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WALKING TOWARD CHRIST AT CHRISTMAS By: Mark B. Nemzek7/17/96c1996Extended through 2014Table of ContentsContents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u My Earliest Years PAGEREF _Toc470243673 \h 4GIFT OF LIFE PAGEREF _Toc470243674 \h 5SILENCE PAGEREF _Toc470243675 \h 6MEANING AT CHRISTMAS PAGEREF _Toc470243676 \h 7CHRISTMAS LOVE PAGEREF _Toc470243677 \h 8My Rationalist Phase PAGEREF _Toc470243678 \h 9A NEW LIFE AT CHRISTMAS PAGEREF _Toc470243679 \h 10CHRISTMAS RECOLLECTIONS PAGEREF _Toc470243680 \h 11A CHRIST BLESSING PAGEREF _Toc470243681 \h 12TO CARE PAGEREF _Toc470243682 \h 13My Rebirth Into Christianity PAGEREF _Toc470243683 \h 14A SECOND LOOK PAGEREF _Toc470243684 \h 15CHRISTMAS TIME PAGEREF _Toc470243685 \h 16A CHRISTMAS REFLECTION PAGEREF _Toc470243686 \h 17AT CHRISTMAS A SOUL SEARCHER PAGEREF _Toc470243687 \h 18A Realization Of My Christianity PAGEREF _Toc470243688 \h 19WORDS FOR CHRISTMAS PAGEREF _Toc470243689 \h 20THINGS AT CHRISTMAS PAGEREF _Toc470243690 \h 21GLITTER AND THE CHRISTMAS ALTERNATIVE PAGEREF _Toc470243691 \h 22WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR CHRISTMAS LORD? PAGEREF _Toc470243692 \h 23A CHRISTMAS THANKSGIVING PAGEREF _Toc470243693 \h 24CHRIST’S PRESENCE AT CHRISTMAS PAGEREF _Toc470243694 \h 25Social Consequences Of My Christianity PAGEREF _Toc470243695 \h 26A SAMARITAN'S CHRISTMAS PAGEREF _Toc470243696 \h 27CHRISTMAS ON ETERNITY'S EDGE PAGEREF _Toc470243697 \h 28A SECULAR CHRISTMAS OR HIS ALTERNATIVE PAGEREF _Toc470243698 \h 30Walking In Christ’s Love PAGEREF _Toc470243699 \h 31CHRISTMAS PEACE FOR A GENERATION PAGEREF _Toc470243700 \h 32THE CHRISTMAS GIFT AFTER SALVATION PAGEREF _Toc470243701 \h 33"EPHPHATHA AT CHRISTMAS" PAGEREF _Toc470243702 \h 34AN EAR FOR WISDOM AND A HEART FOR UNDERSTANDING PAGEREF _Toc470243703 \h 35A VACATION TO REMEMBER PAGEREF _Toc470243704 \h 36TOWARD JOY THROUGH TRIALS PAGEREF _Toc470243705 \h 37MOVING TOWARD JOY IN THE MORNING PAGEREF _Toc470243706 \h 38OUR CHRISTMAS DEADLINE PAGEREF _Toc470243707 \h 39OUR CHRISTMAS CHOICE PAGEREF _Toc470243708 \h 40An Extraordinary Christmas for an Ordinary Christian PAGEREF _Toc470243709 \h 41A Disciple at Christmas PAGEREF _Toc470243710 \h 42CHRISTMAS, A GIFT OF FORGIVENESS PAGEREF _Toc470243711 \h 43UEXPECTED JOYS AND TRIALS PAGEREF _Toc470243712 \h 44Christmas: A Gift of Friendship PAGEREF _Toc470243713 \h 45A Prayer at Christmas PAGEREF _Toc470243714 \h 46Christmas; Remembering the God Touched Moments PAGEREF _Toc470243715 \h 47Christmas Thanksgiving and Praise PAGEREF _Toc470243716 \h 48Christmas: An Eternal Perspective PAGEREF _Toc470243717 \h 49Perfect Love at Christmas PAGEREF _Toc470243718 \h 50Trials, Challenges, and Love PAGEREF _Toc470243719 \h 51The Lord’s Touch at Christmas PAGEREF _Toc470243720 \h 52‘God With Us’ at Christmas PAGEREF _Toc470243721 \h 53Ready for Christmas PAGEREF _Toc470243722 \h 54Christmas Through Forty Years PAGEREF _Toc470243723 \h 55Christmas in Daily Life PAGEREF _Toc470243724 \h 56Christ; His Quiet Shared Presence PAGEREF _Toc470243725 \h 57My Earliest YearsDuring 1974 I decided to write creatively for Christmas. It was a pact I made with myself, or so I thought. Between the beginning of 1972 and the end of 1977 I was not Christian. Though my parents had brought me up as a believer, by my late teens I had drifted away. During these early years I was involved in ‘New Age’ before it became known as such. My gods included those of (Hindu) Transcendental Meditation, Buddhism, Rosicrucians and various occult samplings. My involvement with Eastern Mysticism was sufficient for me to recognize the existence of other reigning spirits in these religions!Little did I realize (or want to) that I was dabbling with gods that Jesus Christ would call demons. I was one of those lost in the pagan religions! Even so, I was writing at Christmas time. Unknown to myself, the Lord had different plans for me.During this time I never mention other gods in my Christmas writings, yet I do not recognize Jesus Christ as God. This was a time period when I was trying to be inclusive of all religious expressions. It never occurred to me that being tolerant and inclusive watered down the Truth of Christ.When writing “Gift Of Life” in 1974 I was attempting to bring relevance and external meaning to life through relationships. I had experienced failure in my own personal life. I had been married for just one and one half years and was now divorced from a person I thought I was to be with for life. However, the most important relationship, the one with God, was missing.During 1975 I was beginning to move from the Eastern Mysteries to Humanistic Psychology and Rationalism. In “Silence” the beginning and end of life are acknowledged. Congruence in living is sought after. Eternity is ignored because both the beginning and end seem final. At the end of this message a blessing from some god is given.In 1976 I graduated from college with a BA. By year’s end I was immersed in Humanism. “Meaning At Christmas” is my attempt to state that reality is derived from human choice. We each decide to be self centered or more evenly balanced between society and self. It is the power of ‘Choice’ that comes close to Godliness in this writing.When writing ‘Christmas Love’ I move past the philosophical ideals and begin to touch on love. I married Ingrid in 1977 and being in love was a condition I was very much experiencing. Jesus was acknowledged as the essence of love but not the author of love.In these writings we see a young man who actually believed he was wise. It would never have occurred to me at the time that if I had died then I would have been hell bound. I had been mistaking personal arrogance for wisdom. But God was not done with me. His grace had only just begun working a miracle in my life!GIFT OF LIFE I'm deeply grateful of life,when life achieves relevance for me.I'm deeply humbled by life,when this relevance manifests itself,through another person.Today, social mores press us,to be individual, without need of others.Surely, if we're individual, totally,we need not others to tell us to be so.Sometimes we're pressed to be dependent,on others' words and ways.Surely, if we're totally dependent,we need not be told to be so.Occasionally, an individual learnsof the beauty in accepting another totally,and the dependent one learns,of accepting himself totally.Sometimes in life, if we're fortunate enough to listen, look, smell and feel,the secret beauty of life emerges,in a dance of eternity.Integration of dance blossoms,when individual leaves his ego,and dependent one leaves his servitude,humble respect to each other abounds.And so, not being total in ourselves,on occasion, life gives us the opportunity,if we're willing to perceive with humility,the sacred relevance of living.At these times, the rewards,of giving and receiving melt away,to give and receive is to be humble,to be humble is to accept the gift of life.This all happens when a thing, place or person touches you,inoculating you for a moment, with infinity.You and that which touches you,realize the relevance of living.That moment of interdependence,with you, and that, sometimes fades,and just the precious memory of not controlling, nor being controlled lives on.If we choose to see this,not as a sentimentalist's dream,but as a viable alternative to chaotic living,that moment extends infinitely.To discover the reality of yourself,through another person and yourself,is a beautiful relevance in living,that with both persons willing,is not a finite experience.Some would call this,the touch of God,upon the face of man.God's spirit be with you,Mark B. Nemzekc 1974 SILENCE We began of silence,we knew no better.We will end in silence,We know no better.In between that silence,we live our lives.We manage our growth struggles,with silence seldom sought,except in sleep.Daily we produce actions,to keep us in the living.Daily we prod our bodies,one more time, let's do it again.To measure those myriad actions,we have learned to think and feel.This is a special private process,until our hearts scream to share.We have learned to voice,our thoughts and our feelings.Sometimes we choose to speak the truth,we have also learned,to misconstrue and deal.Through all of this, our world has become,a sanctity of confusion.We try to separate a deal from the truth,seldom piercing this living illusion.Still, many of us,match up our words with our deeds.We mesh our feelings with our thoughts,in a process of integrating, ourselves as persons.Know us by our smile when we are happy.Know us by our tears when we are sad.Know us by our search,for a balance-point in life.Know us by our occasional need for quiet.Know yourselves, sisters and brothers,take care of your moments,of quiet and solitude.These moments closely replicate,both your beginning,and your ending,in silence.May this Christmas bring you, the silence, of your God in you.Mark B. Nemzekc 1975MEANING AT CHRISTMAS We make our own meaning in life,or we don't.We make our own choices in life,or we choose not to.When you or I choose yes or no,we decide life's significance.When we make no choice,ambiguity befuddles us.When we choose meaning in life,every person and event becomes important,If we choose no meaning,it makes no difference.When I choose just me, not us,others become so hard to live with.When I choose just others, not me,my significance matters not.When I choose me and us,I allow meaning for you and me.I acknowledge your right to choose,and I realize mine.If I choose me and society, all of you, and all of me,it will not be an easy path,this choice to face reality.I choose to let you know my yes or no,and listen to your choice.Fellow chooser, acknowledged or not,May this Christmas find you,with peace, joy and appreciation in living.And may your awareness of your choice,deepen with your increasing life.The Christ Spirit be with you,If you so choose.Mark B. Nemzekc 1976CHRISTMAS LOVELove is a rarity among emotions.It's given, with deep regard for the other,without asking,without condition of payment.Just as love is rare,its substitutes are abundant.Material giving, emotionalized sex,and conditionalized care.Sometimes we give gifts,to say we care.This becomes easier to do,when love isn't there.At times, when we feel empty,we try to bridge the gap with sexual expression,in hope, that our loneliness will lessen.It seldom does.Conditional caring is an art formwe are perfecting:I love you when...I'd love you if...If you're a good child, we'll...And I'll love you, if you'll love me.We make love into a packaged contract,and feel slightly pale at its shallowness.On occasion we experience love.It's not owed to us when we receive it,nor owed to others when we give it.The receiver and the giver become living persons.We give and receive this love,in recognition of being human, together.The Christ spirit love is this care.May it touch you,in your experiences this Christmas Season.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1977My Rationalist PhaseThis four year period finds me moving toward the western philosophies. I left the Eastern Mysteries and moved toward humanistic psychology and rationalism. By this time I was even going to a Christian church but I was a universalist. I was certain that all paths could lead to God. After all, why would a loving God be so narrow minded as to provide only one path to himself?My dad died during this time period. I missed him deeply, but not enough to ask God's help, much less His forgiveness. My god was the mind, though I was beginning to be aware of the hole in my heart. It seemed to me that reason should be the cure to all internal and external problems.During 1978 my oldest daughter, Anika, was born. She was, and remains, most precious to me. “A New Life At Christmas” was inspired by her birth. Lip service was paid to Christianity, but the real answers were human designed. The Humanists and Planned Parenthood would have applauded me then.In 1979 my dad died. I loved him so very much. All the human potential movement couldn’t revive him. During “Christmas Recollections” I grieve quietly with little to console me.During 1980 I am beginning to seriously look at Jesus Christ. If I didn’t quite see him as God, he was at least the beginning point of sanity. I was being reasonable in “A Christ Blessing” and gave Jesus the highest status among humanity. This was a time when I was still far too reasonable to allow him the status of divinity in my life. My self wasn’t quite willing to acknowledge the deity of another.By 1981 “To Care” for each other became an important theme. It seemed that the world was on a crazy course, and if we didn’t learn to care for one another we would destroy ourselves. At the time this kind of caring seemed to me to be within the grasp of human reason.A NEW LIFE AT CHRISTMAS Birth is the celebrationof a new life,among Christians,as Christmas nears.It is the celebration,of the birth of Christ,an individual, considered by many,to be closest to God.Its more than this,as we celebrate new life,among ourselves today,it is our children brought to life,this year and in recent years.Yet, in this world now,we dare not be joyful,of all new human birth.For unplanned human growth,has become our world's greatest problem.Our social systems,have not respected our earth's resources,during our growth.So we celebrate new life today,in a guarded way.We wonder a little,will these children of ours,have as bountiful a life,as we have had.We of humanity,still feel joy, for new birth.Though we can't escape responsibility,for bringing about new life.We can't afford to lose,our youthful idealism,to create a better world,or our children we joyfully,welcome now,will suffer in future years.Still our current institutions,which we have built,greet the constructive ideals,and solutions of youth,with doubt, fear,and ego-constricting anxiety.Youthful creativity becomes smothered.There are those of us,who refuse to have our lives squelched,who wish and work for a more,humanitarian world.And in a guarded way, we greet new life,with the respect due it,a reverence for the hidden potentials,new infants may add to our humanity.Humans, at Christmas and all seasons,please welcome new life wisely.May the spirit of life be with you,Mark B. Nemzekc 1978CHRISTMAS RECOLLECTIONSI seek a special inspirationin message form,For this last Christmasof the seventies,and find none.It seems a time for the re-collection of myself.Potentially, there was a good career,With will to learn and drive to master,I excelled, only to findmy potentials largely unused.Now, shifting careers,Hoping to engage more of myselfin a meaningful contribution.In my perpetual seekingfurther meaning in life,My father diedand I've grieved deeply.Through his deaththe discovery - birthof friendship occurred.Later still,I was more able to console,another, who suffered from death,in the family.Now the cooling season comes,I have no well of inspiration to share.I share insteadsome daily concerns, and the re - collection of myself,from a year filled with change.Sharing this,as the last crisp Christmasof the seventies, dawns upon us all.Mark B Nemzekc 1979A CHRIST BLESSING We are flowing with qualities,the ability to sense,to feel emotion, to think,to make decisions and to act.For all of our qualities,I wonder where is that precious gift,that gem of wisdom?Wisdom is the balance quality of living.In our endeavors, it is the encouragementtowards what benefits ourselves and others.A star of wisdom was born 2000 years ago.Today, for all our various qualities,Do we retain that balance?Perhaps we could be more aware,that wisdom is not;liberal or conservative,emotional or rational,decisive or contemplative,spiritual or material,or any split set of qualities.Perhaps we could be more aware,that wisdom isn't always popular with everyone.Indeed, a wise person may be:conservative and liberal,rational and emotional,contemplative and decisive,material and spiritual,at different times, in different situations.Wisdom is the synthesis of all human qualities,balancing the individual,toward the well-being of humanity.As Christmas nears may we be filled with,a deeper wisdom to cope with care,for our complex world and our fellow humans.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc1980TO CAREThrough our living momentswe experience many drives.It seems that most of us seldomexamine the relevance of these motives,with respect to our mortality.Sometime in prehistory,we learned to value competition and power.These values ensured us our survivalover the beasts.But we didn't give up a useful learning,when its usefulness was past.We used these learnings against ourselves;we beat others out as we strive for dominance.We act as if these values are really important,with regard to the meaning of living.It is true that manyhave learned to value achievementand to pursue excellence for its own sake.Within this motive or drivewe leave ourselves an openingto the possibility of cooperation withothers.We give others the option of achievement.A few humans throughout timehave come to value caring.They have cared not only for themselves and their loved ones, but for all humans, and human events in general.They have learned that by caringthe world grows to include others.By caring, one examinesthe power/competitive drivesand sees the harm generated.By caring, one may achieveand encourage others to do so.By caring, one learns to reflect,and to encourage growth in self and others.With care, we learn that humanstruly succeed when we all achieve,and we all fall somewhat shortwhen we don't.As a race we seem to mature slowly.We are quick to look out for ourselves,and slow to be concernedabout events beyond our backyards.Perhaps this Christmasand throughout the year,we will begin to care morebeyond ourselves, business, state and nation, to include more of humanity.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc1981My Rebirth Into ChristianityDuring this four year period I began my walk as a baby Christian. When my mother died in 1982 I was brought to my knees in both a figurative and literal manner. Yet, at first, I wasn’t able to witness publicly. Bringing Christ into my Christmas writings was very tentative.During this time I began to read the Holy Scripture with great regularity. I also began giving prayer time to the Lord in my mornings. This was still a time of withholding my full self from God. My transformation was a gradual process.If you didn’t know me well in 1982, you would never have known I was mourning my mother’s death in “A Second Look”. Yet, this was the year my mother died. Ingrid and I were at her bedside when she died. My heart was thoroughly broken that year when I asked Jesus to be my savior and certainly my strength. If you look closely you will see I mention death having an impact on relationships.` Even by the end of that year I wasn’t able to thank God for my losses.The year 1983 brought “Christmas Time.” In a philosophical manner Jesus is brought into my writings. There was no watershed event that year, only time of struggle; juggling family, work and school. Yet from that point on I welcomed God in my Christmas writings. It took me a long time, but I had begun to learn that Jesus had to be central in human life.1984 brought “A Christmas Reflection.” My daughter, Anika, was in first grade and she felt life was unfair. I thought it unfortunate that she would need a quote from Jesus Christ to bring resolution to her problems. It didn’t occur to me at the time that perhaps this was one of the greatest quotes Christ ever proclaimed. One early spring evening I asked for God’s presence to be made known to me, and the Holy Spirit permeated my whole being. It was also this year that I was awakened with a vision in which I was told in no uncertain terms that I was to have a son. We had no plans to have more children.In 1985 we have “At Christmas, A Soul Searcher.” As I was nearing completion of my five and one half year MBA program (I haven’t claimed to be a speedy learner!) I was questioning God about my career options. I realize this may seem trite to some of my readers, yet in fact that is what I was doing! I was given the avocation of being a “Soul Searcher”. The meaning of this is still being worked out in my life. Also nine months after the Christmas of ‘84 Andrew David was born into our family. 1984 and 1985 were watershed years!A SECOND LOOKFrequently we look at one anotherAnd see our own expectations.We form opinions about othersand resist their attempts to change,because seemingly this would meanwe were wrong about them. At times we feel negative about others.We then disregardthe positive they have done.At other times we experience othersas being very good.With them we often forgetthe imperfections they too have.Let it not take a crisis or death,for recognition to occur.Now while we are alive, let's gaze at both those we like and dislike.We must strive to see beyondwho we think they should be,and see the fallible,fully human, creatures they are.Now as the cool of winter sets in,let's look at one anotherand rediscover our mutual human warmth.We will not always love each other completely.Yet we can strive to appreciate one anotheras fellow humans trying to cope,as best we can.As Christmas nears,perhaps we should pause just a moment,take a second lookand see.....and really see.....the glimmer of humanity.Merry Christmas Mark B. Nemzekc1982CHRISTMAS TIMEDuring this last ten year spaneach Christmas has brought with it,a message from me to you.Each message was a reflection of the changing times.Birth has occurred as has death.Friendships have blossomed,some have moved on and away.War and peace and again warhave occurred with regularity.Individually we have treated one another,with kindness and harshness,with respect and sometimes disregard.All things occur to usonly to pass into time.Leaving us with a richer imprintin our experiential memories.Two thousand years ago in a world of ignorance,Christ was born, learned, taught and died.In his physical body,He too became a passed event in time.Yet his message of love and peacepersists within our current of time.Take a moment and reflect,on the time you have passed through...Or perhaps it is yourselfthrough which time has passed.May this moment of reflection of our past,yield for each of us,more love, wisdom and peacein our relationships with one another,and our God.Merry ChristmasMark B. Nemzekc1983A CHRISTMAS REFLECTION My little one looks up at me and says: “When we girls build sand castles,they are demolished before the next recess. But the boys’ castles remain standing.”I am saddened at this inequity. Beginning so young, in first grade.Are men maimed in their genes?Or has society so thoroughly indoctrinated us into believingthat strength should be used to exploit those less strong?And, if either is so, should women entering business, government and professionalcareers be so eager to emulate men’s collective failures?Christ once taught us that doing good to those above us was no virtue.That was merely survival. Virtue lies only where an individual has a real choice.Virtue is to have much and choose to share with those having less.It is to have power and exercise it with caution and compassion.It is virtue to be strength itself, and of choice,yield with love to those of less stature.This virtue is not only for moms and dads, to be practiced in the family.If society is to succeed in meaning and quality,those in power, in government, business and high social positionsmust practice this virtue by choice.To those in power: the elected official, the administrator, the officer,the stockholder, the executive, the manager and even the supervisor;I encourage you to remember His message from so long ago:“What you do unto the least of my fellow humans, you do unto Me.”As this Christmas season nears, I struggle for an answerto tell my daughter. Indeed it seems discouraging to tell her,that even after two thousand years of Christianity,in her heart she may still have to say to them,“I forgive you, for you know not what you do.”You see, a little part of her optimism about lifeand of other people was destroyed when that little act ofcruelty was done to her sand castles.May each of us this Christmas and during the coming year,try a little more to: Share where we could as easily grab,Love where it would be easier to despise,and listen where and when we could command.Merry ChristmasMark B. Nemzekc 1984AT CHRISTMAS A SOUL SEARCHERWhile wondering where my next step would lead,He said to me; "Whatever your occupation,your avocation will be that of a soul searcher."Could this mean searching for my own soul?Or could it be for the souls of others?In our material quest it is easy to forgetabout even having a soul.And then I look into the eyes of my infant son.A perfect peace bonds us.His soul is here!At times we all have problemsfor which there is no material cure.Our hearts touch for fleeting momentsas we realize our souls.At other times friends and familytranscend the surface qualities of life.We then discover an essencethat will be treasured forever.For most of us much time is spentsearching and not finding......We are not even sure what we are looking for.As Christmas draws near,take a moment of time.Search, in silence, for your souland for that of another.Be able to say,"I am here for you."That would be a fitting gift for that little babewho was born, lived and died for usso long ago.May the Spirit of Jesus Christ protect you and keep you.....in your search.....Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1985A Realization Of My ChristianityDuring the five years of 1986 through 1990, my wife and I experienced much growth in the Christian life. A priest and nun, dear friends, nourished and mentored us during our formative years as young Christians.We also attended “Marriage Encounter,” which encourages the strengthening of marital relationships. We began attending “Camps Farthest Out,” which are Christian family camps open to all denominations. These experiences were catalysts for our growth as Christians. In 1989 we also became members of Vision of Glory Lutheran Church. These have been nourishing and challenging experiences for our whole family.At the end of 1986, I wrote “Words for Christmas” and “Things at Christmas.” In “Words” all of the best we can ever be or achieve comes from being rooted in Christ. Back in 1980 the wisdom offered was man’s best attempt. By 1986, wisdom is God breathed, and it is only the beginning of the spiritual walk. “Things” is a brief biography of myself and a meditation regarding situations we pass through as we fulfill our roles as children of God.“Glitter and the Christmas Alternative” was written in 1987. The values of the modern secular world and real Christianity are contrasted. During 1978 I held guarded human fears about bringing children into the world. By 1987 I had come to realize that all the fears amounted to nothing when I allowed myself to be firmly rooted in Christ. The catch was (and is for all of us) that I had to leave the world’s way and turn toward Jesus.In 1988 and 1989 I asked God questions, and through prayerful quiet times I listened to what seemed to be His inspired responses. This is a good exercise for each one of us to practice on occasion. We need to ask God what is really on His heart. Then we need to listen through prayer, scripture reading, the words of holy people and the Holy Spirit speaking directly to us. “What Do You Want for Christmas Lord?” is listening to the heart of Jesus Christ. It is a heart cry for a lost and dying world. In “A Christmas Thanksgiving” I ask Our Lord to guide me in being thankful. He does! As usual His response is unquestionably unique and perfect. In 1989 Lauren Elise is born in joy, with the presence of the Holy Spirit as partner in the birthing room. Joy and thanksgiving flooded our hearts.In 1990 I wrote on experiencing “Christ’s presence at Christmas” throughout all of life’s situations. This is a critical understanding for Christians to come to. He really is here beside us, through our griefs and joys, every moment! WORDS FOR CHRISTMASThe poet looked up and said,“Why, I would rather give words...that search your soul and mind;Words of... tranquillity and love,of peace and joy, of serenity and wisdom,and even words which cause you some discomfort,with our material world.Certainly they would be words which fireyour spirit with the love of God.”The philosopher questioned,“How will I know tranquillity, peace,serenity, wisdom, love or joy?Why should I have discomfort with the modern world?And will my spirit ever know the love of God?”The reflective one responded,“You will know wisdom,when the needs of others exceed your own.You will know love,when another is uncaring toward you,and yet you continue to care deeply for that person.You will know joy,when your heart sings with the beauty of existenceeven amidst our world’s turmoil.You will come to know the love of God,when that is your most sincere desire.And with that love... tranquillity, peace and serenity will come to reside within your soul.And then you too may become impatient,with the misunderstandings of the modern world.”The thoughtful one questioned.“Wouldn’t we all be better offif we knew these thingswithin our hearts , minds and souls?”His poet friend remarked,“None of this is new.Yet it seems hard for humans to capture...these qualities of the spirit.Even so, Jesus, the one whose birth we celebratecontinues to offer, the love of God, for those who ask.May his love, joy, wisdom and peace reside within youthis Christmas and during the coming seasons......Mark B. Nemzekc 1986THINGS AT CHRISTMASLike most of us, he was born and raised in this country.His parents gave him everything they could.He matured and learned to appreciate the “better things” in life.At first it was toys and games and being better than others in sports and academics.As he aged those “better things” became: position, social status,nicer vehicles and homes and of course a group of friends pushing him and themselves along that same material course of life.Along the way he learned that issues were more important than people.At least this seemed correct because when friends talked of others,the conversations frequently degenerated into gossip.At least discussion of issues seemed to harm no-one.While still a fairly young man his father, mother and two friends died.He found that no material acquisition or social position or love of the world, could fill the hole left in his heart by the death of his loved ones.He reached back to his childhood roots and asked for the rebirth of his simple trust and hope in God. By remembering Jesus and in opening his heart he received that promised strength to cope with our world.For him, the world’s material goods and ways became less like ends in themselves and more like tools to be used to reach others.He did not let ‘disgust with materialism’ become a value in and of itself.Rather he became motivated to care---reaching out to others---and the materialist concerns became less important.He asked for and received the Holy Spirit in his heart.Who he was, what he did, and how much he had, was no longer so very important. With his renewed Way, what became important was how much he loved God and how he reached out and cared for others.As Christmas draws near, may the same Holy Spirit touch each of us.Then we too will realize that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters, we do for that little babe born so long ago.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1986GLITTER AND THE CHRISTMAS ALTERNATIVEContemporary indicators point toward the path of success, the road to self fulfillment, a life of acquisitions even including the “right” friends.Fascinating how this was largely true even two thousand years ago.Popular wisdom, the kind so easy to digest, is settling us in trends toward:goals with a “results only” emphasis,the impersonalization of professions,the disregard of the spiritual human,bringing us ever nearer to...the ends which justify the means.It seems as if the powerful have practiced this from the beginning.Modern social values entice us to believe that right and wrong are relative, definitely situational. It is the regrettable but preferred alternative to terminate a human being in the womb. Poor timing, finances, careers, birth defects, inconvenience and rarely the life of the mother are cited reasons.Yet a social howl of protest is uttered for the dog or cat which dies for research purposes. This same ethic has suggested to us that freedom of religion, particularly Christian, really means freedom from religion.Our morality of convenience has us promising to give more tomorrow if we can first have more today. Indeed, our new values seem rooted in the secular ethic. Personal responsibility and accountability can nearly be erased due to some problem in society.The prince of lies has been working diligently. And this too has been happening for thousands of years. With all this battering, a core of faith still burns brightly in many.A certain path has been available to us for nearly two millennia.. Truth, life, wisdom and love are knowable because he was born, learned, healed, taught and finally died for us. His path is simple, though seldom easy.His truth is known as we leave our self-centered ways. It is received when we ask and as we willingly give up, our attachments to our acquisitions.His life becomes ours when we desire it with our whole selves. Then the process of living his way justifies all our goals. Only then will helping and caring for one another at our weakest and most discouraging moments, exceed our desire for personal achievement, personal success or personal fulfillment.His wisdom becomes ours when we willingly open our hearts and minds to his Father’s Way. Then we come to realize that all humans; before birth, throughout life, even up to the eldest most fragile breath we take, are precious in His Holy Spirit. His love for us is His most fulfilling gift and is always present. We accept it when we ask His pardon. We reflect and magnify his love when we give it to others when they need it.His path is simple yet seldom easy,His birth a light to mark the Way,The Christ Child’s pathis ours today.Merry ChristmasMark B. Nemzekc 1987WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR CHRISTMAS LORD?Jesus, what do you want for Christmas?My little one, you are indeed coming close to me, as you remember the reason for this special holiday.Let me give you peace and love.But Lord, what is in your willfor Christmas?Dear child, so often you pray Our Father’s prayer that I taught you so many years ago.You say, “Thy will be done.”Yet you have gone astray into so many self-willed directions.Let my direction guide you.What is your will for Christmas my Lord?My dearest child,Love one another in fullness,especially my littlest ones.They are so fragile with life’s beginnings.These, the infants and the yet to be born, are so precious in my sight.The worldly solutions, which result in each self-willed harm or death to them, bring heaven to its knees in tears.The shed tears are mostly for the would-be parents, who have turned so far from my Father’s path. Give me your trust!But Lord! Aren’t there many good reasons for not having children?Dear children,there are reasons to kill my little ones, but there are no good reasons.Just before I walked the earth in physical form, my own mother was put to the test as was my earthly father.She was unwed and pregnant with me.Her society would have shamed her had they known, and could have killed her. Yet for love and trust in God they brought this child to life.And I was born!Give me your love!Dear Jesus,what do you want for Christmas?My child, you keep asking.Bring me your sorrows, sins and tears of the past. Give them to me for I have paid dearly for them.Bring me your hearts filled with humility,so that you may become opened to My Father’s Way.And then my children, you will be able to rejoice in the new life of my Holy Spirit!You see ......... this is the time .........of Joy and Love and Peace,for all who are in My Good Will.Merry ChristmasMark B. Nemzekc 1988A CHRISTMAS THANKSGIVINGLord will you guide me toward what I need to be thankful for?Be thankful for the life I have given you,for the people you meet, for those you work with,for the ones you have fun with, for your adversariesand those you share love most easily with,your parents, brothers and sisters,your spouse and children and your friends.With each of these you are granted opportunities to learn more of me and be thankful.What qualities should I be thankful for?Be thankful for the gifts of love, joy, hope, wisdom and faith, of mercy, healing, service and giving. Indeed, each of theseand those others of equal virtue are measured out to you, awaiting your full appreciation.Lord, what are the things I should be distant from?Do not be thankful to me for anything that separates us. Hatred, fear, anger jealousy, doubt, depression and despair are no gifts of mine. Qualities such as self-made, self-gain, self-centered, and self-possessed are your own contributions which separate and isolate you. All of these traits and the craving for wealth, power, status and the world’s material goods create barriers between us. None of them are gifts from me to you.Thank you Father for giving us your son Jesus. His life, death and resurrection have become the gift of eternal life for all who ask him into their hearts as Savior, Lord and Reconciler.Especially at Christmas we give you thanks for the birth of your son, our Lord. He remains the Jewel of Lightamidst our world’s dark night. He is the single and absolute Truth within the maze of human values. He is the only Way through all the world’s choice deceptions.May this Christmas Season find the Spirit of Jesus Christ residing within you and may a beginning sense of eternal Thanksgiving be alive.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1989CHRIST’S PRESENCE AT CHRISTMASWhen I look back over the year it seems that you were always there when we needed you.At the year’s beginning we prayed without ceasing for our baby Lauren’s strength to appear. Your love supported her, yet somehow we were to continue asking.Early in the year our church struggled with building and missions concerns, and you were there.In March our daughter came home briefly and announced her engagement.The joy of the Lord was upon us as you held them together in your hands.In June you removed from me the sadness of my father’s passing on so many years ago. In its place you planted peace.Then a young man named Peter died suddenly. His family, friends and workmates struggled with the loss of a beautiful heart you had implanted in this man to briefly touch those he left behind.A friend’s mother had a heart attack. With hundreds of miles of separation she feared she would not see her mother alive again. Yet you gave her consolation and peace.And it was you who again filled us with awe, joy and love without limit at Camp Farthest Out.Our daughter and new son’s marriage personified the union of how two shall become one. Your blessing hand was touching all present.You chose us to house briefly two young missionary women. And didn’t our home glow with your presence?Grandparents from Sweden arrived and your love and strength began to blossom in little Lauren. Her joy infected both them and ourselves.A friend’s infant daughter experienced months of serious hospitalization. You lent her family your own strong arm to cling to when their own strength faltered.Our memories are still afire with the path of love and unity your Holy Spirit wove within our hearts at the couples’ retreat.Dear Lord, you have given me so much in my family and loving spouse, in our friends and our shared needs. What would you have us remember this Christmas?My children....While so many of you are concentrating on presents at Christmas, the real meaning has often been lost. It is always there for each to rediscover....It is my presence at Christmas, and indeed in all other moments....until the end of time.Thank you Jesus for your presence this Christmas. May your love be felt by all.Merry ChristmasMark B. Nemzekc 1990Social Consequences Of My ChristianityAt a certain point in our walk with Christ we begin to mature. We never forget the first days, months and years of dwelling in the joy and radiance of Jesus Christ, yet each one of us begins to sense the tug or call of Jesus upon our lives. Our Lord calls us into the discernment of good and evil. He calls us to love the sinner while hating the sin, and He calls us to reach out to the lost among our brothers and sisters. We must share the message of His salvation. Then, too, Jesus taps each of one us into a special calling using the unique gifts He has given us. 1991 brought “A Samaritan’s Christmas” home to me. I was beginning to see the squeamishness and inconsistencies in my own character. How could I expect virtue of others when I wouldn’t fully obey and minister to the transient in my path. During this year, I realized that the transient in my path can be any inconvenience and unpleasantness placed before me each day. God wants me to deal with each aspect of life He places before me. He wants me to be filled with the Holy Spirit and deal with the situations just as His own Son would deal with them. This is true for all of us.By 1992, it became apparent that living “Christmas on Eternity’s Edge” was at odds with living the world’s way. When I examined many of the situations around me, I saw that followers totally committed to Jesus Christ acted differently from the pagan the nominal Christian. In each of these life situations the Christian who followed the heart of Christ, moved in a way uniquely different from others. They weren’t overly concerned about others’ reactions. They just did what they knew Christ called them to do in that particular moment. What they did wasn’t always popular with those around them! Some were persecuted!It became plain to me in 1993 that we could all live “A Secular Christmas or His Alternative.” There is much less gray in the world when we begin to live our lives with the moral absolutes God has given us in Holy Scripture. That gray has seeped in because over the last forty years the Christian Church has tried to compromise with secular humanism. The abomination which causes desolation in each of us, as temples of the Holy Spirit, is the situational ethic used as a replacement for God’s absolute law written in Scripture and upon our hearts. During 1992 and ‘93 I was mourning the loss of God’s direction in our society.Each one of us needs to come to grips with the reality of Christianity. The Christian life is not one of platitudes! Before His resurrection glory, Jesus suffered. He made it abundantly clear that the same would be true for us!A SAMARITAN'S CHRISTMASIt was lunch and I decided a walk would be refreshing. Yes some quiet moments, between the morning bustle and the afternoon shuffle, would be wonderful. It was a glorious autumn day and nothing would interrupt these tranquil moments.But there, right across the sidewalk, strewn in raglike fashion, lay someone's body. It looked no bigger than a youth. Yet as I passed I noted the timeless age imprint of a transient’s face.I paused, wondering if I should do anything. Just then, another person came along, bent down and shook the man, to see if he was alive. The body moved. The other quickly went on his way. Walking back I also shook him and asked if he was OK. Silly question. The alcohol aroma gave away the source of his problems. Yet something told me he needed food and drink.Back to the convenience store I went. A sandwich, apple and pop were brown bagged for me. After praying, I walked back half hoping the sidewalk stranger would be gone. The doubts set in. After all, who was I? I certainly did not see myself as a Good Samaritan. He was no beautiful person. My clothing would get dirty. Would I have to touch him? My own petty meanness amazed me!He was still there and I froze in my indecisiveness. What would my fellow walkers think? So, instead of immediately helping him, I sat and watched for thirty minutes as forty to fifty people walked by. Four or five did pause to shake him and then they too kept going.My lunch hour was up. If I were determined to help it had to be now. Just then he stumbled swayingly to his feet. I approached him and grabbed his jacket to prevent his fall to the pavement. While pressing the lunch bag into his hands I heard him mumble something. It may have been "Thanks."For a moment he tried to focus on me. With eyes expressing a haunting and beaten look he pleaded with me to stay and visit for awhile. I apologized and told him I was already late for work. While walking back I was convicted of my shortcomings in thought, word and deed. How could I ever face my God's glory when I could not even lovingly minister to one of the least of His children?Even as the pangs of disheartenment were beginning to bite at me, I became aware that Jesus was still there beside me, quietly loving me, ever beckoning, gently encouraging and ever so caringly directing me along His Path. He was so forgiving and so loving. My spirits were lifted. He would give me more chances. What more can be added to this incident? It still confronts me clear through to my soul. I wonder about the next time. Will I be willing to minister to another's deepest need? Will I then be willing to give even the time of day to the poor, the sick or imprisoned, to those of different race or belief, or those with less status than myself? When it happens again, what will I do to the transient lying across my path?This Christmas wouldn't we all do well to ask our Lord for the gift of the Samaritan's heart? Then we too would become more able to give as He gave!Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1991CHRISTMAS ON ETERNITY'S EDGENo poem this year! Yet here is a message from this end of a trying year. There was too much activity and too many valleys, too little human caring expressed, too few the times of true human touch and too few the times of silence taken with my God.Recently, a close friend's son died suddenly. Our pastor spoke of these situations being among the stop signs of life. We are each given the time to reevaluate and reflect on our own life's true meaning. Will each of our lives be with or without Jesus Christ? We need to become more fully aware that we stand on the verge of eternity.We stand with our lives but a breath away from the hereafter. Will we be in the loving embrace of the only Savior who died that we might share in His eternity? Or will we have chosen to follow one of the thousands of seemingly good paths that lead to eternal separation from God? Yes, death of someone close is a reminder, yet no parents I know wish for their children to lead the way into eternity. Something deep inside of me desires to console my friend during her mourning. My dad once said, "It is not that Christianity doesn't work, it's just that it has never been lived by a great number of people at any one time." What does it mean to live one's faith? Is it to be a follower of Jesus Christ? They are the ones who believe Jesus was serious when He said that the Holy Spirit would dwell within each one who opened his heart to Him. They say that each person can have a living experiential relationship with God. Are these the ones who are in the world but not of the world?There is something different about them. They seem to see something the rest of us are missing. Sometimes others also want to see, but the world calls them back. There they stand at eternity's edge with so much certainty and clarity of vision. Are these the ones my dad once wondered about?There is a young woman who got pregnant in a situation beyond her control. She knows that her "rights" mean the most innocent of our society now often bear the suffering. But, she knows that she will let the little one be born. Every time she asks Jesus about the baby she senses that the life of all the little ones are precious to Him. She rests in eternity's moment.There is the couple who no longer get along. One night they remember to bring their problems to God. His bond of love overshadows them and they know reconciliation. This couple forms a ministry to subject broken marriages to God. Their moment in eternity has been filled.An employee is criticized, by her friends and employer for acting too Christian and too caring for others. In her heart she knows that if it is wrong for a doctor to walk past the wounded, it is equally wrong for her to walk by someone dying a spiritual death and not offer that person the Salvation of Jesus Christ. For her the eternal moment is at hand.There is the young family which makes their daily decisions based on their own needs and the needs of others. This family has never owned the newest car, a new home or even new appliances. They see clearly that every decision serving only their own desires is equally a decision to serve others less. Joy and serenity are theirs. The Lord's eternal moment dwells in them.And there are the living saints who without reservation live their lives for Christ. They feed the hungry, give clothing and shelter to the poor, visit and console those in prison and in hospitals. They share the Word of God in all their life situations. All too often they receive scoffing and persecution from others because of their love for Jesus Christ. His eternity is fulfilled in them.Wherever they are found, these followers of Jesus seem to go against the grain. They rub the world the wrong way. They are loving of people, yet they will not compromise with evil. They seem to see beyond the veil of the present. It is as if they live every moment on eternity's edge.Once I was a Christian, who believed with only my head. With time I was given the grace to choose to become a follower of Jesus Christ. I discovered His promised relationship to be real. His Holy Spirit finds a dwelling place within my heart. Even though my journey through life is far from perfect, I know the joy of eternal salvation is present for me. Even so my heart is burdened when I see others refuse to accept the greatest gift God offers.My friends, we live on the verge of eternity! We need the water of life. Let us go to Jesus Christ. This Christmas let us accept the gift only He can offer. His is the gift of salvation and eternal life.May His Holy Spirit reign in our lives this Christmas!Mark B. Nemzekc 1992A SECULAR CHRISTMAS OR HIS ALTERNATIVEA youth is shot and killed while in high school. Another is molested, kidnapped and then killed by the molester. Men, women, and children are daily assaulted, raped and even murdered. Their families mourn.Dwelling in this decaying culture, I cried to God, "Why Lord why?" The events of a mere forty years were placed before me. These events seemed to point at me and say, "See what you have fostered, see what you have done." I realized that by two generations ago our moorings were already loosened. We had won the last world war and begun to believe in our sole material ability to conquer all. Yet we still paid lipservice to our God.Then we allowed our courts to rip prayer out of our schools. Afterwards the WORD of God was removed from our schools. The replacements were human values which shifted with the prevailing winds. We left the Truth and began using human wisdom. We experimented with our children.The humanist, atheist and social engineer were overjoyed but they did not stop. They kept picking away at the moral foundations of our society. Our Christian church was mostly silent.It was during this decade that we rid ourselves of most of our sexual mores. We made divorce the ideal solution to many marital problems. We began our love affair with the acquisition of material things. We moved away from individual responsibility and toward emphasizing individual rights. We were becoming liberated! It sounded so good when the social engineers sold us these concepts. We failed to see the individual moving away from the need to contribute to society. We failed to see that the birthing of the special interest group began the rights emphasis. It almost always took from society seldom contributing toward it.One generation ago our courts stated that abortion was an alternative to the sacredness of human life. A movement gathered momentum at the expense of the innocent...The unborn child! Somewhere in the euphoria of proving that women were equal to men, and in the pleasure of having more and better things with dual family incomes, our children were lost. We gave them to the hired hand to be raised.Within the last fifteen years we began to listen to the homosexual cause. We began to express acceptance toward all religions as long as they were inoffensive. We began to welcome new age deities with their emphasis on the essential godhood of humanity. And we allowed our government to muzzle our own Christian Faith. During these years our Christian denominations began absorbing the dogma of humanism. We began to love the pursuit of material wealth within our churches. We rationalized Christ's warnings away. The opiate of the majority was succumbed to.We borrowed from humanism while trying to look Christian. We accepted the message that all faiths are equally valid in coming to God. After all, we were told, a loving God would condemn none. Along our way we forgot about the justice of God, it just wasn't in vogue.One consolation remains standing for those who have suffered from the world's error. Each of us can repent, ask for and receive forgiveness and receive the Savior as our Lord. We can yet open our hearts to Jesus, for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. There is no other way to our Father God. We have His Word on this. He still offers each of us the gift of discernment this Christmas. Will we receive it?....Will we receive His Son with open hearts?This Christmas let us remember we have a God of infinite justice. Yet He remains a God who loves us so much that he gave his only Son Jesus Christ to pay our price...This Christmas could we not offerour hearts to Him?May you have a Holy Christmas.Mark B. Nemzekc 1993Walking In Christ’s LoveThe inconsistencies and evils encountered in life can discourage us. This is not supposed to be the case. When I let Jesus Christ be my rock, I am able to walk in His perfect love, even when the world around me seems to be foundering.During 1994, I recognized there was, and could be “Christmas Peace For a Generation.” Though Christ brings one to see the extreme contrasts between His Way and the world’s, He never leaves you without His love, peace, joy and assurance that He is with you always. He helped me see this in 1994. During C.F.O. (Camps Farthest Out), I experienced an oasis - like time of peace. It became my Christmas focus, because it served as a reminder that whenever these camps concentrated their theme on Jesus Christ, we would be led into a different world of love, peace and joy, even if it were only for a week. That camp served as a reminder that we are to retain His love, peace and joy in our hearts when we leave the camp to face the turmoils of the world.In 1995, Christ helped me appreciate “The Christmas Gift After Salvation.” Actually there are many gifts He places in our lives. Our spouses, children, family, friends and church family are treasures he gives to assist us through life. So often we begin to take these people for granted. During this year He helped me know that He expected more than that from me. The life of each person He places in my path is precious and he wants me to treat them in that manner. “Ephphatha” took on a different meaning in 1996. This word that Jesus used in healing a deaf man isn’t to be taken lightly. The woundedness in each of us, that needs healing by God, takes on many forms. In 1997 the Lord helped me grow with; “An Ear for Wisdom and A Heart for Understanding.” He helped me see more clearly what I thought I already knew. Color is not to be a barrier and is not to keep one in bondage. God does miracles in color!We had planned for two years to have, “A Vacation to Remember,” in 1998. We hadn’t been to Sweden, as a family, since 1976. Little did I know that God would bring two men from two separate continents to a third continent. Little did I know that He would use the plane as a place of ministry.My walk toward Christ at Christmas has become a walk with Him throughout the year. Sure, I still frequently fail, yet He loves me through it and I have come to love Him with a dearness that is hard to define. It is my hope that I will be able to share more of this walk in the coming years. If this is to be His blessing, it will be so!CHRISTMAS PEACE FOR A GENERATIONTwenty years ago I made the decision to write Christmas messages. This was a unique decision, at the time, because I had drifted away from the Catholic training of my childhood and had not replaced it with anything similar to Christianity.Today I look back and thank God. He took my walk of treason and washed it away in 1982. He shook me, none too gently, and said, "Now grow up and face what I have for you."He gave me a wonderful spouse of seventeen years. He thrust the lives of five children into our safekeeping. We've experienced the joy and challenge of children. Our love for them is hard to express with mere words. When God gives us children he allows us to participate in something similar to the responsibility and love he demonstrates toward each one of us.During the last twelve years the Lord has blessed my life in so many ways. This summer's CFO camp at Koronis is one vibrant example I would like to share.Chairing a nondenominational Christian family camp is a challenge. This year looked like it would be no exception. Three leaders of important functions would not be able to attend. There was confusion about the blessing services. The Sunday night, before camp started, I was weary and it all seemed impossible. Prayer is central to CFO and it looked as if there wouldn't even be time for it. In that moment of discouragement I asked for God's blessing and help!God responded in a manner that is almost indescribable. Five of the six nights were filled with healing prayer! Our first speaker was a surgeon. He described what it was like to be a physician who believes in healing prayer. The prejudice he has borne for more than fifty years has been phenomenal. Despite the medical establishment's resistance, this man and his wife have loved Christ and have persevered in ministering to people's bodies, minds and spirits. That first evening he called all who needed healing to come forward.Our second speaker was a former minister who is now in a marriage counseling ministry with his wife. He described what it was like to lose his church and have a young son die in the same year. The following seven years were spent in the valley wondering if God had forgotten him. He affirmed that being Christian means we will suffer, but that God will walk with us. He called all those who needed inner healing to come forward and receive prayer.This same speaker spoke of the heartfelt cry for Jesus. The heartfelt cry is not quiet! He thundered the name 'JESUS' twice to emphasize what he meant. The resulting silence was deafening. Two days later a camper came to me and shared that when the speaker spoke the name 'Jesus' it was for my little girl, Lauren. He said he had never, in his life, been pushed to go and tell another about this kind of message. He didn't know what it meant...but he knew he had to tell me. Our little Lauren has C.P., and I knew it meant God hadn't forgotten about her. Both of us were nearly in tears with the joy of God's presence.An atmosphere of peaceful prayer completed the days. The inspired words of both speakers kept coming. The creatives and the songs of worship and praise seemed to wrap the week in holiness. God's presence was felt in the prayer groups. The potential problems seemed to melt into the glory of our risen Savior. For one week a taste of heaven on earth was had by those with open hearts. When our God reaches down and touches the hearts and minds of his followers, a miracle of peace blossoms. May this same joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ bless you this Christmas and may this blessing continue in the coming years.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1994THE CHRISTMAS GIFT AFTER SALVATIONEach one of us must come to grips with what is most important in our lives. Is it God? After God are family and friends most important? Do those closest to me know how much I love them?After nearly twenty years of marriage and family life, I was awakened in the middle of the night by a noise. Most of my family seemed to be sleeping peacefully. The cat hadn’t caused anything to fall in the bathroom! Perhaps I had been dreamingThen there came a second loud thump like someone falling. Startled, I raced into the kitchen only to discover my wife collapsed on the floor. She was very weak and could barely speak.I cradled her in my lap while my eldest called 911. All I could sense was that one of God’s most precious gifts to me, seemed to be slipping away even as I held her.I prayed that my Lord Jesus would return her to me. The full realization of just what a precious gift she is flitted past as she lay there in my arms, seemingly suspended between life and death.At that moment, I realized that she hadn’t merely been a part of my life. During our time together she had become one of my inner most circle.The yield of that evening was a minor illness. A virus combined with fever and lack of fluids caused the major effects. Yet that night shook me. Sometimes God allows us to experience a reality check. That was such a night for me!It made me ask:Have I always treated her as a most precious person in my life?Have I always treated this child of God with honor?Have I always treated her as well as I treat myself?Have I always given God’s special gift to me the respect she deserves?To my own chagrin, I realized I couldn’t say “YES” to these questions.Dear precious persons in my life, dear gifts of God, my aim is to appreciate you in a better manner. I mean to love you as our Lord has ordained me to. When I fail, please know that I am a faulty vessel. During this Christmas, those of us working outside the home must remember that no task, project, venture or great plan is as important as the precious gifts our Lord has placed beside us. Our loved ones need our special attention and our love.This Christmas, I am thankful for God’s gift of salvation through His son Jesus Christ. I am also thankful to Him that my family is with me today. Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1995"EPHPHATHA AT CHRISTMAS"The day after Easter I sensed God giving me the word "Ephphatha," for my little girl, Lauren, who has C.P. Ephphatha, a Greek word, can mean; to be opened, to be liberated, or to be freed from whatever separates us from His eternal love and life. That night I told her "Ephphatha" was from Jesus. When she heard that word her face blossomed in joy. She tried to say it and came out with 'Ethatha.' Many nights I whispered "Ephphatha" to her and she would smile and try to repeat it.When we went to communion on the first Sunday of May, our new pastor blessed my little girl. He asked her what her name was, and did a double take when she said "Ethatha." I told him what her name was as he blessed her.In early August, a CFO Camp speaker spoke of being open to the words of God coming to us. That night I felt led to search out Paul's words in 1st Cor. 3: "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?" I slept with these words and with the thought that it would be wonderful to hear from God more often.Upon awakening, the next morning, all my past fears and hurts seemed to be exposed and I thought, "But Lord, I have given her "Ephphatha!" He replied, "She is my little flower!" Waves of confusion and hurt swirled around inside me. He continued, "When I told you "Ephphatha," it was for you!" Then as He quietly retreated into His Silence, I heard Him whisper, "Ephphatha!"Now as Christmas nears, I tremble when I ponder what it means to have the command, "Ephphatha," given to me. I know my Lord wants me to put aside my fears and hurts from the past. He desires to bring renewal with His Holy Spirit causing me to grow from the inside out. He would have me accept His direction for my lifeJesus used the word as a command for deafness to be healed. His statement brought a miraculous power of physical healing. It can also bring spiritual healing from bondage which distorts our relationship with God and one another.I can hear God saying, "I have millions of 'healthy' children who refuse to open themselves to me the way Lauren has. Their handicap is far more destructive because they remain blinded to My Real Presence in their lives this day!"He calls to a brother in bondage to a sensual lifestyle; a life that promises pleasure and happiness but yields only internal death. He says, "Ephphatha! Be freed from such turmoil," and "Ephphatha! Be opened to My Resurrection Life which has triumphed over all repented sin."He beckons to a sister, consumed by the Eastern mysteries, believing them to be a path to the light of the universe. To her he says, "You unknowingly follow Lucifer, the fallen light, who turned away from his Creator." He says, "Ephphatha! Be opened to the walk I have for you. Ephphatha! Be opened to my Resurrection morning."He invites and commands each one of us to become new creations in His Son, Jesus Christ. While we are yet caught in our sin, Jesus calls out to us: "Be Opened!""Ephphatha to my coming into the world for you." "Ephphatha to my dying for you.""Ephphatha to my Risen Life for you.""Ephphatha to my Holy Spirit indwelling you.""Indeed..........EPHPHATHA!"Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1996AN EAR FOR WISDOM AND A HEART FOR UNDERSTANDINGSince January, I had been hoping that the bank operations conversion dates would be changed. As the deadline drew nearer, other dates changed, but the operations conversion date stood firm. My family would miss most of our annual CFO camp outing.A week before the July conversion, I met and trained a new operations technician named Anthony. On Wednesday, while preparing for lunch, I noticed Anthony briefly bow his head in prayer. On conversion Saturday, we had a brief discussion about our beliefs. He told me about his walk with the Lord. When I asked him if I could go to his church the next day, he seemed hesitant at first. Then he said, “Sure!” I wondered if he was hesitating, because he is a Christian who happens to be black, and I am a Christian who happens to be white.I was the only white person in Anthony’s church. They asked visitors to stand and share concerns on their hearts. I said that my brother would be having major surgery in two weeks and he needed prayer for healing. They welcomed me with genuine friendship.The sermon was on persecution, sin, and standing firm in the Lord when times are hard. It was about how Jesus would always stand with us, and take the adverse circumstances of life and work them to our good if we remain faithful. “Dear Lord, it was so refreshing to hear your presence being preached about during the trials of life.”After service, I went to Sunday school with my friend. I was so well received that it seemed as if I had always been a part of their little study group. I had found a home, so far from home. You gave me that pearl of great price, which is priced beyond measure. You gave me yourself through the love of fellow brothers and sisters. “Thank you Lord. Thank you for showing me that even when my family misses CFO, your love is not missing!” This reminded me of a very special childhood experience.When I was about five or six, my family was renting a decrepit plantation house near Lafayette, Louisiana. My memories are foggy from those early years of childhood. But one set of memories remains implanted in my heart.My brother, Al, and I used to run down the dirt road to play at a sharecropper’s home. We never saw him because he was out working during the day. His wife, we called her Miss Mary, was always home with her several children. She always welcomed us to play with her little ones. Al and I were too young to know about the color division line. We never realized it was unusual for white kids to be playing with black kids in the Deep South in the late fifties.Not only did Miss Mary let us play, but if it were near the noon hour, she always had us stay to eat black eyed peas, rice, and corn bread. At the time, I did not realize that by feeding us, it meant she had less food for her own children. She just let the love of God shine through her heart. She always gave of what little she had and gave with such abundant love. She just realized that we are all God’s children and if God loves each of us, so would she. No differences were a good enough excuse to not love and give. It was that simple! It remains that simple! “Lord, please bless Miss Mary, Anthony, and all those who put you first. Help us all to come into communion through your son, Jesus Christ. Only then will all our differences be experienced as distinct, yet wonderful, flavors of your love.Thank you for showing me that when my ear is given to your wisdom, and my heart given to your understanding, your love will prevail.”May your love be expressed through our hearts, and lips, and hands this Christ-mas season.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1997A VACATION TO REMEMBERMy daughter, Anika, graduated from college in June and then married her fiancé, Jeff, in August. It was such a busy time. Then in September, Ingrid, the younger children, and I went to Sweden to visit her family. She had asked me to bring something for family devotions. I brought “The Owner’s Manual” by Don Bierle of Faith Studies International.The Lord always holds surprises for the faithful. I expected short family devotions, but He had other plans. Ingrid’s youngest brother, Mats, had come home from Australia to be with his parents for awhile. We made time to get to know one another. At one point, early on, we drifted into matters of faith. Quickly, he asked to join us in our devotions and study using “The Owner’s Manual.” Not only did he join, but Ingrid’s parents, Stig and Gun, also expressed an interest to participate.Over those three weeks Mats and I met several times just to discuss many life issues. It was so refreshing to meet a western man so hungry and thirsty for God. You must understand, much of my life is spent in the corporate world where, for the most part, discussing anything of eternal value is discouraged. For some reason, my Lord Jesus Christ had moved two men from different parts of the world to a third location, so that His name could be glorified. Sharing with my friend, Mats, was one of the most fulfilling things I have ever done. The movement of God in our world is so quiet, so subtle, and yet ever so powerful. I still stand amazed at how God’s Spirit works. The glow of an awesome vacation had not faded when we settled into the 747 for the trip home. The best I could do for seating was a three and one combination. So I sat behind Ingrid, Andy, and Lauren. It wasn’t so bad, the couple next to me seemed nice enough. But the cabin attendants soon removed them and seated a German speaking man next to me. They wanted someone who could speak English near the exits so they moved him. That meant I’d be able to settle back and read a book! Well, that is what I had thought anyway!But this man wanted to talk, even though he only had a 20% mastery of our language. Yet, should I complain, my German is limited to about ten words, if that! Inside I sighed and thought, “Lord you don’t really want me to do something here, do you?” The silence was expectant. Inwardly I slumped as I silently sighed “OK.” So now I had eight hours to converse with a man with whom I was not likely to even ‘get to first base.’ He told me his name was Conny or Conrad. Bless his heart, he seemed to take special delight when I managed to utter a German word or two. Have you ever held a conversation using a dictionary for every third word? That’s the way it was.As Conny talked, he drank. He told me that he had a twenty-year-old daughter. It was evident that he loved her dearly. He was on disability pension for a work related incident, and he was on the way to Winnipeg to visit a friend. He was going to fish and commune with nature and managed to say that ‘nature was his god.’ I struggled with the dictionary to write out, in German, that ‘my God created nature!’Well, he blew up and exclaimed that my God was asleep when the German authorities had taken his little girl away from him. His wife had died fifteen years ago and the social system had deemed him an unfit dad. He had not been allowed to see his little girl since then. The anger, horror, fear and wounded rage was palpable. He blamed God. No amount of reason could persuade him that our God is good. When he finally settled down and passed from fitful rest to drunken slumber, I was able to write to him the letter that our Lord wanted him to see.I wrote him of the terrors Jesus had to pass through to save a ravaged humanity and of how God the Father loved us so much that he allowed His Son to bear our iniquity. I wrote of how we all frequently continue to spite him. I described how Jesus had borne the pain of Conny’s daughter being taken away because the Holy Spirit had been there with them when it happened. I wrote of how God loved him so much that He had thrown him the lifeline of eternal life. God had given Conny his Son, Jesus Christ, as his personal savior.When my new friend woke up, I put the letter in his breast pocket and asked him to have a good friend translate it for him when he got to Winnipeg.Well, Mats, and Conny, and all of my friends, the Lord is with you. He was there, on the ground, pulling us from separate continents to meet, and He was there, suspended over the ocean, at 40,000 feet. He was there on the days we met and He is with each of us today. So we all have this little reminder; God is well and He is here with us now!May our Lord’s infinite love bless you this Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 1998 TOWARD JOY THROUGH TRIALS1999 has been a hard year. One of my dear friends Louise Dee passed into eternity. She was, along with her husband John, my co-mentor in Christ. Yes, I do know she is with our Lord, and that part of me knows a certain joy. Yet there remains a hole in my life due to missing relationship. Sometimes, “MOVING TOWARD JOY IN THE MORNING,” can be a very difficult thing to do. Yet time passes and we move step by step ever closer toward the eternal junction.If 1999 was hard, 2000 proved to be an equally good trial. As one gets older we need to expect that more friends and family will die. But to say we need to expect something to happen, a rational thought at best, and to experience the events themselves are two very different things. I wrote; “OUR CHRISTMAS DEADLINE,” with perhaps a better understanding of my finite time spent here on earth. A friend and a grandparent died and eternity seems closer. In this writing I try to bring home how we are to deal with our own personal deadline with our Maker.During 2001 in “OUR CHRISTMAS CHOICE” I write about the contrast of walking in communion with God Vs the horror of Sept 11, 2001. My generation has seldom seen the sharp contrast between good and evil. Our culture had become so callused to the notion of good and evil that as a nation we were shocked to see evil. Even with the overriding horror of that incident I remember the quiet beauty of walking with God on another occasion.2002 helped crystallize an understanding that Christians, like everyone else, go through situations that can cause joy, sorrow, and even pain. We are not exempt running the gamut of emotions when friends become followers of Christ, a loved one dies, or suffering physical agony when the accidents of life occur. The difference for the Christian is not exemption from the stuff of life it is living in relationship with the Holy Spirit. Knowing I am walking with God makes a difference.In 2003 I was given the opportunity to help a young man as he chose to give his life to our Lord. Then I assisted in helping him become more mature in his walk with Jesus. It was a year that brought opportunities to be a disciple through helping others become disciples.2004 was the 30th anniversary year of writing these Christmas messages. It was a time spent in learning just how important reconciliation, forgiveness and love are to the Christian life. It seems even fair to say that love and forgiveness must become realities in a Christian’s life. If those qualities are not active in a Christian’s life then it would seem that the faith remains only an intellectual exercise. MOVING TOWARD JOY IN THE MORNINGThis last April a close friend passed into the eternal realm. I haven't felt the keen blade of grief quite so strongly since both of my parents passed away over seventeen years ago. But Louise was my son Andy’s godmother. She and her husband, John, were my spiritual mentors. She was my elder sister in Christ.Many years ago I was led to write a memorial prayer for a close friend who had died. Over the years it became a ministry of comfort for others. Little did I realize that those memorial words, penned so many years before, would perfectly fit my dear friend Louise. Little did I realize that the words were not only to minister to others in their time of mourning, but they would be for me in my own time of trial. With this in mind and heart, I share this little prayer with you.Dear Jesus, ... it is hard to understand Louise’s death. My friends are hurting. How are we to find comfort? My little one, you are seeing her death as an ending. You don’t understand… for her it is a beginning of eternal life near Me. Your fears are linked so tightly to your bodies. She has shed her bondage and even now.... shimmering in a cloak of faith and hope, she approaches my Eternal Presence on wings of love and serenity.My dear child, what you are really asking is;How will John and Christie be comforted? They are my children too, as are all of you. Pray that my Holy Spirit grant you all a deeper faith. Become quiet and sense my Presence. Ask me for comfort and it is yours. Ask me for strength and it is yours. Ask me for peace and it will be within you. Ask me for love and my loving arms will support you. Open your heart, let your self-strength go. Walk with me... and you will come to our Father’s Eternity. As you come that far with me, the joyous presence of Louise will touch you. I assure you, she lives on and loves you, now, more than she ever could before.Her love and joy are now everlasting and touching all of you. Quiet yourselves now my children. Come into my presence and as you do, you will sense her nearness too, and her love for you! Be Comforted! Amen!Part of the process of healing means we must be reconciled to the fact that God will sometimes say "No" to us and our prayer for healing. Our faith is not to be in any earthly healing or manifestation; it is to be in God and in His Will. This is an essential, yet hard, learning.Another part of healing is to recognize that mourning and joy are closely tied experiences. Both cut into the deepest nature of our souls. On one side we contemplate the utter terror of the lonely night. On the other side we bathe in the gentle warm glow of a crystal clear morning shimmering in God’s glory. We are not meant to stay in mourning. We are to move toward joy.Yet, there is a day in each of our lives when we have to bear the loss of someone we treasure deeply. During these times we wonder if there could ever be joy in the morning. The pain of missing just seems to be too great. The pearl lies in the knowing that she or he is now bathed in the beauty and sheer awesome splendor of our Almighty God. We come to realize that our ‘missing pain’ is comforted in knowing where she really is. This knowledge, this hope, begins to ripen into the fruit of joy in our mourning. This poignant mourning joy takes time.It takes time to move from mourning tears to bittersweet mourning joy. We need to allow Jesus Christ to mend our emotional wounds, anger, discouragement, bitterness, and our broken hearts. We have to bring it all to Him.True joy returns only after we have trusted God enough to throw ourselves upon His mercy, love, wisdom, and will. We need to realize that our broken hearts take ever so much tender nourishment and that only Jesus has the capacity to make us joy filled again. Only in His tender, creative hands are our souls restored. Only then comes the day when the mourning joy becomes joy in the morning.May God’s infinite love, expressed fully in His Son Jesus Christ, flow into you through the gentle touch of His Holy Spirit this Christmas and in the days to come.And may you have His Joy in the Morning.Mark B. Nemzekc 1999OUR CHRISTMAS DEADLINEOur lives are scripts being written in time. The tools are not paper, pen, ink, or PC. No, they are the stuff we’re made of; flesh, blood, spirit, and all the gifts and talents our Creator has packed into each one of us. Our lives are the scripts that follow and precede us into eternity. The scripts we become include all of our thoughts, feelings, words, deeds and misdeeds; indeed all of our experiences of commission and omission are included.Each one of us can choose to write our own script as if we were independent entities. Or we can choose to produce our script, in communion with our Creator, as we were designed to. The choice resides in each one of us. These choices have eternal consequences and our Lord will honor our decisions. If I choose to script it out on my own terms I need to realize that such self-centered scripting reigns for eternity. If I choose to script my life within the renewal terms of our Creator; that too will be forever.When Louise, my friend and co-mentor in Christ, died last year I felt a great sense of loss. Now recently Tony, a friend and next door neighbor, died in late September at the age of forty-two. I was shaken again. Then my father-in-law Stig died on October 18th. He was eighty-one. Too many close people have been dying. Suddenly I have come to realize that each one of us is on a deadline. Unlike our normal everyday, worldly deadlines we don’t know when the time for our life script will be up. Our time could end before we leave the womb, at the age of forty-two, or even at eighty-one; we just don’t know. One thing is for sure; He who created us has the prerogative to do the review. The ending of our earthly life script could be near or it could be several years. Perhaps it’s the millennium perhaps it’s just that I am getting older, but I sense the urgency to share the truth I’ve garnered within my few years.Faith in Jesus Christ and in all His promises is not merely another religion. Most faiths depend on people to believe in the teachings and practices of that faith. The heart of Christianity depends on Jesus himself. Without the person of Jesus Christ, there is no valid Christianity.Yes I have faith, but it is not merely built on feelings and subjective experiences. There is solid evidence for the basis of Christianity. There are over 24,000 manuscripts extending back to the first century. Even with all the scribes copying each other’s works, they are 99.5% error free.The fingerprints of God cover Jesus Christ like no other figure in history. Jesus fulfilled over forty-eight prophecies of the Old Testament written hundreds of years before his birth. The chance of one man being the fulfillment of so many prophecies is one in ten to the 153rd power. There is no chance that He was coincidence. We must to let Him answer our needs.When we claim that Jesus is merely one way, among the many paths, to God; Jesus answers, …"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 (NIV)When we try to take alternate paths into the hereafter, Jesus reminds us; "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matt 7:13-14When we want to make it to heaven just knowing about Him and not being in relationship with Him,…Jesus declares, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."… "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” John 3:3, 5Sometimes we believe our sin is too great for God to do anything about. Jesus replies, "What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.” Matt 18:12-14When we want to make life too complicated Jesus simplifies it by giving us a simple rule: …”Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. 'The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." Mark 12:30-31We are all on a deadline with a final destiny. I do not know when my life torch will be required of me, but when it is, I do not want it to be said that I was too embarrassed to mention the saving message of Jesus Christ. After all, He is the Son of God! However long we live, time is short! Jesus Christ offers salvation from our self-oriented corruption and eternal life to all who will repent and believe in Him in thought, word, and deed. As we consider this Christmas deadline, I pray that each one of us will give our lives to the Lord or ask for a renewal of our love for Him and a rededication to serving Him.Have a Blessed and Merry Christmas.Mark B. Nemzek…………………c 2000OUR CHRISTMAS CHOICEEvery day we make decisions. Within each decision is buried two choices. We can choose to walk with God and face the light or we can choose to walk in our own counsel and face ultimate uncertainty. Each choice that honors God builds our relationship with him. Each self-directed choice increases the gap between God and us.In recent months two days in my life clearly express the contrast between these two choices.On Friday August 3rd I was facilitating a creative writing session at a CFO Christian family camp. Something remarkable happened during that morning exercise. We had the ‘human agenda,’ creative writing, for that period, but God had something different planned. A friend, and fellow camper, became ill. Instead of just excusing herself, she was led to tell me twice of her illness. I finally realized the need to ask if someone was led to pray for her. During her writing period another camper had been moved to write about starting a healing prayer ministry for others in need. She led prayer for the first camper and then the group began to intercede for others.This process, of honoring God and the other, could have been stopped at any point. But God worked little miracle transformations in each person present because each one walked in faith for those few minutes. For that short period we walked in that special quality called, ‘faith like a child.’ It left us wondering if this was the norm that God had always intended for us, if we would only listen.September 11th marks a day where the decisions that were made dishonored both God and humanity. In just a few moments terrorists killed themselves and thousands of innocent men, women, and children. Those choices caused thousands of children to lose their parents, husbands and wives to be separated by death and friendships to be broken apart.Our President spoke of us being forced to confront the face of evil. Yet the admission of evil forces us to admit God’s existence. Even though, as a society, we have been turning away from God for over forty years, we knew he was speaking the truth.Some still attempt to argue with our President. They don’t want to face the fact of good and evil and that they too are accountable to God. Facing this means we have to admit our own shortcomings; both individual and collective. It means we have to face our own self-centeredness and realize that we have much to repent of. It means we have to realize we’ve turned away from God, and that we now have an opportunity to return to Him.Usually the daily decisions we make lie somewhere between the extremes of loving or despising God and humanity. We don’t go all out to harm others and frequently we don’t put God or others first in our choices. We need to ask; ‘Does God settle for this mediocrity?’The Bible says it well in Deut 30: 15-18,…”See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed…”(NIV)The choices made on these two unique days, and in all the other more ordinary decisions, reflect on our relationship with God. Ultimately, we choose to live with or without God. It’s that simple. Jesus said in John 14:6,… "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” On 9/11 many gave their lives that others might live. On the cross, with a deep and infinite love that embraces all of human history, Jesus gave his life that we all might have eternal life. Whether our lives are long or short, when compared to the magnitude of eternity, our lives are but fleeting wisps of smoke. This Christmas, while we yet have breath, choose life.Have a Blessed and Merry Christmas.Mark B. Nemzek…………………c 2001An Extraordinary Christmas for an Ordinary ChristianThis year my heart has known the overflow of joy for one friend, the agony of a suffering loss for another, and a personal brush with physical pain.Last year I sent a draft of my Christmas Writing to an Internet friend. A little later that day we chatted on the phone and I discovered she had a brother, who professed his Christianity strongly. Sometimes his Christian expression caused her discomfort because she was not a believer.During the discussion we came to an understanding that her brother’s motives were well intentioned. It seemed that his concern was a fear centered on the possibility of them not being together in eternity. I asked her if she would grant him grace in this matter, since it seemed obvious that he loved her deeply. His concern for her was linked to eternal issues and he wasn’t able to communicate with her without causing an uncomfortable situation. I mentioned that Christians frequently have this concern for their loved ones. We have a hard time with the possibility that those we love won’t be with us for eternity. Sometimes we do things intending to encourage our dearest friends and it offends them instead. My friend and I agreed that Christians aren’t perfect. We also agreed to stay in touch.Over the next several months we e-mailed each other on issues of faith and eternity. One morning in April, I opened an e-mail to discover that my Internet friend had given her life to Christ. When I read that little note, it was as if all of eternity had paused for a moment in an expression of extreme and elegant rejoicing. That moment of joy remains treasured in my heart.During the summer of 2001 Javan Ommani, a man from Kenya, came and spoke at our CFO camp. His 17 year old daughter was battling ovarian cancer. Many of us prayed for him and his family then and have continued in prayer for them. This September we received an email announcing that Javan’s daughter had passed into eternity.My friends in Kenya know their daughter is in heaven with God. Yet there are times when the certainty for eternity does little to quell the aching heart. The death of one’s child is no respecter of belief. Mothers and fathers never want their children to die before they do. It is too much like to a sword piercing a parent’s heart. Knowing the Peace of Christ certainly brings grieving into perspective, but the sting of missing is not lost.More recently, in late October, while paying special attention to a sheet-rocking detail, I blithely ignored the effects of gravity. In the blink of an eye, I plunged six feet onto a cold concrete floor. The reality of a broken wrist, hurt ribs, a sore thigh and knee, and forced relaxation has challenged my patience past breaking point on several occasions.As an ordinary Christian I’ve come to realize that, just like every other person on the face of this earth, we all walk through situations which cause us joy, suffering, and pain. All people, regardless of faith, must face the circumstances of life. The difference between Christians and others lies not in the circumstances faced. For the Christian, the difference lies in his relationship with God. It is internal in that he has the promise of the Holy Spirit residing within him. It is external in that by knowing God’s abiding presence he is free to respond to all situations in light of eternal assurances. Sometimes he responds no differently than anyone else. The challenge for all Christians, when confronted with the hard situations, is to respond with the abiding peace and love of God in their actions.As we walk through pain, suffering, or joy we are consoled by what our Holy Scripture says in 1 Cor 15:54-57:When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (NIV)May this consolation come to nourish the hearts of all of us ordinary people during this extraordinary Christmas Season. Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 2002A Disciple at ChristmasWe seldom take the time to examine the difference between being a believer and being a disciple of Jesus Christ. It is as if being a believer means to have accepted the salvation message of Jesus Christ, and then somehow relegate it into some small portion of the mind or heart. Then, on Sundays, we take a peek to ensure it is there, but otherwise we don’t let the salvation reality bother us too much. On the other hand, a disciple of Christ will not stop following. When you decide to follow Jesus he never gives you the option to follow when you feel like it. No, he desires our full commitment to follow him at all times with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength. Being a disciple is an every day of the year proposition. All I can say with certainty is that when we choose to be his disciple, even though our failures are frequent, Jesus always compensates with his overflowing blessings. Allow me to offer some examples.Last January, Jeff, a church leader, asked me if I would be willing to work with a man of atheist inclinations who had many questions about Christ and Christianity. It was now clear why the burden to study apologetics had been placed in my heart. I said ‘yes,’ to Jeff and waited to meet Dave.On a Sunday evening, in early February, Dave and I met for nearly four hours. It seemed like he explored every question that I had ever studied. That night was exhilarating. The next day I mentioned to Jeff that it was like being a midwife watching the Holy Spirit wrestle Dave into a new life. That Tuesday Jeff called me back and exclaimed that Dave had asked Christ to be his Lord and Savior. My wife, Ingrid, and I continue to meet with Dave in a small group setting. We are exploring ways to know Jesus Christ better. It has been a wonder filled time.The second incident happened on a Saturday in June after my son, Andy, and I had returned home from the barbershop. We had been discussing concerns with respect to works and grace because he was going to speak on these topics at a youth group.It was a lively discussion, and as I was pulling into the garage I mentioned that God frequently puts appointments into our lives at unexpected times and our part is simply to be ready to give witness to his Word. We had no sooner parked the car than two well dressed young women walked up our drive and asked to discuss faith issues. These young Jehovah’s Witnesses certainly had no intention of becoming Christians. Ingrid, who had been in the background, saw the impasse more clearly than I did. She walked over and asked if they believed in the Trinity. She also said that other doctrines are false and would not lead to heaven.The young ladies appeared seriously agitated. Though unplanned, the “bad cop, good cop” scenario seemed as it it were designed for just that moment, because I was then able to clearly discuss several issues with them. When they left they were not converted, but they knew the difference between those with apostolic beliefs and those who follow more recent teachings. Seeds were planted.The third incident occurred in late July when Ingrid and I were discussing the issue of personal care assistance for Lauren. We had suddenly realized that with Anika and Jeff moving to Montana and Andy beginning college in September, we would have no one to watch over Lauren. While Ingrid was able to pray about the situation, I was still undecided as to how to pray. That afternoon I took Lauren shopping with me as I have done dozens of times. As our groceries were being checked, the clerk began talking to me about caring for her cousin who has Down’s syndrome. She loved working with him and hoped to train and work with the handicapped. She was hoping to work with someone like Lauren.That she would do this, just hours after my spouse and I had declared a need, seemed a special God moment. I gave her a deposit slip with our phone number on it and asked her to call my wife. God answering an unvoiced prayer in a grocery store really got my attention!Each of these incidents represents the cry of Jesus for us to be in living relationship with him. He does not want mere belief; he wants us to be his disciples. In Rev 3:20; he says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” (NIV) Clearly he beckons. Let us go and open the door this Christmas!Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzekc 2003CHRISTMAS, A GIFT OF FORGIVENESSThirty years ago, at the youthful age of twenty-one, I began writing these Christmas messages. At the time I was neither Christian nor married. Ingrid and I had just met in the early months of 1974 and were married in 1977. Though I had been raised in a Christian home I had drifted from my Christian roots and sampled several of the eastern and western religions. Forgiveness was not a major agenda item in my life. It is fascinating that I wrote Christmas messages for eight years before I became a follower of Christ. Looking back I can see that our Lord used these writings as a life reminder during my wandering days. His plan was placed in my life even when I was facing away from him. He knew there would be much for me to repent of and much that I would need forgiveness for. The “Christmas Messages” were one of the tools he used to help me repent, accept his forgiveness and face him again. They were instrumental in helping me accept his love for me. They were also a catalyst in assisting me to accept his wisdom and direction for my life’s path.This thirty year walk has shown me that we can not walk in forgiveness if we do not walk with the abundance of Jesus’ love planted deeply within our hearts, minds and spirits. His truth, wrapped within the context of love, is the only thing that allows us to receive his forgiveness and then extend it to others. Think about it for a moment. If I do not have the grace of God continually pouring his love, peace and joy into me, how will I ever be able to extend forgiveness to others when they have hurt me? Forgiveness is not merely an act of will, though it often begins there. It is a process that allows the harmed one to willingly extend peace, love and joy to the transgressor. Anything short of this is simply some kind of conditional truce. It involves the ‘peace of man’ instead of the ‘Peace of God.’Since I am offering a differing version of forgiveness from the one many are familiar with, allow me to give an example. When I have been hurt, I am living with a negative in my life. If it has happened often enough, my life is in deficit or debt. If the deficit becomes deep enough, bitterness, anger and depression take root. When my cup of life is filled with woundedness, hurts and other negatives, how will I offer forgiveness to anyone, including myself?Jesus tells us that what we are filled with is what we are likely to respond with. Matt 12:…34-36…For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. NIVTo extend genuine forgiveness to another, something must first fill my life’s cup with that which is beautiful in the eyes of God. If and when I accept God’s forgiveness, his nature fills my vacuum with an overflow of peace, love and joy. The grace of God washes away all the old poisons and clears the way for me to walk in forgiveness and love.Occasionally, we have assisted friends in the process of reconciliation. Usually they are Christians who are not walking in genuine forgiveness for one another.One wants to forgive, but only after many conditions have been met. Another wants to forgive, but when occasional failures occur, distrust and bitterness are allowed to rebound. Others want reconciliation, but only if there is some proof of reformation on the transgressor’s part.The common practice of conditional reconciliation usually results in failure. Often we are unwilling to consistently let the love of Jesus Christ overwhelm our own past bitterness allowing his genuine forgiveness to flow through our lives toward our loved ones. Weeks, sometimes months, of reconciliation efforts seem to fail. These human solutions leave the love of Jesus Christ underutilized in all of our lives. Yet, given the chance, I know our Lord will work miracles.Thirty years have shown me just how often we all walk with different levels of unforgiveness in our hearts. Twenty-two years of living with the Lord have shown me that there is a better Way. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and his grace may be sewn into our lives. When we allow it, his forgiveness, peace, love and joy can become our overflow. May this be so as we treasure our families this Christmas!Merry Christmas,Mark B. NemzekC 2004UEXPECTED JOYS AND TRIALS2005 was a year when I concentrated on the gift of friendship. Friends can come on many levels and one of the most blessed friendship of a husband and wife. Ingrid and I have been married for 28 years and we continue to build our loving partnership. In this writing I also comment on the joys of other friendships. There have been a handful of men in recent years that have added richness to my growth.2006 was a year when I paused to reflect on prayer. There are many reasons to pray and to pray to Jesus Christ and his Father is appropriate. However, in this writing I also move from the reasons to pray toward the purpose of life through prayer. Being in communion with God is like being in relationship with a friend. One cannot have a relationship without communicating and in similar fashion we cannot commune with God without prayer.2007 was literally life changing. In March I went through a triple bypass. Yes, that is where the doctors open your chest, take veins from your body, and stitch those veins into arteries to carry blood to your heart. As important as that was to my physical survival, it was the special little miracle moments where God showed me how He interacts with us daily, with us frequently being unaware He is there.2008 was as traumatic as 2007. In late June Ingrid went home for her mom’s funeral. The day after she got back I had a stroke. Though neither is desirable I’d say a stroke is scarier than heart surgery. Heart surgery is fairly straight forward and known. When you have a stroke and have five different medical professionals give you five differing opinions about your brain’s well being you are confronted with the stark uncertainty of life. Still, the Lord was incredibly merciful and I’m able to write these words today.2009 seemed like a year of reprieve. It was frightfully busy at work and filled with challenge at home. Our granddaughter Ashly came to begin her stay with us. She was hoping to be with us in her eleventh and twelfth grades. Even with all this I made time to dwell on the majesty of God.2010 was as busy at work as the previous year. Even so family was special. We watched a new love blossom between our son Andy and Carrie. That and experiencing a year of growth with our granddaughter brought me to a place of contemplating on how love could cast out fear.Christmas: A Gift of FriendshipDuring my lifetime, I have met many people, had many contacts, many associates, known a number of friends, and had the privilege of having a few dear friends. A friend is someone you are fond of; a dear friend is one whom you miss when they leave, and your soul dances when they return. You are thankful to God for their presence in your life.A man is blessed when he marries a dear friend. A soul mate to share experiences with is especially appreciated when the trials become too hard to endure alone. My wife and friend of nearly twenty-nine years has been such a one to me. This summer, when she visited her ailing mother in Sweden, I realized how much I missed her. Some might say I missed her because of the myriad tasks she does. While I agree that it is easier sharing home tasks with another, the “missing” element in my life ran much deeper than that. It was more akin to a part of me no longer being present. This is a special gift that secretly arrives only after couples have walked through many trials, joys and years while nourishing their bond of love.With these thoughts in mind and with great fondness, I consider the lives of two men who have chosen to infuse their time, wisdom and friendship into my life. Both of these men love our Lord, and both of them have had their lives interrupted by the recent loss of their spouses. Both treasured their wives deeply, and both know that they will some day be reunited with them at heaven’s door. While knowing the hope of eternity is now a reality for their treasured ones, they now walk life’s journey experiencing what it is like to be half of a whole. This year my two friends will journey through their first Christmas with the love of their families surrounding them but without their loving wives. Many of us have friends in similar circumstances. We need to express our love and appreciation to them especially during this season.Late last year, after sending out my Christmas message another friendship was born. One man took my writing to heart and responded in an unusual manner. We had never even met; we had only participated in teleconferences up to that time. Yet he felt the need to respond as a man who had just found his missing brother.Little did I know that only three months later we would be working in the same group. Together we explored the nuances of friendship while working through challenging tasks. As the days turned to weeks, and as we persevered through one trial after another, a bond of brother-hood formed. Facing work challenges with a friend at your side is invigorating! A person who brings cheerfulness, kindness, consideration, joy and thoughtfulness into your life is not one you dismiss lightly, unless you are a fool. I hope that I have been able to give my new friend a fraction of the joy he has given me. All those who have been blessed by friends like him understand what I mean.My hope is that each one of us will remember that the special people God has placed in our lives are there for a purpose. Our Creator knows our needs for fellowship, friendship and life partners. He knows because he created us. These dear friends, whom God plants in the critical moments of life’s journey, are to be treasured as image bearers of the Lord. Jesus shares some special words about friendship in John 15:11-15:I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. NIVWhat Jesus says gives me pause for reflection. Friendship, when found in a spouse or others, is something that is never to be taken lightly. It is a gift from God. Indeed, it is like the breath of God born into in your life. May our Lord’s gift of friendship be yours this Christmas and in the coming days!Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzek? 2005A Prayer at ChristmasWhy would a man or woman pray?Thirty-two years ago, I began writing these Christmas messages. It seems I chose to write them at Christmas time, yet I did not become a follower of Jesus Christ until twenty-four years ago. Why did I write during those eight years of unbelief? It was the silent work of God in my heart.Why would a man or woman pray?The fingerprints of God are all over Jesus Christ. Over two hundred prophesies, written hundreds of years before Christ, were fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. There is not a chance this was chance.Why would a man or woman pray?Jesus taught that we are to love one another even to the point of giving our lives for the other. Muhammad taught that others could be maimed or killed if they would not convert. If both faiths are talking about the same God, that God is a god of contradiction. Prayer and thoughtful consideration reveal they are not the same.Why would a man or woman pray?Two strangers, living hundreds of miles apart, talk on the phone. They both realize a desire in their hearts to meet before the next year when they will attend a common function. Neither one has the personal resources to make that happen. They compare notes and discover that they both have airline tickets to a third city. Their planes are scheduled to land within two hours of each other. They meet!Why would a man or woman pray?When you comprehend that a simple, elegant yet extraordinary code containing the equivalent of more than a thousand books worth of information, the most intimate details of your own personal design, is written in your genes; you pray.Why would a man or woman pray?When you realize that there are more than forty variables in the universe that must be arranged in perfect harmony for life to exist, you pray. If any of those variables were off a fraction, life as we know it would not exist. Why would a man or woman pray?Prayer includes both talking and listening to God. If I want to have a good relationship with my spouse (or anyone else) I need to communicate. It is no different with God. If I claim to love God but will not communicate with Him, I am worse than a fool.Now, after 53 years I contemplate the nature of things. As already mentioned there is good reason to believe and pray. Yet many do not believe, and even among the believers many lack a certainty toward prayer. It seems that many do not even sense the reality of spiritual life. Often, when spirituality is acknowledged, great perversions struggle to dominate the dimensions of the soul.Often non-believers discern few differences between themselves and us. We Christians have relaxed our vigilance. We have often failed to live out the love that Jesus exhorted us toward. Without loving prayer immersed in all of our activities, we fail God by not being His salt and light in a lost world. The best gift a disciple can give to Jesus is to love Him and love one’s neighbor.If we prayed to discern Jesus’ will for our daily lives, and then in prayerful attitude, acted as He directed, we would be His light bearers. The Christmas miracle would come to pass!My prayer is that the wisdom, peace, love and joy of our Lord Jesus Christ be yours in the coming days.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzek?2006Christmas; Remembering the God Touched MomentsOccasionally, we have an experience that causes us to pause and take stock of life. March 23rd was such a day. First, I had a stress echo test which indicated the need for an angiogram. That, in turn, indicated the need for a triple bypass. My doctors completed the day by telling me I would not be leaving the hospital until after the surgery. In a few short hours, all my priorities in life were rearranged! I was feeling a bit grumpy with God, and then He revealed what I needed to know. I could have a pity party for myself or I could choose to express concern and kindness toward everyone walking through the door. In choosing the latter, I realized it was a God touched moment, even though my life was turned upside down. Many such moments lay ahead.For the next eight days, I was granted an increased awareness of God’s weaving the tapestry of life. Every nurse and nursing assistant became a special person to me. Through God’s grace I was able to treat them with concern, gentleness, kindness, and humor. Even so, I only obeyed Jesus’ commandment when he says to love your neighbor as yourself. The result was awesome. They showered me with grace and blessings that were largely undeserved. William, a Physician Assistant, discussed the details of the surgery with me. The PA’s are the special folks who hold your heart in their hands while the chief surgeon knits it together again. The team was to use a certain procedure on me that he had helped develop. I asked if he would be there for me. He said, “yes” and then bumped the scheduled PA so he could be there.The night before surgery, my pastor, a friend, and the hospital chaplain came and prayed with me. They could not have all come at that moment without the One above orchestrating it. A little while later Ingrid, Andy, and Lauren came in. To our amazement, Lauren, who is disabled and seldom speaks in sentences, uttered a prayer: “Jesus please bless daddy – he’s sick – please make him better soon!” Ingrid, Andy, and I looked at each other in awe. We immediately sensed the presence and peace of our Lord. Andy was present during my pre-operation preparation at 5:30 Tuesday morning. This was a precious time for me, as I hadn’t been expecting him. He and Ingrid were there when I became aware late that afternoon. Ingrid helped me get through Wednesday, by far the toughest day. Her presence was a balm. Family is to be treasured. Two days after surgery I found out my PA was a strong Christian. While sharing this with my pastor that evening the full impact of having a man of God, holding my heart in his hands during my most dire moments, became real. The miracle we’d prayed for, prior to surgery, had been realized. God provided for me during the most vital moments by giving me His man to hold my heart when it was most needed. The man standing in the gap for me was a man who loves Jesus Christ with all his heart! I was deeply touched by the many calls from my children, brothers, sisters and friends. My manager and other friends visited me often. My brother Al, his wife Pam, and a number of friends were even present with Ingrid during my surgery. Especially touching were the calls and visits from my pastor as well as several other church friends. During my stay I realized that many people were praying for me. I believe it was through this prayer covering that I gained a deeper appreciation for Romans 8: 28; And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. NIVIt seems as if a mighty surgery has been done not only to my heart but also to my soul!God Touched Moments:Every moment we live and breathe, we experience the miracle of God sustaining the universe. Often, we take it for granted. Much of the time we don’t even recognize the unusual events as God’s touch. Yet, when I look at the series of occurrences that happened when I went through surgery, I realize God’s handiwork. Each moment bolstered my faith. Each moment was a little miracle beyond the sustenance of the universe, and that realization brought greater healing to my body and soul.I look for these special moments more frequently now, and I thank God that he gives Jesus Christ to us in these ordinary yet unusual ways. His Holy Spirit fully affects our lives, when we let Him. My hope and prayer this Christmas is that each one of us will slow down and listen. Even now, He reaches out…. touching the tapestry of our lives.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzek?2007Christmas Thanksgiving and PraiseLast year my Christmas message described the triple by-pass “event” I experienced earlier in the year. It would be great to write a heartwarming message on how smoothly life has flowed since then. Yet if I have cause for thanksgiving and praise, it would not be because of life’s smooth flow! On June 27th, the day after Ingrid returned home from attending her mother’s funeral in Sweden, I had a stroke.This was a hard experience for both of us. For Ingrid, because she was still working through her grieving from losing her mom, not to mention jet lag. For me, because I was hospitalized again. Even mild strokes are hard things to go through. All the ordinary things you assume in life are changed.When your leg feels like a separate appendage, fear, anger, and confusion reign. When balance and motor coordination seem to disappear and every time you try to take a step you are forced to hug the wall on the left, life is not fun. At one point, I felt so desperate that in my spirit I reached out and grasped the hand of God as a lifeline. His hand seemed the only stability during those days of trial in the hospital.When I was able to return home I had to learn to walk again which is quite a challenging experience. We often go through life with little thought about walking, talking, seeing, hearing or touching because these activities seem so normal and effortless. Yet, when you have a stroke you find out that much of what appeared ordinary is not ordinary at all. Many active and passive activities need a new orientation, and many sensations are so internally experienced that words often fail to describe them.Yet, imbedded within these challenging times were sewn pearls of joy. In June we visited our daughter Anika in Montana and had a chance to enjoy one another as well as partake in the grandeur of mountain life. Then, in August, our daughter Ursula, her husband Joe and their tribe visited us while on furlough from their missionary work in Sweden. At the same time, our son Chris, his wife Valerie and their children visited us. Andy, who recently purchased a home only 3.5 miles from us, helped homestead the crowd. Anika also joined us and we had a few days of total joyous pandemonium. After living through the trials and the joys it seems a cliché to say that “life is short,” or “don’t take anyone for granted.” Shortly after the stroke, when I was again able to appreciate life, those common messages became more real.Each one of us, whether we live to be one or eighty-one, has but a brief journey on this earth. When I began writing these Christmas messages I felt like I would live forever. Now, it feels like my youth was just yesterday. Life seems short, and fragile, and precious. Handle with care!During the last two years I have come to realize just how fearfully and wonderfully we are made. Our creator went to great extremes to place our souls into this substance we call life. When we failed, His Son Jesus was born on Christmas Day and he died for us that we might have eternal life. He gives us life, family, friends, and eternity. We have much to praise and thank Him for this Christmas season.May His wisdom, peace, love, joy and many blessings be upon you this Christmas.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzek?2008Christmas: An Eternal PerspectiveDuring 2007 and 2008 I experienced two of those life reminders that bring mortality into perspective. A triple bypass in ‘07 and a stroke in’ 08 give me a special appreciation for life. Indeed, in 2009, without the medical crises, the year has almost seemed like smooth sailing, though it hasn’t been without its challenging joys. We have welcomed one of our teenage grandchildren into our homelife for awhile. In addition, the experience of bank merger related activities at work have made for a full year.Yet, as Christmas draws near, a different sort of message keeps nibbling at the edges of my heart and mind. I keep wondering what Christmas is like from God’s perspective.Imagine going back to the place, before the magnificent grandeur of our universe. Actually, “going back,” and “place,” don’t even have meaning yet. Time does not exist and neither does the universe. Only God is. All that is yet to be created, all the matter, all the creatures, and all the beings; both male and female, are yet to germinate from His mind and heart. Let us consider visiting Him before He began it all.He is unimaginably complex. He is plural in person yet one in being. We call it three in one; three persons in one being. He is Love because He is three and He knows communion because He is one. Only one presence exists; He is “I AM.”As He ponders that which is to come He realizes “I will create. I am, I Love, I Know, and I choose to create.”He understands that these beings to be made would be less than mirrors of Himself, yet they will contain elements of His own nature. He thinks: “I will make them like me in ability to love, to know, and to be in communion with me and with one another.”. “They must be able to choose to love and be in communion with me and one another or choose otherwise. I can see that the “choose otherwise” part is their stumbling block. When they choose other ways they break communion with me. That breaks my heart! They do not realize that by choosing other ways they break communion, break love, and become separated from me. They will not comprehend that separation from Me, the only source of life, can only mean death. Yet being the creator I realize there is a solution.For a moment in eternity my Son will become one of them. That which is infinite will embody the finite. I will become one with them even as I am one. I love them so much that through my own being I will reweave the broken fabric of the universe. I will make it possible for each one of them to live again. I will absorb their bad choices, their sin, and even absorb death, sin’s consequence. I will die for them, though it is unthinkable – to break love, to break the communion of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Though the cost is excruciating and eternal, I will bear it for love of them.”Then He did as He planned; He created the whole universe to be background and support system for us, His chosen.Last year I mentioned something which bears repeating. I am realizing just how fearfully and wonderfully we are made. Our Creator went to great extremes to place our souls into these bodies we call life. When we failed, His Son Jesus Christ was born on Christmas Day, and he died for us that we might have eternal life. He gives us life, family, friends, and eternity. We have much to praise and thank Him for this season.May His wisdom, peace, love, joy and many blessings be upon you this Christmas.Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzek?2009Perfect Love at ChristmasThe notion that perfect love casts out fear has been of interest to me. The natural man in me thinks, “Why fear? Why not hatred, or bitterness, or anger?” With that in mind I reflected about the year and some thoughts crystallized.During the year Ingrid and I observed a relationship blossom between our son Andy and a lovely young woman named Carrie. This budding relationship was remarkable to watch because it seemed so different from the norms of today. In contrast to everything being so ‘me centered’ these two seemed to run counter culture; they didn’t seem to need to concentrate on what they individually would gain. Instead each concentrated on the needs and concerns of the other.When Andy proposed to Carrie in late October we were overjoyed. We had watched love overcome all the concerns that tend to weigh on individual hearts. This happened as the souls of both seemed focused on loving the other and birthing a ‘togetherness’ in their lives was one of the primary results.Does love cast out fear?Recently, we watched a movie in which a young couple struggled with cancer in one of their children. Initially they kept distancing themselves; perhaps they didn’t want to burden others with the fear that their daughter might die. Even so an older couple, who had suffered a deep loss of their own, began reaching out to this couple and their sick child.They literally galvanized the community into pouring out love for this family. Somehow the older couple had realized an essential truth. Loving others is life saving. When you love others, as they travel through life’s trials and joys, love wins out. I realized that “Christmas in November” carried an important message for all of us. When we make ourselves vulnerable to others by loving them, we may get hurt, but we will have been true to our purpose in life.…to love others!Love does cast out fear.During this year I’ve seen many people confront circumstances and some of the situations were serious. In every situation where genuine love was offered, at the very least, some of the sting of life was removed. In other situations hearts were softened, and the spring of hope was reborn. Our culture is frantically trying to reimage the Christmas season. Yet this is the precise time when we need to embrace the reality of Christmas. We celebrate Christmas because God gave us his Son, Jesus Christ as a baby in Bethlehem; a person just like you or me. Later in his life he would become a teacher and a healer of all the pain filled lives. After that he would confront fear, and because he loved us he would choose to die for us. His love overcame fear and all the world of darkness.Then He gave us the Holy Spirit; the precious gift of indwelling Life. With His Holy Nature residing within our hearts we would be able to know firsthand that…..“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment……” 1 John 4:16-18; NIVOriginally, it seemed that love casting out fear was unusual. Now I understand that any expression of genuine love is the hand of God working in us and through us. Where God is, fear will be cast out.As we enter into this Christmas season let us nourish love for one another. When we love we bring light and truth into the hearts of those we touch.May the light of Jesus Christ burn brightly in our hearts and minds this Christmas.Merry Christmas,Mark 2010Trials, Challenges, and Love 2011 was a time of joy, a time of surprise, and a time of mourning. The joy was was for our son Andy and his new bride Carrie. The surprise came from experiencing prison ministry. The mourning was due to a good friend in church who died and went to be with our Lord. Love was our sustaining force.2012 was a time of continued challenges. The work team I led was dissolved, my sister-in-law fought bone cancer, and my daughter, Ursula, was embattled with lung tissue cancer. Love and much prayer sustained us. After multiple surgeries, the miracle of ‘cancer free’ greeted our daughter Ursula. Though unmentioned in the writing, we also experienced providential timing when God introduced us to Terri a PCA who would love our disabled daughter Lauren.2013 mirrored the challenges of 2012 except my sister-in-law, Mary Jo lost her fight with cancer and went to be with our Lord Jesus in February of 2013. The joy part of that was that she had accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior a couple of months before her passing. My brother had bypass surgery in August and Ingrid had Mitral valve heart surgery in October. While she was in the hospital I met a man named Larry who was to lose his wife due to complications in surgery. It seems that the more we love our Lord the more gripping become our trials to faith. Only love for Jesus and his love for us holds us through.2014 was a recap of writing 40 of these Christmas letters. A number of the major events of my life are mentioned and how they impacted me. The two most major events were meeting Ingrid in 1974 and becoming a follower of Jesus Christ (again) in 1982. With Jesus and a wonderful helpmate one can face life more confidently.2015 was the year our granddaughter Emma was born. It also was the year our Supreme Court rejected the Christian norms of the culture and gave gays the right to marriage. A major part of this letter mentions how prison ministry has become a part of my life and how often it seems that prisoners are more hungry for God than folks on the outside.2016 shares how loving God and trusting Him to let His life be lived in and through you is the essence of full living. The joys of our Sweden trip the trials of Lauren breaking her ankles and the associated rehab are reviewed in the context of allowing God to live through our lives. Ingrid and I struggle yet thrive with the help of God’s mercy, grace, and life!The Lord’s Touch at ChristmasThree seemingly different events stand out this year. These events have a special touch of God’s creativity woven into them.Our son, Andy, and his beloved, Carrie, were married this spring. It is always wonderful to be a part of a wedding ceremony, where two loving parties are joined together in marriage. However, something extraordinary happens when the Holy Spirit visits a wedding with His presence. Tugging at the edges of my awareness was a sense that something special was happening in both the earthly and heavenly realms that day. It certainly was a blessing to be a part of it.The Workhouse ministry was a totally different opportunity. It is a mission work in my own back yard.This spring I joined two men, from my church, in their prison ministry at a minimum security workhouse. During orientation I distinctly remember the bleakness of the setting. When the third prison door clicked shut, I knew I was locked in. There is a final sense of being caged and a heavy impression of being lost to the outside world. At the first meeting I saw thirty to forty hard core men give their full attention to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I wondered why men who had spurned the Lord’s message in the outside world could be so attentive when inside prison.Every month I saw the same attentiveness, the same hunger for the Word of God. It seemed that most of the men thirsted for spiritual life. Over time I realized that these imprisoned men had been stripped of all the trappings of society. They had little of the constant sensory input we are plagued with, and they had much time to contemplate the desolation of their plight. Each one was able to appreciate the need for supernatural help. It had become easier for them to hunger for God because the outside distractions were not there.This whole situation made me think about Jesus’ words in Luke 4: 18-19; where He says:"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." NIVProclaiming freedom for the prisoners has sometimes perplexed me. We don’t read about Jesus setting prisoners free. However, the prisoners’ hunger for the Word helped me realize that they yearn for something deeper than physical freedom. They need the spiritual freedom of salvation, and prison is the catalyst for their spiritual hunger. Jesus’ words bring transforming life to them in a way that we on the outside rarely appreciate.The third significant event was the sudden and unexpected death of a friend from church.George was a kind, humorous, and gentle man. My own experience and all the eulogies given at the funeral were witness that George’s nature was that of a man who lavishly loved God and all the people around him. His wife, Gloria, said something that has lodged in my heart. About six months before his death, George began to repeat an urgent message: “Time is short!” There is an urgency to life and we who are saved need to be witnesses for Jesus Christ and the salvation he brings.At Andy’s and Carrie’s wedding we sensed the special presence of God. In the prison ministry I became aware that men, deprived of the niceties of life, hunger for God. In the death of a friend, there was the realization that time is short! The thread of God’s love knitted these three events into the fabric of my life.This Christmas let us absorb Jesus’ words in John 14:6 where He said;"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Then, with His indwelling presence, let us answer His call to reach out and touch another person with His words of life!Merry ChristmasMark Nemzekc 2011‘God With Us’ at ChristmasOne of the common errors of being Christian is to think, ‘If I become a good follower of Christ, everything will be fine.’ Then we take the liberty to define ‘fine’ in our own terms; like good health, prosperity, or smooth sailing. Yet, when we open the Bible we seldom encounter these notions. In fact, when we open the New Testament we find that being a disciple means to count the cost, to expect trials, and to expect adversity. We experience the same trials and joys as everyone else. However, through our trials we are to understand that our Lord is with us, he does not leave us alone...This has been a year of testing. With my sister in law fighting bone cancer, my work team being laid off, and my daughter fighting cancer through three major surgeries, Ingrid and I have been in constant prayer.Mary Jo, my older brother Mike’s wife, has been fighting bone cancer for nearly two years. The radiation and chemo treatments have taxed her deeply. Their love for one another is frequently the best sustenance they have. The struggles they have experienced seem so unfair. We pray for them daily.During the last year most of my work team experienced job displacements. This is a kind word for being “laid off.” My last team member has recently been transferred to another manager. These are good men and women who are excellent professionals and friends of mine. Our best efforts could not spare them from the job losses. My prayers have been constantly with them.There is also our daughter Ursula’s experience with cancer and the surgeries required to remove it. She informed us in the early months of the year that lung scans done in Sweden had been checked by researchers in the U.S., and that the tissue in her lung was likely precancerous and needed to come out.On May 10th Ursula had a wedge shaped portion of her lower right lung removed in a Grand Rapids, Michigan hospital. Unfortunately, her lab results indicated the tissue was cancerous. More of the lung would have to come out. Further tests noted a large mass on her right ovary. The doctors were quite concerned that she might have ovarian cancer, and that the lung cancer was an extension of that. Our prayers surrounded her.She had the ovarian surgery in the later part of June. The surgeons removed the mass, the right ovary, and a couple of lymph nodes. Two days later the lab results indicated all tissue samples were benign. While we all were thanking the Lord for the good report, we remembered she had one more surgery to go; to remove the cancerous lung tissue. On July 3rd the surgeons removed the lower lobe of Ursula’s right lung. We arrived in town for that surgery because we wanted to be close to her. Three days later the doctors came back with the lab results. The lung and inflamed lymph nodes which they removed were cancer free. The doctors were perplexed, but the family was ecstatic for the healing that had come to pass. We were giving thanks to our Lord.Sometimes I wonder about the speed of miracles. Some come fast, some slow. Sometimes brief prayer is required and then sometimes it takes incredible amounts of time and prayer before changes are noticed. Honestly, I know I always want it now! Most of the time it doesn’t happen that way. Then I remember that God does not promise to be our cosmic vending machine; popping out solutions at our individual discretion.His promise is to be with us in our tears and our rejoicing. Matt 1:23 says: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"-which means, "God with us." (Isa 7:14 NIV)As we face our challenges of the coming year, let’s take God’s Christmas promise to heart… ‘God is With Us!’Merry ChristmasMark Nemzek?2012 Ready for ChristmasTypically, “being ready for Christmas,” means that we’ve bought the gifts for family and friends, that we’ve purchased cards for everyone, and remembered everything we need to remember, so that the business of Christmas is done in time. It is a light, superficial way of looking at this special Holiday, and I believe that frequently we are so busy that we don’t get past the business of Christmas. This year three events have caused me to reconsider “being ready for Christmas.”In late February, my sister-in-law, Mary Jo, died from her battle with cancer. She was a good, strong woman who served as a nurse her whole adult life. She and my brother, Mike, remained a constant and very special part of my childhood memories. Throughout my life she was special, and I always anticipated the next visit with joyful expectations. Then she passed into eternity.I took time to visit my brother Mike, to be with him, while he mourned the passing of his sweetheart of forty-eight plus years. I miss Mary Jo and hope our Creator blesses and treasures her with the glorious love that only He can give.When summer arrived, Ingrid found out that she needed mitral valve heart surgery. It was scheduled for the 22nd of October.All went well, until three hours after surgery when evidence indicated serious internal bleeding. The surgeons took her back into surgery to discover the cause.The reality of human frailty hit me, and I felt vulnerable and helpless. At the heart level, I sensed that my love of more than 36 years could be taken from me. My spirit seemed to be in a place similar to Abraham’s when he was confronted with losing his son Isaac and then is given a reprieve. It is in the in-between-time where it is you, God, and your beloved where you find out how much you love/trust God, love the other, and confront your own frailty. My own frailty became clearer to me in that pivotal time.Only three days after Ingrid’s surgery I met Larry in the hospital cafeteria. In a brief period we traded life stories; and we became brothers in spirit. His wife of 48 years had just gone through an extreme heart related surgery. Two weeks later he found himself writing a sweet memorial that ended with: “Oh God .....Thank you for 48 years…..…..But GOD I MISS HER!”As I read his memorial I wept for my new friend.Events like these cause a person to fully appreciate the preciousness of the other. We can get a glimpse of God's love for us when such things happen. When we allow the Lord to direct our ways we become more fully aware that we need to deeply treasure those God has placed near us. When God allows us to live another day he grants us a reprieve. That Reprieve is granted in hope that we learn to ask the question. "Have I loved as well as God would have me love today?"“Am I ready for Christmas?” The real Christmas? Because, on that day I will get to personaly meet our Lord Jesus Christ!Merry Christmas,Mark B. Nemzek?2013Christmas Through Forty YearsForty years ago all of life still seemed in front of me. I would have been hard pressed to believe that in the next forty years our Lord’s blessings would overflow!At 21, I met Ingrid, my dearest partner, whom I married three years later. During this time I was busy exploring the eastern religions and western philosophies. Ingrid was patient with me. When dad died in ‘79 and mom in ‘82 I realized all the spiritual quests and philosophical inquiries couldn’t mend a grieving heart. I asked Jesus to forgive, heal, and fill me. He did!Our oldest children, Chris and Ursula, were joined by Anika, Andy, and Lauren between 1978 and 1989. Our family life was full. Somehow I managed to pick up an MBA, while raising family and working fulltime. Jesus was working in us and through us during those years. We participated in Marriage Encounter and joined CFO (Camps Farthest Out) a non-denominational Christian Family camp. We also became members of Vision of Glory, a church which believes in the living presence of God.By the early 90’s it became apparent to me that the true Christian walk was different from the secular worldly walk. It became even clearer that to commune with God was something the secular person couldn’t begin to comprehend. In 1993 I lamented that God had been taken out of our country, that moral laws were being replaced by secular ones, and that Christians were only being tolerated by the prevailing culture. Sadly, that trend is even more established today.During the 1990’s my job was taking me to many cities and during those travels came the opportunity to witness and pray with people. I don’t believe I have the gift of evangelism, but I was able to touch individuals with the love of Jesus in many different and wonderful ways. By the early 2000’s I was able to mentor a man as he struggled to find his way to the Lord. One of the most wonderful experiences I’ve ever had was on the night he gave his life to Jesus. I remember saying to Ingrid, “Tonight was like being a midwife watching in amazement as the Holy Spirit brought new life into someone separated from God.”In the early 2000’s dear friends and relatives passed on and the horrors of 9/11 shook our country. When Ingrid’s dad died in 2000 we learned to console one another more effectively. We both clung to Jesus more fervently. During the 90’s and early 2000’s we also became more accepting of our daughter Lauren’s disabilities. When it became obvious that she had problems, we wanted to address the issues. When ‘fixing her’ was not possible we came to realize that our primary call was to love her. That love will last into eternity.All the growth in the first 20 years of walking with Jesus seemed to be in preparation for the harder challenges. Family deaths, heart surgeries, job restructurings, weddings, grandchild parenting, and prison ministry all combined to make the last ten years challenging, yet filled with growth.My heart surgery in 2007 and stroke in 2008 caused me to realize my mortality in a big way. In addition, Ingrid’s mom died in 2008. These two years were especially challenging for her. In 2009 our granddaughter came to live with us for two years. After raising five children, we found out that we still had a lot to learn about parenting!In 2011 we joyfully celebrated Andy and Carrie’s wedding. That same year, after joining prison ministry, I discovered that some men in prison thirst for God more than the folks on the outside do. That year ended with yet another friend passing into eternity.In 2012 and 2013 my daughter Ursula survived a bout with cancer and my sister-in-law died from it. My brother Mike and Ingrid experienced heart surgeries, and we were blessed with a personal care attendant who loves our daughter, Lauren.Forty years of life challenges later we know Jesus holds us in His strength. As we prepare for a homecoming Christmas with family, we pray for His wisdom, peace, love, & joy to sustain you this Christmas season and in the coming days.Merry ChristmasMark Nemzek? 2014 Christmas in Daily LifeThe year has been full.During the early months, a young colleague asked if we could explore the validity of Christianity. His own position was closer to atheism or agnosticism. We had weekly lunches for over two months, and though he hadn’t realized the error of his ways, we parted with a clear understanding that good Christians could be solid thinkers. Our son, Andy, and daughter in law, Carrie, gave birth to their daughter, Emma Lee, in the waning days of April. This is really special because, though she is our 8th grandchild, she is our first local grandbaby. Ingrid is relishing every moment when she cares for our little Emma.In April I was offered a new work opportunity. This promotion was filled with challenges and some unexpected curves. New jobs can be daunting in the beginning months. This one certainly was.During this same early summer period I was able to come along side a friend who was grieving the loss of her dad. There is something special in praying with a friend when a crucial need is just to have someone understand the heartache.Then in late June our US Supreme Court issued yet another decision which attacks the moral fabric of our nation. Our leaders’ decisions do affect us. Yet, even when our leaders have allowed secularism to corrupt their judgment we must live our individual lives with God directing our hearts, minds, and lives.Early July found us visiting Anika and John in the Rockies of Montana. We spent each day prepping for the big hike. Our daughter, Anika, is gifted with many talents. An accomplished mountain hiker is one of them! Each hiking experience offered us the opportunity to bathe in the beauty of the Rocky Mountains. Between treasuring our visits with Anika and John and with new found friends, leaving the Rocky Mountains was hard. Many treasured moments that were physically left behind remain nourished in our hearts.One of the more amazing anchor points has been our Lord giving me the opportunity to continue ministering to men in prison. Those who know me well know that I am an introvert. In group settings I am usually found on the periphery. Yet, on the rare occasions when asked about the state of our world, of humankind, or about God; I will join the conversation. In fact, I’ve been known to say, “The only thing I could sell would be God’s salvation. And that is never for sale!” Still, He encourages us to talk about His gift of Life.Prison is one of the few places where constant hunger for God and His plan for salvation still thrives. That hunger is flourishing in the hearts and minds of the incarcerated men. It is as if I have been designed to feed men who are hungry for more of God’s Word. Prison time can be a place where the guys drop all their facades to concentrate on Jesus and His desire for our lives. The introvert in me flees when the men’s attentiveness encourages me to freely talk about God’s love for us and His plan for our lives. I for long those on the outside to express the same hunger for God.At home I stand amazed at the life partner our Lord has permitted me to treasure for these thirty eight plus years. Ingrid and I have been blessed to be able to discover and explore the realm of one another and ‘one anothering’. She is my love and joy in this transient passage of life. Our daughter, Lauren, has been a catalyst for catching the meaning of becoming more other centered. She blesses us by giving us the opportunity to live life as ministry.This year, like others, has given us many vignettes, opportunities to experience the joys and sorrows of life and share the Love of Jesus Christ during all circumstances. Our nation is crumbling morally and culturally, yet God remains a constant for each one of us. His Love expressed through His Son Jesus Christ is always present for us to receive. His gift to us…is Jesus. He is the ‘Christ’ in Christmas!Merry ChristmasMark Nemzek? 2015 Christ; His Quiet Shared PresenceKnowing communion with God has been my heartfelt desire for a long time. This Lenten season proved to be no exception. While presenting two Lenten messages I was reminded that life struggles don’t automatically bring communion with God.God seemed to be blessing us during our trip to Sweden in early June. It was a special joy for Ingrid and me. We, along with our daughter Anika, celebrated granddaughter Ellie’s high school graduation and enjoyed a vibrant visit with Ursula, her husband Joe, and two of our grandchildren. Our Lord’s sweet presence filled the time.This spring we started reading “The Rest of the Gospel” by David Gregory. It reminded us that either life’s circumstances or God’s presence can be our focal point while experiencing life’s joys and trials. The author used Paul’s comments in : 1 Corinthians 6; 19-20: to remind us that God resides in us. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.This was an easy reminder during the joy filled Sweden trip. I wondered if it would be as easy when trials happened?We planned a family reunion for Ingrid’s 70th in mid August. The much anticipated joyful celebration was interrupted on August 14th. In the blink of an eye, our daughter Lauren, missed a step, fell, broke three bones in her right ankle, dislocated the bone and tore two ligaments in her left ankle. A long recovery period would be required!That first night my cry to Jesus was for Him to show me His Way through this. My angry, broken heart challenged Him to show me how anything good could come of this miserable situation.He presented a picture of a path leading to a “fork in the road.” Down one side was anger, bitterness, discouragement, and wallowing in self pity; all controlled by focusing on my life’s current circumstance The other path approached life by yielding to God’s perception filled with peace, joy, love, and wisdom, regardless of the circumstances.He showed me that every decision in life confronts this “fork in the road.” It is the Deuteronomy 30 exhortation in today’s terms. Every decision in life is one of life or death. He exhorts us to “choose life.”Lauren reached the completion of her 4th full month of casts and boots with the hope that the last boot would come off in mid December. During so many of the hard days she mournfully kept asking, “Is it over?” When we left the doctor’s office, that cold December day, I looked her in the eyes and exclaimed, “It is OVER!” She paused, and then suddenly she punched the air with her right arm and exclaimed, “Yayyyy!”Throughout this four month trial, we’ve called on our Lord many times and have often survived the fatigue of each day by leaning on His strength. We’d get to the “end of our rope” only to yield it to Him with the quiet realization that His supply would be enough to step into the next day. He gives us the continual reminder in His prayer for us in John 17; 20-23: “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity.Each day Ingrid and I come to more fully appreciate His prayer for us. Only living in His strength and love and then allowing His wisdom and life to flow through our decisions and actions in life is communion possible for us.His offer of life is present for everyone!Blessings and….Merry ChristmasMark Nemzek? 2016 ................
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