Christmas Work

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Christmas Work

Christmas celebrations and worship take a lot of time. Through staff and volunteers, FBCTLH has offered our best to our “Savior, Christ the Lord.” I’ve been so pleased with the entire month of December. Now the Christmas work begins—to obediently carry out what we so firmly believed in worship.

Former Howard University dean and theologian Howard Thurman wrote a famous poem called “The Work of Christmas.”

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:

To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.

To give us a vision of this Christmas work, we will turn to Ezekiel. He was a former priest called to a new work in Abraham’s ancient city of Ur, also known as Nippur. I’m praying for God to use this month to show us a vision of God’s presence here in Tallahassee and the work we’re called to do. We prepare our hearts by repenting from our sin, acknowledging his presence, sprouting where God has planted us, and shepherding the people under our care. You can find full details of this series on our website, or contact the church office for a printed copy of the materials.

Before Sunday, please read or listen to Ezekiel. There are plenty of great resources in bookstores, libraries, and online to listen to an audio version of Ezekiel. Use your Kairos notebook to draw what you see or write phrases that stand out in your reading. Pray for God to prepare your heart for this month of Bible study and sermons. I’ll be teaching through some of the harder passages of Ezekiel on Wednesday nights at 6:00PM. Together, we’ll share the gospel of God’s presence in the midst of a community called to proclaim his name in their city.