twice born that you might also be!

Rob Smith

new birth

The Christmas Concert at the Chapel kicked off with the first performance last night. As a choir member it is always interesting on the first night to both participate in the program and enjoy seeing the program unfold for the first time with all its pieces coming together. Until the first night of the concert we don't see all of the performers and we don't hear all of the music . We haven't heard how the narration integrates and pulls it all together. We haven't heard our Pastor's message. We finally feel the impact of the entire program on that first night. And the program last night was wonderful! I felt like a beautiful picture was being painted of the Lord throughout the night...a picture of His love for all men. And then it occurred to me that this picture of Jesus, which I first started to hear about as a child is becoming clearer all the time as my life unfolds. Just like the first night of the concert, I am gradually seeing more of the pieces of His story and His love and His personality unfold in my life and the life of other people. And my picture of Jesus is growing into sharper focus. No longer just a quaint story of a baby born to a humble couple in a stable...something that happened long ago...Now Jesus is becoming more defined as one who lives today, as well, and who still reaches people and heals them and rescues them and feeds them with the food of the soul. The picture of Jesus is growing clearer, sharper, more three dimensional all the time!

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John 6:57 "I live because of the living Father who sent me; in the same way, anyone who feeds on me will live because of me."

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blessings,

Rob Smith

coming into focus

The Christmas Concert at the Chapel kicked off with the first performance last night. As a choir member it is always interesting on the first night to both participate in the program and enjoy seeing the program unfold for the first time with all its pieces coming together. Until the first night of the concert we don't see all of the performers and we don't hear all of the music . We haven't heard how the narration integrates and pulls it all together. We haven't heard our Pastor's message. We finally feel the impact of the entire program on that first night. And the program last night was wonderful! I felt like a beautiful picture was being painted of the Lord throughout the night...a picture of His love for all men. And then it occurred to me that this picture of Jesus, which I first started to hear about as a child is becoming clearer all the time as my life unfolds. Just like the first night of the concert, I am gradually seeing more of the pieces of His story and His love and His personality unfold in my life and the life of other people. And my picture of Jesus is growing into sharper focus. No longer just a quaint story of a baby born to a humble couple in a stable...something that happened long ago...Now Jesus is becoming more defined as one who lives today, as well, and who still reaches people and heals them and rescues them and feeds them with the food of the soul. The picture of Jesus is growing clearer, sharper, more three dimensional all the time!

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John 6:57 "I live because of the living Father who sent me; in the same way, anyone who feeds on me will live because of me."

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blessings,

Rob Smith

the difference

The crisp December air was a good wake up exercise this morning down at the pond. There was frost on the ground but there were signs of life in the air as a few ducks quacked overhead and a heron squawked with its usual complaint. The nearly full moon contrasted sharply with the dark sky, not ready to give up its rule to the approaching sun. I found peace in this natural setting and thought about the diverse beauty of God's Creation. It really isn't just about us, down here. He fashioned so much with His hands and voice...animal life, plant life, tapestries of valleys, hills and waterways. They all reflect His glory. But it occurred to me that there is a difference between the rest of creation and man. Man was fashioned by God, just as the rest of his handiwork. We are a natural being. But, unlike the rest of Creation, we don't just reflect His glory back to Him. We have the opportunity to personally know our Creator. I don't believe that any other aspect of Creation can do this. We are created beings who have the capacity to come into a personal, family-like relationship with the one who has formed us. And this difference makes all the difference!

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Genesis 1:26&27 (part) Then God said, "Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us."....So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them...

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blessings,

Rob Smith

Emmanuel

Christmas is fast approaching. Calendars are becoming very full! Life is very challenging at this time of year. This is the season that we remember that God came to be in our midst. Jesus was also called Emmanuel which means "God with us". This has become very personal to me over the past day. For some reason I didn't sleep well the first two nights of this week. Work has been challenging as well and we have had functions to attend at night. And this week we will sing for five straight nights in the concert! On the way into the garage last night I didn't allow enough clearance and scraped the front of my car. Already exhausted, I climbed into bed with nervous apprehension that I wouldn't be able to sleep well again. As my mind turned over my worries and concerns all of a sudden a peace came over me and the clear thought surfaced, "I am with you". I realized the Lord was present and that He is always present and just focused on the peace of that presence. Emmanuel had become very personal to me at that moment. God is with us and God is for us. In the midst of my weakness I was reminded that, despite that weakness, He is my strength (and He alone!).

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Isaiah 7:14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means 'God is with us').

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blessings,

Rob Smith

servant

Our Chapel Choir is coming down the home stretch for our Christmas Concert series. We've been practicing since Labor Day and there is a great sense of excitement about the program this year. Many hours of preparation and practice have gone into the process. It takes many voices and a patient and skilled director to bring it together. I learned this past week that it also takes special servants who are willing to pay a high price in time and effort with no visible appearance during the actual concert. The choir has a pianist who has learned all of the music and practiced every practice with the choir but who will not be the concert pianist for the actual programs. She will be available as a backup as the actual pianist will come from out of town. We could never have learned our parts if she hadn't learned the music first. And yet she will step aside for the actual concert series. What a great picture of servanthood this is and what a fine example of how the body is meant to function. We come and lay our gifts before Him, like the Wise Men at the first Christmas. Sometimes those gifts are not even seen by others but they contribute in important ways. Our desire is that the Lord who has given all the gifts would be glorified and pleased as they are raised to Him.

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And we are especially thankful for our pianist, who has served all the hours of practice and willingly steps aside. The Lord sees it all and surely smiles!

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Matthew 23:11 The greatest among you must be a servant.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

light needs a surface

I was in a local church last night for a Christmas program that my grandchildren sang in. Of course it was a warm and satisfying experience to be there and share the early Christmas season in music and scripture. This church has a very high ceiling and all of the lights are located high above. They were dimmed somewhat and we all held candles during the program to add to the intimacy. I considered how those lights, located so far above the floor, normally fill the sanctuary. They do it by reflecting off all of the surfaces. It occurred to me that light needs a surface for its power to be felt. The light of the sun travels millions of miles through the darkness of space and is not seen or felt until there is a surface, like Earth, to receive it. And then the light is fulfilled as its energy brings visibility, brings warmth, brings seasons. And it occurs to me that the light of the Lord travels through the blackness of unbelief until it finds a receptive heart to warm, renew, awaken and fill with light, truth and life from Heaven! Light needs a surface!

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John 1:9 The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

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blessings,
Rob Smith

the Planner

Planning is something I have done professionally in my life. At the shipyard I worked in "Nuclear Planning" related to the construction of nuclear powered ships and in my second career I have been doing "Financial Planning". The "verse of the day" in my Bible today is Isaiah 25:1, "O Lord, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them.

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Talk about planning! God planned a universe and a world and all that makes them spin and support life. He has plans for kingdoms and nations too and they have all been fulfilled. It occurred to me that a God who is so successful at the big plans is certainly capable of having a plan for my life too! And looking back I can see that His plans have been working out. It is amazing to me to see the Master Planner complete His works while still permitting us, as individuals, great freedom to make personal choices.

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Truly, Lord, we can say with the Psalmist: "You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them."

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blessings,

Rob Smith

passing it on

We get so busy in life with all of our daily responsibilities and routines that it can be helpful to pause and consider the big picture once in a while. When all is said and done what would we like our lives to count for? When we are long gone will there be any lasting impact from our lives? Having just celebrated Thanksgiving we were reminded of the central place that family has in this. We had four generations around our table and it was a good reminder that family is one lasting investment of our lives, just as family members from previous generations directly impacted and shaped our lives. Our lives make a difference in the lives of others. When it comes to finding the reality of the Lord, our lives play a key role in the lives of others. The example of a life that is lived with the Lord at the center greatly impacts those around that one. And when it comes to making an impact that is lasting it is hard to think of a greater impact than "passing on" the truth of the living Lord to the next generation! And what can be more lasting than lives which begin here and continue in the light of Heaven?

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blessings,

Rob Smith

the skinny wire

My car is old enough to still have a cassette player.  I discovered a gadget that looks like a cassette tape but that allows my smart phone to play music through it.  This gadget has a skinny wire and a plug that connects my phone to the stereo.  The first time I used it I couldn't believe how clear and full the sound was.  First, my smart phone was pulling in the music out of the air and then sending it through a very skinny wire to the car stereo...and it came out so beautifully!  How does all that work?  And how, specifically, did all that music travel through that very skinny wire and into the car stereo?  Technology amazes me.  It also occurred to me that we are like skinny wires also.  The love of the Lord crosses the expanse of Heaven and invades our fragile hearts and minds and then travels through our skinny wire to touch others and to make music that glorifies Him.  This Christmas Season we rejoice that God invaded our world through the fragile form of a baby, who grew into a man and who continues to reach and to touch people.  We are skinny wires with the capacity to know that Lord and to carry the beautiful sound of Heaven's orchestra for a waiting world to hear.

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blessings,

Rob Smith