Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, December 23, 2020 -- THREE
Christmas messages from area Pastors
He First Loved You
The early 4 th century historian Jerome writes about
the aged Apostle John in His commentary on Galatians.
Jerome explains how John, in his old age, would be carried
into the church in Ephesus, and as he would find enough
strength to stand or much of the time just sit up to speak.
He would say just one phrase, “Little children love one
another.” It seemed that the one most important fact that
John felt needed to be said was that one statement. But
the story continues, in one of the very last days of John’s
life, they again began to carry him into the church, and
as he always did, John spoke the same phrase. Well one
of his students asked a question, he said “Master, why do
you always say the same thing?” John’s answer was this,
“Because it is the highest of the Lord’s commands. If this
is done, you are on the right course. If you have not done
this, you have failed.”
This is so true, and we all need to be reminded of this
truth within our own lives. With Christmas taking place
within the next few days, now more than ever it is im-
portant for us to be reminded of the true meaning behind
this important and precious day. You see it’s not just about
gifts, good food and spending time with family. Though
all these things are good and enjoyable. But if you strip
back all these things, the heart of Christmas is something
much deeper. You see, Christmas is a reminder that God
loves each and every one of us. Jesus, God’s one and
only Son, came into this world so that one day, He could
redeem and save us all from sin and death. But why was
He willing to do this? Well, it’s because He loves you.
So, I challenge us all this Christmas to remember the true
meaning behind this joyful day and make the choice to
respond to the love of Christ by taking John’s advice and
“love one another.” For as it says in John 13:35, “By this
all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have
love for one another.”
Pastor Quentin Byers
Heppner Christian Church
A Christmas reminder
for living a life of love
Our little communities, state, country, and indeed the
world is without question heading into a “different” kind
of Christmas. The troubled economy, chaotic politics,
the COVID-19 pandemic… all sorts of turmoil is truly
making these seem like uncertain times.
Yet, as followers of Christ we can hold on to the
assurances that God gives us through Jesus, and have
confidence that no matter what life brings, God is the
same today as He was yesterday and will be tomorrow
The prophet Isaiah spoke to this in a prophetic vision
of a dying stump being regenerated: “Out of the stump of
David’s family will grow a shoot — yes, a new branch
bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the
Lord will rest on him — the Spirit of wisdom and under-
standing, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of
knowledge and the fear of the Lord” (Isaiah 11:1-2, NLT).
This Christmas may seem “different,” yet it might
turn out to be the most “real” Christmas we experience
as children of God – where disrupted plans and the
“stumps” of hopes provide the perfect place for God’s
power to shine… for even in dark times, God is at work
for regeneration and fresh starts.
The central mission for the Body of Christ in the
world today is to be and to share the Good News of Jesus
Christ, and this becomes even more essential in times
such as these. Loving God by loving others is the greatest
task, blessing, and responsibility God has given us. No
matter who we are or where we come from, the follower
of Jesus Christ is uniquely situated to be the voice of hope,
peace, joy, love and reason in these uncertain times. We
can truly be a movement for wholeness in a fragmented
world. We all would do well in praying for God to show
us the way together.
Christmas is an excellent time to remember that “…
God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so
The Heppner Chamber of Commerce
would like to thank the merchants who donated
items and collected tickets for the
Heppner Christmas and Merchant Extravaganza!
Pettyjohns
MCGG Green Feed
Hair Expressions - Kay, Kellie, Amber, Danielle
Devin Oil/Circle K
Community Bank
Silver Creek Contracting
Sykes Publishing
Columbia Basin Electric
MCGG Lexington
Griggs - Pasco
Ranch and Home - Kennewick
Alive and Well
Prodigal Son
Hair I Am
Heppner Market Fresh
Les Schwab
Heppner Auto Parts
Two Old Hags Pizza
Breaking Grounds
Serendipity Designs
Sage Clothing
Murray’s Drug
Gateway Cafe
Bucknum's
Taco's Hometown
Upper Place Concessions
Walmart
Pendleton Round-Up
Glory to God on high Peace when there is
Glory to God on high! When the sky erupted in
song one dark night long ago, I wonder if that choir of no Peace
angels was fully aware of what God was getting mixed
up in. The Son of God was putting on flesh and bone to
become one with creatures who had been made in God’s
own likeness . . . a likeness they had long ago tarnished,
almost forgetting who had made them. Now they were
about to make a bumpy path for that newborn child to
traverse. He’d grow up attending to the endless needs of
the hungry and the sick. He’d hang out with the wrong
crowd and forgive the unforgivable . . . and get killed for
it (temporarily). But on the night of his birth, there were
plenty of reasons to sing.
The familiar lessons and carols associated with
Christmas tell the story well. Reread Luke 2. Sing “Hark
the Herald Angels Sing” or “Joy to the World” and pay
closer attention to the lyrics. The whole story doesn’t
need to be retold on these pages. But there’s one detail
not to be missed: The story of this birth is for you. Jesus
was born for you, and he’s born in you when you turn to
him in faith.
Whether you’re celebrating the birth of a child into
your own household, or grieving the death of a parent or
spouse, or suffering from pandemic fatigue, or fearing
what might lie ahead, you can look to God with hope
and confidence because God is present with you always.
Whether times are joyful or tragic, God has promised to
never leave us or forsake us, or let sin stand in the way of
God’s unconditional love for us all. This day, this season,
may the love of Christ be born anew in you.
And if the prophet Zephaniah has it right, even God
will celebrate that new you by joining in on the singing.
Zephaniah 3:17 (modified slightly) puts it this way: “The
Lord your God is in your midst . . . he will rejoice over
you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he
will exult over you [even you; especially you] with loud
singing.” Gloria!
Rev. Katy Anderson
Hopeful Saints Ministry
A Lutheran & Episcopal partnership
that everyone who believes in him may not perish but
may have eternal life” (John 3:16, NRSV), and “… God
demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were
still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8, NIV).
The familiar words of the popular Christmas carol,
“O Holy Night” provides us with a profound truth in the
final verse: “Truly He taught us to love one another; His
law is love and His gospel is peace.” If we want to know
how to love one another, to be a part of what can make
a profoundly positive difference, we just need to look at
the love that sent Jesus to earth to live a life of love and
pay the price for all of our sins.
It’s all about love. This isn’t a love of fancy words and
impossible tasks. This is a love that says, “I am willing
to love you no matter what.”
As we celebrate the miracle of this special season,
may our hearts be filled with hope, peace, joy, and espe-
cially love. May these blessings linger in our homes and
stay with us throughout the year and empower us to show
the world the Way the Truth and the Life of Jesus Christ.
Jeff Clabaugh
Minister
Ione Community Church
This December during our Sunday morning worship
services we have been discussing what it means to have
peace. How can we live in a place free from disturbance,
turbulence and disruption? Is there a way to navigate on
a sea of glass in a world of hurricanes?
Many years ago, so many years in fact that some as-
sume this story is legend or mythical rather than historical,
God choose an unassuming young lady named Mary to be
the person through which he would enter into this world
in the flesh as a person. A person with arms and fingers
and eyelashes capable of experiencing all of the colds and
viruses and fears common to humanity.
This entrance into the world by God came about by
humble means in a barn full of animals on a dark night
in a little backroad town called Bethlehem. Isn’t it funny
how God does great things in small towns?
This child grew and became the man we call Jesus,
the most famous name in all the world to this day. Jesus
reversed the curse of hurt and distress in the lives of those
he met by healing the blind, causing the cripple to walk
again, removing diseases from outcast lepers, feeding the
hungry and educating the wise.
These miracles vastly improved the lives of those he
met, but most importantly, at the age of 33, he willingly
laid down and allowed nails to be driven into his hands.
He allowed nails to be driven into his feet, pinning him
to a wooden cross where he bled and died. This is the
primary reason that baby was born in Bethlehem so long
ago. He was born to die in my place and your place.
All of the guilt that I have, and you have, for all of the
wrong things we have ever done were poured out on his
body on that day so that neither you nor I have to face any
judgment (ever) for those wrong things. We really should
have been the ones who were held responsible for our
own wrongdoing, but Jesus said no, put it on me instead.
This is why it is so important to see the baby in the
manger for who he really is. This was the only way for us
to be saved from the desperate situation we are in. God
had to come and do it for us. Just an ordinary human being
couldn’t fix it because we are all desperate and without
peace. A human being who became a god couldn’t fix it
because there is only one God. It had to be the one and
only Lord God in the flesh, and this is exactly what hap-
pened in Palestine 2,000 years ago. He came to earth as
a person to fix our peace deficient and in this way, God
balanced the demands of justice but also demonstrated
grace.
All of this may sound complex, maybe even baffling,
if so, consider this simple truth…on that night in Bethle-
hem, Jesus, God in the flesh, was truly an innocent little
baby wrapped in clothes and laid in a feeding trough. God,
the creator and sustainer of life, was born as a man in a
dirty, unsanitary place so that ultimately, he might die in
the filth of sin for us all.
This year as you celebrate in whatever way you can
or do, take time to mediate on that mind-blowing proposi-
tion. Understand and believe by faith that even in a world
where peace is allusive, there is a way to know peace.
Understanding this, believing this, embracing this is the
way that you can have peace this Christmas and beyond.
Pastor Tripp Finch
Willow Creek Baptist Church
Christmas: A time to share and care
As I was preparing my Christmas message, I got an
email from one of our Religious Education teachers of the
5 th and 6 th grade. The previous week’s Catechism Lesson
was titled “Christmas: The Season of Peace.” She asked
the kids of her class to show their understanding of the
meaning of peace and why it is important at Christmas.
The students were asked to write a prayer for peace
and then shared them with all of the class. I found the
prayers they wrote were very profound for this season of
Christmas and wanted to share their messages with you
for this Christmas 2020. I begin my Christmas Message
with their prayer of Peace.
Dear God, Please make peace and happiness in the
world! -Addie
God, please bring peace and joy to the world and to
everyone in the world. -Isabel
PEACE- Let there be peace and joy throughout the
world, and hopefulness in our community. -Maya.
Dear God, Give us peace in our community and all
around the world. -Keato
Peace be to all in need, for those serving our nation,
and for the ones that serve us daily. Lord, please bless
all of these with peace and joy. -Andrew
May the lord bring peace to the world. Save us from
sin and bring peace to me. Bring peace to those who need
it and to all mankind. Amen. -Hannah
Lord, give us peace so we may follow you to our faith.
Let us spread peace to the world and keep safety, love,
joy and peace in our lives. Amen. -Claire
The child of Bethlehem was born to bring us all closer
to the Father Almighty. Through His nativity, God in his
magnanimity shares Himself with us. And what was the
miracle? God became a little babe bringing peace, joy,
serenity and happiness to a suffering humanity.
Mary, in spite of the fact she was with child, goes out
of her way to help and be a source of joy for Elizabeth in
her need, and similarly, God calls us, too. In spite of this
peculiar situation that we are facing now with COVID-19
causing hardship, anxiety and fear, as He reached to the
downtrodden ones of society, we need to share ourselves
with others. Just as the Father shared His own Son with
us and dispelled our gloom, sin, shame, and suffering,
so, too, we are called to dispel the gloom, suffering, and
shame of others. We, too, can prepare for Christmas by
sharing and reaching out to those in need. We are called to
re-enact the miracle of Christmas, the miracle of sharing
and caring.
The Gospel of St. John tells us that God so loved the
world that He sent his only Son to be our savior. Schille-
bex, one of the Christian thinkers of our time has called
Jesus the “human face of God.” When Jesus came into the
world, He identified Himself with the poor, the suffering,
the powerless, even the sinful. We celebrate Christmas
year after year, but has the world changed? Yes and no.
Yes, the presence of the Redeemer has changed the lives
of millions of people. But on the other hand, it has made
no difference to those who have not accepted him. There
are numerous problems like wars, famine, rampant cruelty
and corruption. People worship wealth instead of God. But
Jesus came and pointed the way to peace and happiness.
He sets before us the true values of life and promises us
eternal bliss. He comes silently as a ray of light, as the
fragrance of a flower, as the life-giving dew on a winter
morning. He comes even more surprisingly as a simple
child, bereft of the minimum comforts of an ordinary
family. But Christ’s birth brought the infinite God within
the reach of finite men.
On Christmas we remember the magnanimity of God
who shared His only son with humanity. God became a
little babe bringing peace, joy and happiness to a suffering
humanity. Just as the Father shared His own Son with us
and dispelled our gloom, sin, shame and suffering, so too
we are called to dispel the gloom, suffering and shame
of others. For this we have a beautiful example in Mary
who prepared herself for the first Christmas by sharing
the joy with her cousin Elizabeth. We too can thus pre-
pare for Christmas by sharing and reaching out to those
in need. So, the miracle of Christmas is the miracle of
caring and sharing
I, along with my St. Patrick and St. Williams Catholic
Community, wish you all a Merry Christmas and a grace-
filled New Year of 2021.
Sincerely,
Fr. Thankachan Joseph SDB
Pastor St. Patrick Church
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