Smith Family Blog: Counting our blessings!

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Counting our blessings!

This year, we decided to save a few trees, and some time, by posting a note to our blog, rather than including a family letter in our Christmas cards.

2007 has been another extraordinary year of the Lord blessing us and drawing us closer to Him! So please allow us to count our blessings with you, and share how wonderful the Lord has been in drawing us closer to Him this year!

First, we truly give thanks to the Lord for bringing Sean through all of his health issues this past summer and proving that no matter what our fears or anxieties are, our Almighty Lord will hold us close and sustain us! We are especially thankful to God that He has seen fit to bless Sean with returned health and has restored his ability to enjoy the sport he loves – cycling! We are also thankful for the opportunity the Lord is giving Sean to serve in an upcoming mission trip to Cuba in January. We pray that God will grant him, and all of the others traveling, safety and success in sharing His Word throughout Cuba!

Another blessing we are so thankful to God for is His gracious answer to our prayers in enabling me (Kelly) to change my work hours this year! Because of His gracious kindness, I am now able to pick up Cavan and Aidan right after school. The Lord is so loving in meeting even the smallest of our needs! This change has made such a difference in our home and has brought us all closer together as a family, and has provided so much more time for us to serve each other and the Lord!

And now for the boys … Cavan – How can we thank the Lord enough for this extremely intelligent boy who has such a love for learning and such a heart for applying the truth of God’s Word! Cav continues to excel in school and enjoys all things related to math, science and engineering. He loves to build intricately designed structures with Legos and has a fascination with computers. Our prayer for Cavan is that the Lord will continue to add to his knowledge, a deep and abiding love for Him, so that his love for the Lord becomes the source of application for all he learns.

Aidan – Again, how can we thank the Lord enough for entrusting us with this witty, intelligent and highly motivated boy who has such a zeal for life and such a strong desire to lead others! Aidan has been flourishing in the Jr. Kindergarten program at SB this year, and has amazed us with his eagerness to learn! Aidan continues to love dramatic play (i.e. dressing up as hero-types such as police officers, fire fighters, military officers, etc.). And like his brother, he also loves to build with Legos. Our prayer for Aidan is that God will continue to grow within him a heart on fire with love for the Lord, so that his motivation in leading others will be firmly grounded in a deep desire to bring many souls to Christ.

And in counting our blessings, we of course thank the Lord for YOU! Our dear friends and family – we love you all so much and pray that the Lord will continue to use us daily to serve you and glorify Him in all we do!

May your Christmas be filled with joy and thanksgiving for the greatest gift ever given – eternal life through Christ Jesus the Lord.
Love and hugs, Sean, Kel, Cavan and Aidan

2 comments:

Chiara said...: What a blessed year! God is good and it is evident in your family!; December 13, 2007 at 8:51 AM
Yvonne F. said...: Merry Christmas Smith family! I consider myself blessed to have walked with you (Kel) through a good part of these things this year. Miss you too! Love & a holy kiss, Yvonne; December 14, 2007 at 8:27 PM

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Good News!!

Have you heard the Good News? The REALLY Good News! Salvation through God’s Son is the ultimate Good News and even if you’ve “heard” it before, we implore you to please take a minute to “listen” again.

The Lord says that what does it profit a man to gain the entire world, yet lose his own soul? (Mark 8:36)

Sadly, people spend their entire lives unaware, or unconcerned, that everything they are working so hard in this life to achieve will ultimately come to nothing!

Whew, that sounds so harsh, but it’s the truth! Think about it, everything we can possibly achieve for ourselves in this lifetime, even relationships, will be of no value whatsoever if we lose our own eternal soul!

There are two things that are absolutely certain – everyone will die and everyone will spend eternity somewhere. Despite what you may believe, or choose not to believe. This is reality.

So, have you thought about your eternal soul? It’s the single most important thing that we could ever spend time thinking about, because once we die, there is no turning back – the decisions we have made about who we serve in this life will have eternal consequences.

Maybe you think you are a good person and that your goodness earns you favor before God and a place of eternal rest with Him in heaven?

Maybe you believe that God grades on a sliding scale (i.e. as long as you are mostly good, or are at least better than most, you are okay with God and he’ll overlook your shortcomings)?

You might even believe that there is no hell, because how could a good God allow suffering even for those guilty of breaking His laws?

But if you knew of a human judge who turned a blind eye to the sinful crimes of a guilty rapist or murderer or thief ... would you describe him as a "good" judge?

No. You would label him as corrupt and unjust.

God is not a corrupt judge, nor is He unjust. He will punish rapists, murderers, and thieves... But He won’t stop there. Whether you choose to believe it or not, we are all sinners! And without Christ, we will stand guilty before the throne of God. In fact, His Inspired Word tell us that if we break even one small law, we are guilty of breaking the entire law! (James 2:10)

The fact is we are all sinful, disobedient people (Romans 3:23; 5:12). And we are separated from God and have no hope of eternal life without His Son Jesus Christ: “no one comes to the Father except through the Son” (John 14:6).

And God is clear in His teaching that sin is not just an act, i.e. what you do, but it’s also how you THINK .. sin resides in the attitude, heart, mind …

So breaking God’s law doesn’t amount to just whether you have told a lie, or stolen something, or physically hurt someone, it amounts to how you think … In other words, the thoughts and the desires of your heart.

Jesus makes it clear that it's not just our actions, but our thoughts that condemn us, “You have heard … 'Do not murder, anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.” (Matthew 5:21-32)

Let’s take a personal look at God’s Law and use it to make an honest assessment of ourselves … Have you been dishonest? Have you put someone, or something else, above serving God? Have you been jealous? Have you felt hatred toward someone? Have you had sexual thoughts about someone other than your spouse?

Who among us cannot say with a clear conscience that we have not done all of these things at one point in time; most on a regular basis?

When we make an honest assessment of ourselves, it becomes clear that we are all sinners in both thought and deed, and as such, we are unholy, unrighteous and stand guilty before God.

It is only through the knowledge of our sin and guilt, that we can truly understand our desperate need for God’s saving grace through Jesus Christ the Lord.

So ask yourself this question: Why did Jesus give Himself to die for us?

If you or I could save ourselves through our own good deeds, then why did Jesus die for us? If God is going to overlook any or all sin, then why did Jesus die for us?

Jesus gave up the glory of heaven to come to earth as God incarnate. He lived a perfect, sinless life and then was crucified to pay the penalty of sin for us – death (Philippians 2:5-13).

Why? Because God will not overlook sin! Sin (in any form) is what separates us from Him. NOTHING we can do is, or ever will be, sufficient to pay the fine for our sin. Our own perceived goodness is not enough. God says that “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags” before Him (Isaiah 64:6) and that “none are righteous, no not one” (Romans 3:10-12).

God’s Word also clearly states that the only acceptable penalty for sin is death. (Romans 6:23) That's why you, me, and everyone needs the Savior, Jesus Christ.

The Good News
The Good News is, God has provided an escape from the condemnation we deserve – a way for our sins to be forgiven and for us to stand reconciled and righteous before Him.

God loves us so much that He does not want you, me or anyone else to perish and be eternally separated from Him (2 Peter 3:9). And that’s why He has provided a way for us to be forgiven – through the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ.

He invites you to come to Him for a full pardon from your sin and receive the free gift of Eternal Life that only comes through the Son (John 14:6). You cannot earn it, and you do not deserve it, but God is offering it to you as proof of His love for you (Ephesians 2:8, Titus 3:4-7).

The Bible says that the God of the Universe became a man (Jesus Christ), and suffered and died on the cross for your sins and mine so that we could be set free from the penalty of sin. Then He rose from the dead and defeated death! It's as simple as this—we broke the Law, and Jesus paid our fine by taking the penalty of death upon Himself for us. (1 Corinthians 15:3-5, Philippians 2:8, Matthew 16:21, Acts 10:40-42)

The reason we need a substitute (a Savior) to pay our moral "fine," is because only Jesus lived a perfect, sin-free life (2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 John 3:5). Through Jesus’ death, atonement for sins was made for all who believe and put their faith and trust in Him alone (1 John 2:2; Romans 3:21-26).

Accept the Gift of
Eternal Life in Christ
God makes it clear through His Word, that in order to be saved, you must turn from sin (repent), and believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, placing your faith (trust) in Him alone. Christ is the only "grounds" for obtaining God's mercy and salvation (Acts 4:12). Through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross, the sins of those who believe are washed away (1 John 3:5).

Yet, God does not want us to just “believe” in the sense of just acknowledging a fact that Jesus is the Son and Savior, “for even the demons believe” in that regard (James 2:19). We must “believe” in the sense of having faith in Him. In other words, TRUSTING in Him – a trust that results in a person making Jesus the Master of his/her life. The Lord demands that we turn our lives over to Him fully … in other words, make Him the Lord of our lives (1 John 2:2-6).

If after reading this, you realize your desperate need for the Savior, do what the Lord commands: “Repent…that your sins may be wiped out and times of refreshing may come from the Lord” (Acts 3:19) and put your full faith (trust) in Christ (Galatians 2:20).

What does it mean to repent?
Repentance does not mean to merely feel sorry about your sins. True repentance is to turn away from sin and turn to God (Acts 3:19, 2 Corinthians 7:9-10). A repentant heart desires to have nothing to do with sin, but fully surrenders its life to The One who saves. Jesus died to set you free, and then He rose from the dead to be your Lord. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). If you will confess and forsake your sins (repent) and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord (choosing to live for Him and not yourself), God will forgive you and you’ll pass from death to life (Romans 10:9-10).

What does it mean to "put your faith in Jesus Christ?"
It means to personally trust in Jesus the same way you’d trust in a parachute if you had to jump 25,000 feet out of an airplane. You wouldn’t just "believe" (acknowledge the fact) that the parachute exists; you would put it on (trust in it to save you)!

In the same way, there are millions of people who "believe" (acknowledge the fact) that Jesus is God’s Son . . . but they have not put Him on (surrendered their lives to the Savior). There’s a BIG difference. And the difference will be obvious when we “jump” through the door of death.

Today, with all your heart, we implore you on Christ’s behalf—repent (turn away from sin), and surrender your life to Jesus Christ.

If you feel the power of God’s Spirit working on your heart and you want to turn from living for yourself and turn instead to God and name His Son Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior – Master of your life – we pray that you will!

He promises that all who come to Him in repentance of heart, and confess Him as Lord, will be saved (Romans 10:9-10).

So please, put your trust in Him alone – not in any person who claims to speak on behalf of God, or any church that acts as the dispenser of God's grace and forgiveness -- but trust only in the Son of the Living God, Jesus Christ, who purchased us and redeemed us with His blood. He is the author and finisher of salvation (Hebrews 12:2 & 5:9). He alone saves (Acts 4:12, John 14:6).

God’s Word is clear –no one but God’s Son Jesus Christ has the authority and power to forgive sin, and no one can intercede on yours or my behalf except the Son Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2:5, Acts 4:12, Acts 13:37-39, Acts 5:30-32).

We love you and are praying for you!
Our prayer is for you to accept the truth of God’s Holy Word so that you might be set free from sin and obtain the free gift of God’s saving grace.

Thank you for allowing us to share the Good News of Christ Jesus the Lord with you!

We love you and are here for you in whatever capacity we may serve to bring glory and honor to God our Heavenly Father!

Smith Family Blog

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Counting our blessings!

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