“Christmas Light” Series Preview

Do you like Christmas lights?  I do.  I love them.  They are one of my favorite Christmas decorations.  We hang them from our roofline on the outside of our house.  We string them on trees and across the mantle inside our house.  We make plans to drive around and see the lights OTHER PEOPLE put on their houses.  It is all part of this season of celebration.

Why do I like Christmas lights so much?  

Maybe it goes back to my childhood when I was scared of the dark . . . maybe I have stock in OG&E . . . or maybe, just maybe, it is because Light is one of the Christmas “decorations” mentioned directly multiple times in Scripture.

Isaiah 9:2 speaks of “a great light” that has dawned, and Isaiah 42:6 talks about a “light for the nations.”  Both of these prophecies (given 700 years before Jesus’ birth) were pointing toward the day when a Child would be born that would be the “Light of men” (John 1:4).  At the birth of this Child, the sky “shone” above the place where He stayed as angels sang (Luke 2:9).  A new star rose in the sky, lighting the way for people of all nations to come and find Him (Matthew 2:2).  

Who was this light?  Of course, this Light was THE LIGHT . . . Jesus Christ.  It is appropriate to celebrate the birth of Jesus by hanging lights, because (from the very beginning) the Christmas story has been about the Light of God shining into the darkness, and the darkness not being able to overtake it.  

This is significant, because we live in a world of deep darkness.  Just in the past week I have heard about:

  • Marriages ending in divorce
  • Political corruption
  • Suicide and depression
  • Financial ruin, homelessness, and hunger
  • Wars
  • Persecution of Christians 
  • Disease
  • Abuse

It seems all around us are reminders of darkness. In the midst of this dark world, don’t you long for someone to “turn on the light”? What if I told you that Someone has turned on the light . . . in reality SOMEONE IS THE LIGHT!

I have found GREAT COMFORT in Jesus Christ.  He alone lights the darkness and provides life in the midst of the valley of the shadow of death.  

During the month of December, I invite you to join me at Wildwood Community Church on Sunday mornings at 9:45 and 11:00 as we bask together in the Christmas Light of Jesus.  Over the next 4+ weeks we will cover:

  • December 1 – “Light to those living in Shadows” – Isaiah 9:1-7, Matthew 4:12-17
  • December 8 – “Light of Life . . . a Light Brighter than the Darkness” – John 1:1-14
  • December 15 – “Light to the Captives for all Nations” – Isaiah 42:1-9, Luke 2:29-32
  • December 22 – “Fear Not!  The Light is On” – Luke 2:8-14
  • December 24 – “The Star Has Risen” – Matthew 2:1-12

More than anything else, this is a series proclaiming HOPE to all of us who are living in this dark world.  We need not fear or despair . . . in fact we can worship and rejoice, because the Light  has overcome the darkness.

The Light of Christmas . . . is Christ!

Make plans to join us this Sunday . . . and invite your friends and family to come and sit with you this month as we celebrate this truth together.

 

NOTE:  I have written a 31 day devotional to accompany your Christmas season.  You can access that devotional by clicking here, or you can subscribe to this blog and have each daily installment of the devotional delivered to your inbox each morning beginning December 1.  The devotional is tied to 31 Christmas songs (and the Scripture behind them) and we have a playlist on Apple Music and Spotify.

Christmas Light: 2019 FREE 31 Day Devotional

In recent days much has been made about the separation of church and state.  Prayer is often discouraged in schools and the workplace, curriculums are scrubbed clean of faith-based answers to fact-based questions, and people often prefer religion to be practiced privately, not shared publicly.  This point of view wins the day much of the time in many people’s lives . . . with one notable exception.  At Christmas time, people still allow the Sacred to invade the secular — even INVITE IT onto the public stage in many ways.  What do I mean?

Our culture still celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ every December through music.  Places where God is not welcome 11 months of the year are often platforms of praise from Black Friday to Christmas Day.  All up and down the FM dial all Advent season, we hear deep theology being sung by today’s top artists.  Every trip to the store during the holidays plays out underneath the soundtrack of the Savior.  Rather than focusing on the irony of this reality, let’s enjoy it . . . and use it as a prompt for worship and evangelism during this busy season.

As we listen to this Christmas music, however, I wonder if we really know what we are singing.  After all, most of these songs are very familiar to us . . . we sing them every year . . . but do we really understand what they are talking about?  To say it another way, when we look at “The Christmas Carols” do we know the hope of Christmas past, present, and future?  

This 31 day devotional will take one Christmas song each day during the month of December and provide a reflection on how that song helps us understand more about Jesus and what it looks like for us to follow Him.  These devotionals are accessible in a variety of ways:

  • All 31 devotionals are accessible in electronic format.  To download all 31 devotionals in pdf format, click here.  To download all 31 devotionals in epub/ebook format, click here.
  • Each December morning at 6:00 AM CST (beginning December 1), that day’s devotional will post to my blog – pastormarkrobinson.com  You can always visit that location or check social media to see the latest post . . . or you can subscribe to my blog (at my blog site in the right hand column) to have the new posts forwarded to your email inbox as they post.

In addition to this, suggested versions of all 31 songs are available via Apple Music or Spotify via these links:

In Christ, 

Pastor Mark Robinson

Baptism Sunday: November 24, 2019 Preview!

Three times each year, we dedicate an entire worship service at Wildwood Community Church to celebrating new life in Christ.  The way we celebrate this new life is through water baptisms.  The celebration (i.e. the water in the tank) does not CREATE new life, it merely CELEBRATES IT through the same gift Jesus gave to the church at its inception 2,000 years ago when He commanded us, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age.”  (Matthew 28:19-20)

This Sunday, November 24, 2019, we will celebrate the new life in Christ of 15 individuals!  They will be baptized in the following services:

9:45 Service:

  1. Brooklyn Crowell
  2. Beau Follis
  3. Isaac Williams
  4. Cooper Grave
  5. Harris Volentine 
  6. Maddox Volentine
  7. Gracie Warren

11:00 Service:

  1. Eli Adams
  2. Laini Akram
  3. Tinsley Joy Arnold  
  4. Miranda Waterman
  5. Bailee Whorton
  6. Emery Williams
  7. Michael Glessner
  8. Samantha Putman

Additionally, at the 9:45 worship service, we will be commissioning High School Minister Abe Mahner for Gospel Ministry.

As is our custom on Baptism Sundays, we will not have any of our Adult classes, student ministry classes, or elementary classes meeting (though our nursery, toddler, and preschool rooms will be running).  The reason we do this is to encourage participation in the main worship services as we all come together to celebrate what God has done.

We hope you make plans to join us this Sunday!

Questions for Reflection: November 17, 2019

On Sunday, November 17, 2019, Teaching Pastor Bruce Hess’ message is “Providence (Esther) – Remarkable Reversal” from Esther 8:1-10:3. Below are some questions for your personal or group reflection.

1.  Bruce shared this quote by John Calvin:
Ignorance of providence is the ultimate of all miseries;
the highest blessedness lies in the knowledge of it
What practical life truths do you think Calvin was seeking to highlight by this statement?

2. Isn’t it incredibly comforting to know that God is never out of touch? He is never fretting or panicking, never bumfuzzled and bewildered, never perplexed, distressed or flustered. He is never impotent, baffled or disoriented; nor ruffled or rattled.

It is astonishingly true that He can work even in selfish, secular, and sinful settings to accomplish His providential plans. He is always at work even in hostile situations, even amidst irresponsible, greedy businesses, even in the face of selfish, misguided leaders. He is always grieved by wrong and injustice (and always holds those responsible accountable), but life is never beyond his providential control and sovereign working.

Why then is it so hard for us to trust Him?

3. God desires for each of us to influence others for His eternal kingdom. We may not ever achieve the recognition of a Queen Esther or a Martin Luther, but He desires us to influence others.

As Ephesians 2:10 highlights, there are good works that He has prepared for each of us to accomplish. To that end, He presents us with opportunities among our family, our neighborhood, our work, school, church, the community, even the world.

Where has the Holy Spirit been nudging you recently about stepping up and making a difference in the lives of others? Elaborate.

How much does the dictum “A turtle only makes progress when it sticks its neck out” apply to you?

4. One of Bruce’s thoughts was: “When you cannot trust what you see, you must trust who you know.”  What does that mean practically in everyday life?

5. Bruce closed in prayer citing 1 Timothy 1:17.  Take some time to praise God for who he is.

Sneak Peek: Sunday, November 17, 2019

Hello Wildwood Family!

Well, did your winter coat smell dusty or have an odd mothball fragrance?  I ask because I know we all grabbed our winter coats from the back of the closet to warm ourselves as the temps dipped into single digit wind-chill levels this week.  Brrr.  It wouldn’t be so bad if we had a pile of snow to frolic in!

Be sure to be praying for our nation and leaders as an impeachment investigation is under way.  Pray for truth to be heard and for justice and unity in our country.

Christmas is coming at us like a snowball rolling down a big hill. Please plan to help with our church decorations a week from Sunday (November 24) right after church.  Pizza and drinks will be served for all workers.  Please let Rebekah Key know if you and/or your family can lend a hand or two ( rebekahkey@wildwoodchurch.org )

Also, we have a wonderful opportunity to touch the lives of the disadvantaged in Norman through the Mission Norman Christmas Shoppe. Opportunities include purchasing or funding gifts and volunteering in multiple ways.  To learn more, to sign up, or to volunteer check our website at wildwoodchurch.org/missionnorman.

Sunday we will conclude our Providence series on the Book of Esther by looking at chapters 8-10 (please read those chapters before Sunday) in a message entitled, “Remarkable Reversal.”  We will also address several common reactions people tend to have to the concept of God’s everyday providence.

 

See you Sunday!

Bruce

Questions for Reflection: November 10, 2019

On Sunday, November 10, 2019, Teaching Pastor Bruce Hess’ message is “Providence (Esther) – Providential Flip” from Esther 5-7. Below are some questions for your personal or group reflection.

1. Can you remember a time in your life when you or someone you loved experienced circumstances that felt much like random luck or mere chance? Share some about that time.

2. Bruce said, God, is the Lord of the random, that God’s providence is always on duty. Name some ways that are demonstrated in the story of Esther.

3. What influenced Esther to shift from hesitation to determination? What lessons might there be for you and me today?

4. What is the most courageous thing you’ve ever done?  Elaborate.

5. Why is pride such a dangerous attitude to have? How have you witnessed pride creating havoc in someone’s life…or you own?

6. How does the concept of divine providence fall short of the notion of fatalism or determinism?  Explain how the theological concept of concurrence sheds light on this issue. Why can these principles be so hard for us to grasp?

7. God is always at work, always in control, always moving in circumstances and events.  Even when He seems absent, He’s present.  Spend some time in prayer asking God to help you trust Him even when things are difficult and confusing.

Sneak Peek: Sunday, November 10, 2019

Have you noticed?  The culture seems to be pushing things earlier and earlier. At the end of October, I saw major stores selling Christmas items at 50% off.  I also saw winter gear (coats, gloves, etc.) going for 50% off.  We used to always see that stuff discounted in December and January. (Tongue in cheek) there’s plenty enough change going on all around us without tampering with and re-writing all the sacred laws of sales.  Yikes!  Let me know if you see any Easter clothes on sale this month. 😉

Sunday we will continue our Providence series with a message entitled, “Providential Flip”. We will be tackling chapters 5-7 of Esther so please read through those chapters before Sunday. Keep an alert eye out for all the providential evidence of God’s hand.

Please be sure to get involved with the Mission Norman Christmas Shoppe as we seek to touch the lives of 600 kids. 600! Visit wildwoodchurch.org/missionnorman for more info AND check out the latest Wildwood podcast (wildwoodchurch.org/thisiswildwood) to hear some great testimony about how God works through the Christmas Shoppe.

A note for future reference…mark your calendar to assist with decorating the church at noon on Sunday, November 24 (free pizza and drinks provided).  Janet and I will be in Sacramento, CA at a FamilyLife Weekend to Remember, so help make up for our absence.  The more hands, the merrier!  If you can lend a hand (it’s a big job) RSVP to rebekahkey@wildwoodchurch.org

Stay warm and stay dry and, Lord willing, we’ll see you on Sunday!

Bruce

Questions for Reflection: November 3, 2019

On Sunday, November 3, 2019, Teaching Pastor Bruce Hess’ message is “Providence (Esther) – Down and Dirty” from Esther 3:1-4:17. Below are some questions for your personal or group reflection.

1. Think of a time in your life when you faced very difficult circumstances, circumstances that maybe disoriented and overwhelmed you as you faced them.  If you are comfortable, share some about that time.

2. In life when we face times where we can feel God seems invisible and disconnected from us, what biblical truths help to counter those feelings?

3. Do you think Mordecai should have just bowed to Haman?  Why or why not?

4. List some specific ways that Haman personified Proverbs 6:16-19

5. What aspect of God’s providence stood out the most to you in chapters 3 and 4?

6. Bruce stated that God works through people.  Therefore, the job we have, the resources we’ve been given, our gifts and abilities, even our health, are not primarily for ourselves.  God has given them to equip us to point people to Christ, to develop others spiritually, and to help meet needs.
What are some ways right now you can better leverage your God-given resources to accomplish those ends?

7. Take some time to pray that God would further train you to recognize, rest in and trust in His sovereign providence in your life.