Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, December 20, 2017
- THREE
NOW Ch r is t ma s Me s s a g e s
HIRING
Hope for Christmas
DRIVERS
Why I Celebrate
Christmas
D
E
S
CLO
DEC. 24 &
JAN. 31
Morrow County Transfer
Stations. South end 57185
Hwy 74, Lexington and North
End 69900 Frontage Ln,
Boardman. Will be closed
for the following Holidays
Sunday December 24 , 2017
Sunday December 31, 2017
Thank you for your cooperation it allows our attendants
to be with their families this holiday season. Morrow
County Public works 541-989-9500.
Some of the hardest questions to answer are the
“Why” questions. Why do you live in Heppner? Why do
you drive a Ford? Why do you like black coffee? Why
are you a Seahawks fan?
On the other hand, sometimes, they are the easiest
questions to answer. Why do you love your grandchil-
dren? Why have you stayed married for 45 years? Why
are you going to Hawaii in December? Why do you
celebrate Christmas?
The fact is without Christmas there would be no
reason to celebrate any day or event because without
Christmas there would be no hope. Christmas is the start
of the culmination of the promise God has made to all
mankind. Christmas is the beginning of the end of the
tyranny of sins hold on God’s ultimate creation, man.
Or, we could spend time discussing and arguing about
whether Jesus was actually born in a stable. Or if it was
actually December 25 th when He was born. We could
spend time complaining about the addition of lights, trees
and gifts and how they take away from the real meaning
of Christmas. However, in doing so we miss the point and
maybe emphasis even more why I celebrate Christmas.
You see, Christmas is about hope in a world that at the
birth of Jesus was a dark and hopeless place, especially
for the Jewish people who were ruled by the Roman Em-
pire. Life was hard and filled with hopelessness save for
the promise they held onto that a Messiah was to come.
What they did not understand was that the Messiah was
not just for them but for all of mankind to release us all
from the bondage of sin.
Jesus, the Son of God, The Messiah, conquered that
which mankind did not believe could be conquered. He
was born, died on a cross, was buried in a borrowed tomb,
and rose from the dead on the third day. That is why I
celebrate Christmas, because I am free from the punish-
ment of my sin by the birth, life, death, and resurrection
of Jesus the baby in a manger.
So yes, I will put lights on my house, decorate a tree,
hang stockings on the fireplace and give gifts to people
whom I love. But that is not why I celebrate Christmas.
I celebrate Christmas because of what the scripture tells
us in Luke 2:11.
“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a
Savior, who is Christ the Lord”
Merry Christmas
Ray DeLoe, minister, Heppner Christian Church
La estacion de transferencia de
el Condado de Morrow en las
siguientes localidades, 57185
Hwy 74, Lexington, y
69900 Frontage Ln en Boardman
Estaron Cerrados
Domingo Diciembre 24, 2017
Y tambien Domingo Diciembre 31, 2017
Gracias por su coperacion, esto les da tiempo
para que los empleados tambien pasen tiempo con
Sus familias duranted las vacaciones. Condado de
Morrow Servcios Publicos 541-989-9500
In the midst of all the lights, gifts, and glimmer of
the season it can seem impossible not to have a little bit
of joy rub off on you this time of year. Children singing,
bells are ringing as the refrain goes. However, at times,
Christmas can be a time of regret, disappointment, and
fading memories of traditions past.
Compiled on top of the grief that can creep upon us
are dead fingers of winter’s trees reaching skyward, ab-
sent of green and blooms, weary in the ice and wind. The
early setting sun bringing darkness and delayed dawn can
seem impossibly permanent. How can this be endured?
One word…hope.
The message of Christmas is a message of hope. What
if our sufferings and disappointments are not pointless and
meaningless? What if there really is a God in control of all
things? And what if that God really is a good and loving
person who sees our pain and does something about it?
What if the fix is the birth of a baby 2,000 years ago, in
an obscure cattle cave, in a backward little town called
Bethlehem? As long as the possibility exists that there is
a course correction to our broken world, there is hope.
The author, George Iles once said, “Hope is faith hold-
ing its hand out in the dark.” It can be hard to see in the
dark no matter how hard you squint, but never lose hope.
And in the darkness, let hope be the fuel that propels you
to grasp the hand of faith, the hand that pulls you out of
the muck and mire, and believe that sorrow is temporary.
As long as there is hope, there is life, and as long as there
is life, victory is possible.
This Christmas, no matter what circumstances you
find yourself in, whether good, bad, or indifferent, open
the gift of hope, unpack it, embrace it, and live.
Willow Creek Baptist Church will hold a special
Christmas Eve service at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 24.
Tripp Finch
Willow Creek Baptist Church
560 Minor St, Heppner
Don’t live in the
shadows
One special part of the Christmas Season for me is
all the extra decorative lights. The daylight hours are so
short, and by 4 p.m. in the afternoon it is beginning to get
dark. The added lights are a big help in chasing away the
shadows. Instead of uninviting grays, the little colorful
decorative lights seem to add a smile to the world. They
never go unnoticed. They chase away the uncertainties
that shadows bring, as the natural light of the day fades
away. They remove doubt about where to step, increase
secure feelings, and warm the heart. Lights just seem to
help us to live better.
Daily living can cast many shadows over our lives
too. But these shadows do not mean that the light of a
good life is totally gone. Shadows might mean we are
simply standing in the wrong place.
The message that comes to us at Christmas is that you
can step out of the shadows. You can find hope, friend-
ship, good news, joy, smiles and light if you take even a
few small steps closer to the celebration of the birthday of
Jesus. Three of the Heppner Churches: All Saints Episco-
pal, Hope Lutheran and Heppner United Methodist, invite
you, your family and your loved ones, to join with us on
Christmas Eve. We will gather at the All Saints Episcopal
Church at the corner of Gale and Church Street at 7 p.m.
You will be most welcome.
Don’t live in the shadows. Dare to step out into some
light. We’ll keep a candle lit for you.
Sincerely, Pastor Keith Brudevold
Heppner United Methodist Church
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
Thank to our communities
support all of the children on
our foster Giving Tree were
picked to receive a
gift this Christmas!
124 N. MAIN STREET HEPPNER OR 541-676-9481
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