Dear
Fellow Children of God,
St. John held Christmas Day worship again this
year. Intentional Interim Pastor, Craig
Schultz, carried the heavy load of leading worship for the candlelight services
on Christmas Eve. I had the privilege of
leading worship and preaching for the smaller, quieter Christmas Day service,
as I had done for the last two years. When
worship was finished and Kathy and I were leaving, I told her that, in addition
to the birth of Jesus, the service had given me reason for thanks.
Christmas Day worship usually has a smaller worship
attendance than Christmas Eve. Nevertheless,
among those worshiping Christmas Day was Janelle Hankins. I reminded Kathy that last year Janelle was
fighting for her life, on a respirator, in the hospital because of COVID. Janelle is working through a long recovery. Yet
here she was in worship on Christmas Day, with daughter, Hannah. It brought joy to my heart!
In addition, Sara Guhl played piano for the service. Sara’s daughter, Ellen, has been ill and returned
to Alaska to see a doctor. She had been waiting
to find out from doctors the cause of her illness. Our congregational prayer chain has been
praying for Ellen for months. Thankfully,
two days earlier Ellen received a diagnosis from her doctor. Her condition was identified, and there is
treatment which should give her a long healthy life. God is Good!
In addition, present in Christmas Day worship was
Kristin Kopperud Stinn. St. John prayed
for Kristin for years because of heart trouble she has suffered from birth. In
2005 we started praying in a different way as Kristin left Palmer to await a
heart transplant. Three and a half years
later, in April of 2009, God answered our prayers, and Kristin received her new
heart. Then, here Kristin was in worship
on Christmas Day 2022 with her husband, Kevin. Praise the Lord!
As we left worship my heart overflowed, because of the
good news of Christmas, AND because God is active in our lives today in the
midst of a troubled world.
I believe Christians often forget one of the great
gifts of Christmas. We look at the past and the birth of God’s Son, and we celebrate
the holy family, we celebrate the angels and the shepherds and the magi. We look forward
to eternal life in heaven when “There
will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of
things has passed away." (Revelation 21:4)
But, I believe we often
miss the gifts of God in our present lives. God inspired Matthew to teach us about the
events of Christmas, “22 All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 ‘The virgin will be with child
and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’--which means, ‘God
with us.’" (Matthew 1:22-23) On Christmas Day I saw the gifts of
Immanuel. I saw God With Us, in the
faces of Janelle Hankins, and Sara Guhl, and Kristin Kopperud Stinn.
I praise God
that Jesus is Immanuel, and that God is with us right now, in our lives today!
A Child of God, Thankful for the Christmas
Blessing of Immanuel, God With Us – NOW!
Pastor Jonathan
PICTURES - (If you click on these pictures in these links
on your screen you get a larger view, with an explanation of each
pictures. J )
P.S. Here are some
pictures from the 2022 Rockey Family Christmas gathering (held 1-1-2023). https://photos.app.goo.gl/VpbdAMd1oXrFuunGA
P.P.S. Here are
some pictures from some beautiful Alaskan Winter Vistas
·
These pictures of alpen glow on the Talkeetna
Mountains were taken from the north side of Finger Lake, from the yard of JD
and Dena Jeffers’ home. https://photos.app.goo.gl/yJWQLLHTDcFruiGt9
·
These pictures of this moose were taken on
Tuesday morning, January 3, around 10:00 at St. John. Actually, there were three moose in the back yard
of the Palmer United Protestant Church. https://photos.app.goo.gl/iJycvdwXThJKpKYA9
P.P.P.S. Pastor
Schultz and I went fishing on Thursday December 29. We caught quite a few fish. We also had an eagle begging during our whole
time on the lake. https://photos.app.goo.gl/TAsvnjpw1s92GFFP6
*****
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired at the end of August 2019
from serving as senior pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly devotion previously
entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor."
When I retired many asked me to continue writing these devotions. So I have continued writing. However, with life's changes I now call this
weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child of God." Since I am no longer senior pastor at St.
John, I felt it right to only send this message to those who asked to receive
it. (Though I am now serving again
part-time at St. John as assistant to the pastor.)
So, if you
stopped receiving these devotions and wondered why, now you understand. And, if you are now receiving these devotions
and do not wish to receive them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove
your name from my distribution list. My
e-mail address is jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer
is that these devotions help each of you in your daily walk with our Lord,
Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the
Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that
is what we are!” (1 John 3:1 a)
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