MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYBODY

Well, it's been quite a while since I wrote anything, and so much has happened that I don't quite know where to begin, but I do have something that I want to share that is so important in these uncertain times.

Promises: what is the definition of a promise? I was listening to a radio interview a couple of days ago by an author who wrote a book by the name of "The Promises of God". She said that when she first decided to write this book she found an old Webster's Dictionary from the 1800s and here's what she found the definition of a promise to be: "a binding oath or contract". In this day and age when there are internet scams, terrorist threats, etc., etc., etc., one never knows whom one can believe anymore. I pray that when I tell my husband, for example, that I promise to love him in sickness and health, until death do us part that he can believe me. I want my solemn promise to be a binding contract with the person I am promising. After all, we are only as good as our word. Since that interview this week, I have thought long and hard about my core values and what it really means when a promise is broken. It literally means that a contract has been broken.

During this Christmas season we are reminded of the greatest promise of all: one that we can literally take with us for eternity. The baby born in a manger over 2000 years ago was born so that we might have life and have it to the fullest. Jesus promised us life; he didn't promise us a rose garden. He promised us his presence. The greatest gift of all was wrapped up in a manger in Bethlehem all those years ago.Glory to God in the Highest and on earth, peace and good will to all men.