By John A. Huffman Jr.
Thank God for the commitment many of you have toward peacemaking. War is not the only way of solving problems in a marriage, in a home, in a community, between nations. Jesus calls us to be peacemakers.
How special it is to see how many of you are doing something for the poor of this world. Bill Flanagan and I figured up the other day that over $350,000 is given each year from those of us at St. Andrew's to World Vision for special projects and disaster situations, and through the close to 800 child sponsorships to which St. Andrew's members are committed. Recently we have focused on the matter of AIDS. Some 380 of these children are in an area development program in Malawi, and teams from St. Andrew's have gone and will go to provide linkage in Christ.
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Jesus came to give you and me the privilege of reorienting ourselves to joyful living.
Years ago, when I pastored in Pittsburgh, I got to know a Roman Catholic priest, Father Rick Jones. It has been over 25 years since we have seen each other, but we have carried on correspondence. I received his Christmas letter this week. In it, he writes about the number of times in the biblical accounts of the coming of Jesus that we read words such as joy, joyful, joyfully, rejoice, glad, exalt, gladness, glad tidings. He writes:
The tensions, problems, stresses, and realities of contemporary life can weigh us down so much that we find it difficult to rejoice. We simply want to survive!
There is much written today about addiction to drugs, alcohol, sex, work, and even cleanliness. Enjoying "good things" can be overdone. Ill health, low self-esteem, shame, guilt, sarcasm "veiled anger," cynicism and alienation from God are all results of compulsive or addictive behavior. These behaviors keep one from freedom that God's grace will bestow. For the gods of this world bring only emptiness, isolation, and loneliness. Unless we keep our heart secure with a lock and a chain, we will become attached to something of this world that is not for our ultimate good.
Being right with God is the source of our order within. But, since we are all limited human beings, we only have so much "spiritual" energy. If we waste our energy on lust, nursing past hurts, anger, pride, frustrations, being right, being popular, "looking good," or any of "countless" hosts of replacements for God — there is no room left for God. We must put all things in proper place and abandon those things that disorder, disease, and lead us down a path to spiritual death. Unless we "die" daily to ourselves, Christ is not the center of our life. For only then can we truly heal the disorder in our souls and experience the tranquility of order and true joy. Our self-centeredness keeps our lives "off-key" from God's plan and will for our well-being, happiness, and joyfulness.
Jesus came to give you and me salvation, rescue, to a new life now, a new beginning!