God's Ornament

Good Morning,

Sharron and I may not have the most beautiful Christmas tree; however, it is very special to us. You see, most of the ornaments either were made by our children or have some other very special meaning. We see our family when we look at our tree.

If God had a Christmas tree, I wonder what it would look like.

Mother Teresa saw suffering and poverty outside the convent walls made such a deep impression on her that she received permission from her superiors to leave the convent school and devote herself to working among the poorest of the poor in the slums of Calcutta. Although she had no funds, she depended on God, and started an open-air school for slum children. Soon voluntary helpers joined her, and financial support was forthcoming.

The Society of Missionaries has spread all over the world. They provide effective help to the poorest of the poor in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and they undertake relief work in the wake of natural catastrophes such as floods, epidemics, and famine, and for refugees. The order also has houses in North America, Europe and Australia, where they take care of the shut-ins, alcoholics, homeless, and AIDS sufferers.

Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) If God had a Christmas tree, I think Mother Teresa would an ornament.

Joni Erickson was paralyzed from the neck down after a diving accident in 1967 that changed her life forever. Just before her accident at a camp, she prayed, "Lord if you're really there, do something in my life to change me, I'm begging you…” Following the accident, she battled severe depression. She found comfort in reading the words of the Prophet Jeremiah, "Mere Christianity" by C.S Lewis and works by Francis Schaeffer. She sought to glorify God immersing herself in God's Word and claiming his promises.

In 1974, she appeared on Barbara Walter's "Today Show" in New York. She spoke about her new life of suffering to millions of people. This opened doors all over the country to speak to those with a disability. Joni and Friends Ministry was born…and most of you know the impact Joni has had.

Paul said, “All the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. (Philippians 3:7-9) If God had a Christmas tree, I think Joni would an ornament.

On December 28, 1944, after ten months of incarceration in concentration camps, Corrie Ten Boom was free. She had lost her father and beloved sister at a Nazi death camp. Gaunt, filthy, and weak, Corrie made her way to the railway station and boarded a train for a three-day journey home to Holland. She later found out that an order had been given at the end of that very week to kill all women her age and older. An error in prison paperwork was the catalyst God used to release her.

In 1947, after speaking at a church in Munich, she saw a balding heavy-set man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands. People were filing out of the basement room where she had just spoken. One moment she saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones. It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights, the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor, the shame of walking naked past this man. She could see her sister's frail form ahead of her, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin.

She and her sister, Betsie, had been arrested for concealing Jews in their home during the Nazi occupation of Holland; this man had been a guard at Ravensbruck concentration camp where they were sent. ... "You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk," he was saying. "I was a guard in there. Since that time," he went on, "I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fraulein, ..." his hand came out, ... "will you forgive me?"

She stood there — she could not. Betsie had died in that place — could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking? It could not have been many seconds that he stood there, hand held out, but to her it seemed hours as she wrestled with the most difficult thing she had ever had to do.

She had to do it — she knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. "If you do not forgive men their trespasses," Jesus says, "neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”...

She stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. Forgiveness is not an emotion. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. "Jesus, help me!" she prayed silently. "I can lift my hand, I can do that much. You supply the feeling."

Mechanically, she thrust my hand into the one stretched out. As she did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in her shoulder, raced down her arm, sprang into their joined hands. Healing warmth seemed to flood her whole being, bringing tears to her eyes.

"I forgive you, brother!" I cried, "With all my heart!" For a long moment they grasped each other's hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. She stated later that had never known God's love so intensely as she did then.

Romans 15:7 says, “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” If God had a Christmas tree, I think Corrie ten Boom would an ornament.

We all have our own stories…God’s mercies; times he has shown his grace…and given His grace to others through us.

As I travel throughout the Hawaiian and Pacific Islands I see, first hand, the good work that our people do in His Name though His Army. I see our employees and volunteers giving of themselves to restore hope to others. In doing so, we are fulfilling God’s purpose for each of our lives.

Ephesians 1:3-6 says, “Long before he laid down earth’s foundation, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. What pleasure he took in planning this!”

If God had a Christmas tree, I think each of you would be an ornament.

Merry Christmas.