On December 21, my wife, daughter, and I stood in our driveway (Sapulpa, Ok) and marveled at the beautiful sight of Jupiter and Saturn (the two largest planets in our solar system) as they "aligned" and gave off a marvelous light, marking the beginning of the winter solstice.  Their alignment this year is rare and hasn't been seen since the Middle Ages.  It is this phenomenon, many believe, that the Wise Men witnessed so many years ago.  How blessed we are to have been able to see it as we approach Christmas day, 2020.  It should cause all of us to stop and think...

I was very frustrated (driving West-bound on highway 117) as I got behind a car doing 30 mph at best.  "Why is he going so slowly?"  I exclaimed to myself.  I was preparing to pass and zoom to a normal highway speed when I glanced to my left and saw what was the probable cause of his slow travel:  He was looking at the Christmas light display which is prepared annually by the Paragon company.  I hadn't really noticed it as I was "zipping" by, but when I looked I was caught by the beauty and grandeur of these marvelous lights.  For me it was a "God moment" as i realized that I was rushing through Christmas and was on the verge of missing the wonder of it all.  I realized that I needed to "slow down" a bit.  Could this be true of you as well?...

We hear a lot about angels in the Bible.  At Christmas time, we are especially reminded of their presence in our lives: Gabriel appears to Zechariah to announce the birth of John the Baptist.  Gabriel again appears to Mary to announce the birth of Jesus.  Then after the birth of Jesus "an angel of the Lord" appears to Shepherds to announce the Messiah's birth.  Though angels don't show up on every page of the Bible, their work is mentioned frequently enough to let us know that they are at work in our world.  But the angels that are on my mind today are not the true celestial beings whose work is both mysterious and grand; rather it is those who are "angel like" in that often they work behind the scenes but bring great blessing to those who are the objects of their favor.  Today I'm thinking of people like you and me, who have the opportunity to be "angels" for the sake of others...