Author: Christ's Children Ministries

I spent most of this warmer weather day working outside, clearing out all my flowerpots and putting my garden to bed for the winter. This activity always leaves me feeling a bit melancholy, as does the season, as the hours of daylight diminish towards the solstice. I have found over the years that this is always a good time for me to practice the daily habit of reflection on beauty. As the trees here are dropping their last leaves, I sometimes have to look harder to see the beautiful in the sweep of the branches or the outline of a stand of trees against the dusky sky. Ezra and I expressed our appreciation yesterday for the way the Lake Street businesses install twinkle lights along the street so our darker drives have a bit of sparkle. I love to hear the crunch of all the fallen leaves under my shoes when I walk through the park. There is beauty to enjoy if I look for it.

It is also easy to feel melancholy when I read the news or listen to the radio as there is always one more negative political ad or one more report of boorish behavior, another sexual assault or report of war or famine. There is so much suffering in the world and often it seems that few care about the world beyond their own household. I have found that this season is also a really good time to practice gratitude by taking care to notice that which is good, pleasing, commendable and praiseworthy as Philippians teaches us. So, today as I was working outside here are a few of the things I reflected on:

A few months ago we received a notice that we would begin receiving a small monthly donation from a donor. We are always grateful for all our supporters, but this seemed noteworthy to me. The donor is a young woman in her 20’s who, when I sent her a note to say thanks, told me that she had received a small raise at her  first post-college graduation job working for a non-profit across the country and had decided to share her bounty. This young woman used to send us a donation sometimes even when she was a high school student working a part-time job. A parent’s greatest hope is that one’s children grow up to follow the Lord and live lives of good character. May the hearts of her parents rejoice that the life of giving and the values they have modeled are being carried into the world in the life of their daughter. Let us all reflect and rejoice that such young people are taking their place in leadership in our country.

Last week, I discovered that another young man, dear to my heart, was volunteering four hours a week in an afterschool program at a school serving needy kids. This, in addition to a full academic course load and ten hours a week of student work in another charter school serving the most at-risk students. Another young man recently had to face injustice at his college and stand up for himself when falsely accused of disruptive behavior. How much courage it takes to confront injustice rather than just go along with what might seem easier. Both of these young men are making a point of sharing their gifts with young people who don’t have the advantages of others and are doing what they can, to do something for others. We rejoice in God’s work in and through them.

I am so grateful for these young people and the gift they are in the world. While the news might be full of things that are bad, I can look around and know that God is at work in the world through young people like these. I hope that all of you, in this season when the light diminishes, will remember along with me that God’s light and love are still at work in this world of ours. As we give thanks for beauty and express gratitude for those who live lives of caring and character, we rejoice most of all that the light of God’s love does not diminish with the seasons but remains alive in our hearts so that we can all keep shining through God’s grace.

“I lift up my eyes to the hills… from where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”     Psalm 121.1,2

Lisa shared this scripture at church and it started me thinking… We are caught in a cycle of violence in our society; where will it all end? Random shootings, violence and terrorist attacks prey on the minds of everyone these days. Another occurred a few weeks ago in Houston. They’ve become commonplace. As a Black man who lives and works in the inner city, my discomfort is not abstract, but immediate and personal. Just recently there were two more incidences of Black men shot down in the street by the police under questionable circumstances. I look up to God and cry, “when will it end?”

In the most dramatic movies and stories the protagonist struggles against his or her enemy and in the final scene where it seems all hope is lost they look up… and deliverance comes in the nick of time from the cavalry, or the police, super-powered beings or some other benefactor… but not in real life. In real life, stuff happens. In real life, children die, decent people are killed, and hope is lost.

I’ve been reading about the murder rate this year in the urban neighborhoods of Chicago, the worst it’s been in many years, particularly the west side which has the worst murder rate in the nation. On impulse, I looked at the number of shooting deaths this year in the north side communities of Minneapolis compared to its total population. These are the neighborhoods where I go daily to visit and pick up kids and volunteer and lead mentor groups with boys at school and I was not surprised to see that the murder rate was almost exactly the same.

I heard a teacher admonishing her students this week for their uncontrolled behavior at school. She said to me later, “They don’t know how hard we fight for them.” I agreed.But we do fight. Teachers, parents, families, neighbors… we all fight. In small, yet significantly important ways, we fight for our youth, our families, our communities, our nation. Don’t disparage someone who fights in a way that is dissimilar from yours… the important thing is that we are all on the same side. I have to say, I was amazed when I heard a white news person say on his program regarding recent deaths of young black men by police, “we have to figure out a way to stop this.” ­We… Believe it or not, this was a first for me, to hear a public personality who was white say this in a way that was not scripted, rehearsed or induced.

For the Christian who is surrounded by overwhelming evil the imperative is clear. The Bible says do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good (Romans 12. 9-21). We are not to return evil for evil, hate for hate, injury for injury… we are called instead to love one another, encourage and be kind to each other.Yes, we are surrounded by evil. But we do not lose hope. We lift up our eyes to the hills, where is our help coming from? Our Help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth!

Last Sunday, we had our annual back-to-school church gathering where we lay hands on each young person and pray a blessing over them and their new school years. It is a special day and a new experience for some of the kids. Chris gives a short explanation of the significance of blessing in the Bible and how the opportunity to pray for and bless others is a special privilege to be at work with God in the world. Then each scholar takes his or her turn in the prayer chair as we lay hands upon them and bless them.  We begin with our youngest students (this year two kindergartners) and work our way through to our eldest college students.  (We have more than half a dozen  young people in our ministry in college this fall.) It was a great day and a great privilege to pray God’s blessings over more than a dozen young people in our church fellowship.

Fall is also the time when Chris determines where and how much volunteer mentoring he will do in the Minneapolis schools. Because of his many years of work in the schools, he has a reputation and receives requests from a variety of places and always has to decide which situations seem best. We ask that you pray as he meets with principals and teachers and sets his fall schedule so that the best use of his time and gifts will be made for God’s glory.

It is also a time to consider how our sports teams will take shape this fall. We are grateful that God has opened a door to a partnership with a local agency which makes gym space available to us. Lots of our kids are excited for the opportunity to play AAU basketball, but we don’t discount the positive opportunities we have had participating in the Minneapolis Park and Rec Leagues, as well, so Chris is also praying and sifting through the options for our ministry through sports to decide what our teams will do in this new year.

We had a great treat after church last Sunday to take a larger group from church to the Twins game thanks to our  partnership with Tix for Tots. Through the generosity of 3M we enjoyed the pleasures of a suite complete with catered lunch. The boys enjoyed the baseball game and the great baseball park food from hamburgers to bratwursts, root beer to ice cream sundaes.  By the time you count driving around town to pick up all the boys, our blessing Sunday at church, a little post church basketball and the baseball game, we were going on eight hours with the fellas….so imagine my surprise when a few of the boys started begging Chris to let them sleepover at our house Labor Day eve…a request he quickly vetoed I might add!!

We ask that you pray for our young people this fall and especially for their educations. There are many factors which can negatively impact the ability of a young person to obtain a quality education here in our part of the world and yet, there are  few things that have as much power to open doors of opportunity for them. Please pray that each of our young people would have good classrooms and teachers and that they would apply themselves and work hard to learn and prepare themselves for their futures. We are so proud of our college students and the way they are modeling hard work and perseverance for our younger students.  There are so many obstacles, both financial and otherwise, that can make the college path difficult and we ask that you would continue to pray that God’s help, guidance and favor would rest upon our young people in college and that they would continue to grow in faith and love as they return to their college campuses.

 

 

We had twenty-five people here at church this morning—Chris used the time to talk about all the pain and difficulty in our city and country today. We are worn out from injustice, from the horrible violent deaths of Black men and by the way so many in our country turn to guns and hatred so readily. We are worn out from politics and governments and institutions and systems which fail us, that fail to give all persons fair treatment and equal opportunity.

Chris spoke about how we go on—we go on because we are children of God. No matter what the world does, no matter how the world treats us, no matter who the world wants to think we are, we are children of God and our identity is found in Christ.   Chris said, “I am a Black man. I am a husband, a father and a pastor. But most of all, I am a child of God.” No system, no institution, no government, no person can take away the identity we have in Christ.

I am tired of how the personhood and identity of our young Black men is assailed and maligned and chipped away at from the time they are young. I am tired of how many weird little injustices and actions and situations that young Black men have to deal with all the time as they grow up.  I am tired of the fact that it takes so much resilience to grow up Black in America with a strong and healthy sense of self.  I see how hard that challenge is around me every day.

But we are convinced that God cares and that God will provide the extra supernatural strength that our young men need to grow up healthy and strong and straight and true. So we press on with our work here, to mentor and encourage and support and love all the young Black men God has given us, to help them grow up knowing that they are children of God and to know that they do not have to suffer the hardships and pains of this world by themselves. Today, in church, we affirmed that we are in it together—that we belong to God and one another—and that we will press on to keep living each day trusting that God will show us how we can change and what our part is in making the world better for ourselves and our neighbors.

Today we affirmed life in our church by baptizing little one year old TJ. We celebrated the fact that in spite of all the odds, his mom had come to proclaim Jesus and commit his growing up and his life to God.

We affirmed life by celebrating little Clara’s birthday—we prayed for a long time for her to be joined together with her family after years in the orphanage and here she was today celebrating her first birthday with us.

We affirmed life by remembering the birthday of our precious Jereau, who would have been thirty-three years old today, if he had not died by suicide. We talked of depression and mental health and of the need to come together in our pain and in our suffering. We reminded all that the church is the place to share our broken hearts and broken dreams so we can hold together in times of trial.

So today, in spite of the wickedness and the evil of this world, we affirmed that we are God’s children and we are God’s church.

It has been a busy summer with lots of basketball, games, tournaments, workdays, outings and our first camp. Our second camp begins this week where a  large group of middle schoolers will spend time learning why “it takes God to be a Black man.” Please pray that hearts and minds and spirits would be strengthened and renewed in Christ at camp. We haven’t had a great response to our requests for camp scholarships and funds for all the extra meals and driving that have been happening. We trust however, that God will continue to make a way for the vital and important work we do here. Thank you to all of you who support, encourage and pray for us. We need it. Sometimes the darkness becomes heavy, but by God’s mercy and grace we persevere. Please pray that we will have renewed hope and renewed strength for the work and lives God has given us.

I met Ray seven years ago while volunteering at an elementary school when he was nine years old and in the fourth grade. He was the typical kid who caught my eye: rambunctious, bold, bit of an attitude, bright, but often in trouble because of his impetuousness. He fit the profile of most of the boys at this school: stressed home and community environment due to poverty, crime and violence, no father at home, no positive male role model in his life. We did not hit it right off… he wasn’t much interested in me. I was interested in him though and I made pains to get to know him. It was about a year later that his younger brother was shot and killed, an innocent victim of gang violence outside of his home.

I continued to seek ways to connect with Ray. I was able to spend a lot of time with him and get to know him and his family. He was deeply affected by the loss of his brother. As the oldest, he felt somehow responsible. As a result, he carried around this guilt which would manifest in strange ways, never malicious or violent, but always self-destructive. He was always afraid that something like what happened to his brother would happen again to him or one of his family members. It has been his mom’s goal to get the family out of the city, but six years later they still live in the midst of an often violent community.

Miraculously, in spite of his home address, Ray has been able to manage a spiritual relocation on his own. Over the years, he has spent a lot of time with me: playing basketball every winter and spring, going to camps every summer, one on one outings with me or group trips with our other youth, service projects, church on Sundays, etc. Every time I roll up to Ray’s house in my van and he runs out to hop in, he is transported out of the neighborhood, even if the activity or planned event is still in the city. He’s instantly in a different place, emotionally and spiritually. His protective walls go down. His language, behavior, attitude… they all transform. Sometimes it takes awhile to change from street Ray to the Ray I know, but he transforms into this young man who knows he is loved and feels safe.

Today Ray is a young man… sixteen years old and in high school, well on his way to adulthood. He has some pretty rough edges but you know what? In his own fashion, he knows and loves the Lord. He’s still in school and has good prospects for graduating and doing something with his life. He’s never been in jail and does not use drugs or associate with gangs. And he’s alive. Considering the environment he’s had to grow up in these are very significant achievements. It’ll take a lot more work to help him begin to realize his potential, but we’re not going anywhere, and neither is the Lord.

When I think back over the years we’ve been here, I think of all the Rays… all the kids, all the hours, all the various events and activities… It all comes down to relationship. Making a difference in kid’s lives must begin with relationship. Making an eternal difference in their lives begins with introducing them to Christ. That’s what camp in the summer helps us to do. Like Ray, we have many kids who just need to get out of their environment for a moment to build a new everyday reality for themselves in Christ. $300 for a week at camp will help them do that. We’re asking you to consider a one time gift apart from your regular giving to contribute to this ministry of changing kid’s lives this summer. Every little bit helps. On behalf of Ray and others like him… thank you, and God bless!

There is that line from the movie “Field of Dreams” where they say, “If you build it, they will come.” That was long gone baseball players to a diamond in the cornfields of Iowa, however, I feel like we have launched our own version of that with our 12-passenger van, “if you buy it, they will fill it up.” Since being tasked with purchasing a van by our board in March, Chris hunted, compared and brought home a 12-passenger van. The very first day he took it out to pick up boys, it filled to capacity and has been full of boys every trip since. We were never quick to acquire a van because of the expense, added insurances, gas and questions about where to keep it, especially in the winter, but we reached a place of necessity and so will have to trust God to help work out the additional concerns associated with it.

One reason the van has been seeing so much action is that Chris is fielding two basketball teams-one middle school and one high school- for the spring AAU season. While there are some negatives regarding the climate and culture of traveling basketball, the season continues to provide the thing we are in business for: relationship building with young people. It is those relationships that allow us to introduce them to the love of God that we know through Christ Jesus.

Sometimes I wonder how long Chris will have the stamina and perseverance necessary to keep building these kinds of relationships that allow him to speak into the lives of young people. I was recently reminded of everything that he goes through to build and maintain these relationships with so many young men with complex lives and wounded hearts. He came home one night to tell me the story of their tournament day. His team had been moved up a class in the tournament, due to lack of teams at their level and had been utterly blown out in the first game of the day. Some of the boys can cope with that kind of thing, while in others, that kind of trouncing triggers lots of emotion and touches into places of hurt and woundedness.

By the second game, one of our long time kids was just barely holding on and by the end of the game left the group, acting out some of his frustration. His older brother, who grew up with us himself, kept talking to Chris, telling Chris to get in his little brother’s face and straighten him out, confront all his behaviors, etc. Time after time that day, Chris had to tell the older brother, “No. I know your brother. I know how he works. If I go confront him now, he won’t be able to listen. He will explode and our relationship will be broken. It has happened before. He needs to be left alone right now.”

All day, Chris had to rebuff the elder brother’s wishes. Chris kept reminding him that he had been the same way at that age. By the middle of the last game of the night, which the team was winning without the help of our missing boy (a team leader), our wayward player came to Chris with red eyes, asking if it was okay if he joined his team to sit on the bench and support them for the rest of the game. Another victory for Coach Chris in his life of building and keeping relationships going in the storms of life and hurt that blow through the lives of the young men we serve! You would have to travel far and wide to find anyone who has the ability to love and build relationships like Chris –his unique combination of spiritual maturity, patience and wisdom in how to negotiate a world many could never enter much less navigate for so many years is really so unusual. I give thanks to God for the way that our ministry has allowed him to use his unusual gifts to build the kingdom of God here in Minneapolis.

We are serving two extra dinners each week after practices and often one or more breakfasts or lunches on game days, so we are always grateful for your gifts that keep us here playing basketball, driving full vans, serving up food and pointing always, we hope, towards the Bread of Life. I wish you all could have seen our house church yesterday–Fifteen young Black men praising God with such enthusiasm—what a gift and blessing that I get to be part of God’s work here—such joy. We are grateful for your continued gifts and prayers.

In our little corner of the world, growth and progress often feel like three steps forward and two steps back, with the occasional three steps back. In order to survive and thrive in this life, we have learned to appreciate and rejoice at every forward step, every sign of movement and growth, no matter how small. We enjoy those tiny jewels and carry them around in our pockets and pull them out to treasure when the days are discouraging or when we must travel through a desert. Here are a few of our steps and jewels from the past month..

It has been a very full winter with lots of basketball, practices, games, tournaments, dinners, outings, winter retreat. We appreciated your prayers for the winter retreat at which every young man in attendance committed themselves to following Jesus. We ask for your continued prayers that they would continue to grow in faith and trust in Jesus.

A Sunday or two ago, a couple high schoolers spent the night. Chris had said they might go play ball for an hour before church time, but as they were hard asleep when he went downstairs in the morning, he let them sleep. They came upstairs later for breakfast and then left our house, sending Chris a text that they felt he had tried to trick them into coming to church. Since church with us has never been for any except those who choose to come, we were deeply disappointed. After Chris had a long dialogue with them days later, they apologized. But still, sometimes a person really does want to say: “Are you kidding? Have you been paying any attention to anything that has been said or done around here for YEARS?” I remind myself that no growth comes without struggle and faith tested and examined is more real than faith from conformity. So, the boys grow through these tests and struggles. And Chris earns another gray hair!

This past Sunday, we were having a quiet Sunday fellowship as a tournament game was taking place at the church hour. However, near the end of our usual meeting time, I received a call from Chris that the team had three hours before their next game and when given options to go on an outing to fill the time, the boys decided that they wanted to meet for church. So I put an extra frozen casserole into the microwave and when Chris and the guys arrived, we settled in for worship and lunch before the final game. You have never heard a group of middle school boys worship with such enthusiasm. The beauty of that church gathering made my heart so full. Words cannot express. My own heart was tired and weary that day and then I was blessed to see the very heart of God in the face of our boys. God is good! The frosting on the cake for the team was that, later that day, in spite of a very negative fan section with their opposing team, they won first place at this grade level championship tournament complete with GIANT trophy, big personal medals and a winner’s banner.

With the numbers of kids who have been attending our activities, Chris has been feeling we must consider getting a second minivan or a 12-15 passenger vehicle. If anyone knows of one of these vehicles (in good condition) or someone who might contribute towards this need, please let us know. We have been able to put donated vehicles to good use ourselves or for families in need and we appreciate those who have been able to help support us in that way.

Thank you for your prayers and support. We hope you are enjoying your own jewels in your life of faith this month. See our Facebook page online for pictures of all the good times God has given!

 

 

Winter = basketball for Christ’s Children and this year it is basketball and then some. Chris is working with two teams—both a middle school AAU group and a high school group. This year we had a group of high schoolers who wanted to stay together and play, most of whom were not playing ball at their high schools, so we are fielding our first team in the Park and Rec 16+ league. It has been basketball Monday-Thursday and Saturdays with a couple of Fridays and Sundays thrown in.

Basketball is king when it comes to inner city sports among our crowd, but our approach to basketball and sport is very different from the typical around here. In the AAU basketball world, there is a lot of talk about youth and character development and lots of coaches out there looking for talent who are interested in coaching kids that look like they have potential. Most of these programs are expensive and require parents who will pay for, transport and be very active in their children’s participation. Consequently, teams and programs are filled by certain types of kids and families.

Recently in a conversation Chris had with an AAU coaching leader, he was criticized for having a team that played at the less competitive level. The coach pointed out several kids that were on Chris’s team who “should be competing on an A-level team.” Of course, Chris pointed out to this coach that the reason those very kids are competing on his mixed ability team at all is because each and every practice night he drives around to their houses and picks them up, takes them to practice and then drives across town again to bring them home.

Chris didn’t mention that the parents of our players enjoy having their kids play basketball, but don’t always have the time and resources to devote to something extra like traveling sports.He didn’t point out that our player’s “character development” isn’t limited to a quick on court devotional lesson, but involves hours of in-the-car conversations about life and conduct and trips to retreat and camps where teaching about what it means to be a man of God occur. Or that players often spend the night at our house just so they can come to church in the morning.

Chris also did not mention that we don’t choose only the kids that look like the best athletes, the ones who might have sports potential. He didn’t explain that, to us, basketball is not what is important. Basketball is not king. It is only a vehicle for relationships, team building and life lessons.

Chris did not explain to this leader of another youth serving organization that we are not interested in kids only during the basketball season. We spend time with them year around and in fact, will stay in relationship with them through adulthood, if that is something that they desire. We might not just see you at basketball, but when you compete in a spoken word contest, or graduate from high school or act as a reference for your job or help you with your college application. We might attend your wedding or see your children grow up.

Chris may not win any awards in the AAU coaching world, but thanks be to God, he is winning at coaching for life, not basketball. I am enjoying all the extra guys at the dinner table and breakfast table and the fun of basketball season as our house is filled with boys. Boys, who by the grace of God, will not just play basketball, but who will learn more about the things that matter most and about the God who came to be God with us. Boys , we pray, that will become men of God and followers of Jesus who will come to know the fullness of life that is so much bigger than winning or losing basketball. Please pray for the baker’s dozen of basketball players heading off today on our winter retreat up north.

Recently one of our high school kids moved back to the area after several years of hopping around the country living in various family situations. We haven’t seen or heard much from him, but we were in touch right before his birthday and so made plans to have him over for dinner.

On the day of his birthday, I dropped all my other plans and went to the store to buy special food for his birthday dinner. I drove all over town looking for a gift that I thought he would enjoy. I spent all afternoon cooking a special dinner and baking just the kind of cake he had requested. As the hour of our dinner approached, I got out a fresh tablecloth, set the table with our special celebration plate of honor and frosted and decorated his cake. Everything sat in readiness to celebrate our boy. We wanted him to know that we have missed him, that he was welcome, that we love him and in spite of time and distance and whatever else his life has held over the past few years, he has a place of belonging with us. We waited with anticipation, but he never arrived.

In younger days, I may have felt frustrated that I spent an entire day preparing something special for someone who never showed up. But on this day, I just felt sad for my precious boy—sad that he had missed the love and welcome and celebration that were awaiting him. Over the next hours and days as I held this in my heart, God reminded me of the words of Psalm 23, “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

In my heart, the following question arose. “How many times have you missed the banquet table I have prepared for you?” Each and every day of life, God has prepared a table of goodness and mercy for us, but we often fail to pull up a chair to enjoy what God has for us. Busyness, fear, worry, preoccupation, chasing other things, seeing with the eyes of the world…So very many things can cause us to lose awareness of God’s presence and the table prepared for us.

I trust that love is never wasted and I keep sending gentle messages to my boy out there reminding him that he belongs to Jesus and to us and inviting him to stop on by. Please join with me in the prayers that he would turn towards the love of God that waits for him. May you also be given the grace to turn and embrace the table that waits for you today.

We appreciate your prayers and support as we minister the grace and love of Jesus Christ here in the city of Minneapolis.

When I was a child, Christmas carried many special associations: the smell of winter in the air (not snow though, not in El Paso!), the clandestine shopping trips my mother would go on, the Sears catalogue, school vacation, watching Christmas shows together, decorating the house, putting up the tree, going to church… The kinds of memories which many of us hold from growing up in stable and loving living situations.

We have a chance to create long term memories for children and families who may or may not have the stability required to establish positive family or community traditions. Christmas time is often marred by tragedy or crisis. We always know families who are homeless come Christmastime. One year one of our families lost their home to a fire days before Christmas. Some families “postpone” Christmas because there is not enough money for food and presents. And most tragically, for many the true meaning of Christmas escapes them entirely as they are left on the outside looking in at a society for which Christmas is all about commercialism and consumerism, demarcating once more the sharp stroke in our society between the haves and the have nots.

I love this time of year because it is an opportunity to share the joy of Christmas ensconced in Christ’s birth. As we have been diligent in fomenting memories for our children in our family life, we are intentional about establishing traditions and customs that point to Christ in our church family. We prayerfully hope they all remember as they grow older…

I hope they remember singing Christmas carols at church and my special twist on “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”. I hope they remember the advent ceremony with the different colored candles and scripture reading and prayer. I hope they remember the annual church Christmas party where everyone shows up: kids away to college, kids that have grown up and sometimes bring families of their own, basketball team kids, volunteers, young people I have mentored, camping buddies, and people you saw a few days ago and those you haven’t seen for years. I hope they remember all the good food Lisa puts out, the family games she leads us all in and her special brand of welcoming hospitality. I hope they remember Christmas dinner; Lisa’s jambalaya or my personal favorite, enchiladas con espinacas. I hope they remember opening gifts by the Christmas tree. I hope they remember my telling of the Christmas story, each year the same, potent in its simplicity.

I hope they remember Christ and the sense of unity and togetherness we experience in Him. I hope they remember the sense of family and belonging that extends past the season throughout the entire year. I hope they remember the connection we have with one another, as God builds us together into His temple, Jesus Christ being the cornerstone, in which God Himself may dwell by His Holy Spirit. I hope they remember, and pass on and recreate these experiences with their own families and communities.

Merry Christmas!